Red Star 's first successes involved small steps to recognition . In the first fifteen years of existence , Red Star won one Serbian championship , six Yugoslav championships , five Yugoslav Cups , one Danube Cup and reached the semi-finals of the 1956 – 57 European Cup . Some of the greatest players during this period were Kosta Tomašević , Branko Stanković , Rajko Mitić , Vladimir Beara , Bora Kostić , Vladica Popović , Vladimir Durković and Dragoslav Šekularac . As champions , Red Star were Yugoslavia 's entrants into the 1957 – 58 European Cup where they were famously beaten 5 – 4 on aggregate by English champions Manchester United in the quarter-finals . Manchester United , managed by Matt Busby defeated Red Star 2 – 1 in the first leg in England before drawing 3 – 3 with them in Yugoslavia in the return match on 5 February at JNA Stadium . The second leg is notable for being the last match played by the Busby Babes : on the return flight to England the following day , the plane crashed in Munich , resulting in the deaths of 23 people , including eight Manchester United players
crashed
Munich air disaster
Red Star Belgrade