[5] In the transfer season, Benfica lost two major players, Fernando Chalana and Glenn Strömberg.

[6] To replace him, Benfica signed domestic players like Jorge Silva, Wando and Adelino Nunes.

[19] In October, Benfica began their European Cup campaign with Crvena Zvezda, defeating them on aggregate.

[20] On 20 January, Benfica drew with Braga on match-day 17 and started their biggest ever win-less period in the Primeira Divisão.

[24] In the Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira, a one-nil win for both Benfica and Porto forced a replay of the competition.

[24] Before the end of May, Benfica lost away in the first leg of the Supertaça to Porto, but won the Lisbon derby with Sporting by 3–1, reducing the distance between them.

[24] In June, Benfica lost again in the Supertaça, losing the competition and finished the league in third place, 12 points behind Porto and five from Sporting.

Note 2: Players with squad numbers marked ‡ joined the club during the 1984-85 season via transfer, with more details in the following section.