50 Fun Facts About Champions League

Under what name was the Champions League introduced in 1955?

It was a straight knockout for domestic league champions only until the 1990s.

The editor of which French newspaper, Gabriel Hanot, proposed the creation of the European Cup?

He was inspired by reports of the 1948 South American Championship of Champions.

In what year did the competition take on the name UEFA Champions League?

A round-robin group stage had been added in 1991, and multiple entrants per country were allowed from 1997-98.

How many European Cup/Champions League titles had Real Madrid won by the end of 2025?

They are also the only club to win it five times in a row, taking the first five editions.

Whom did Real Madrid beat 4-3 in the inaugural 1956 final at the Parc des Princes?

Alfredo Di Stéfano and Marquitos scored, and Héctor Rial got two, as Madrid came from behind.

The 1960 final, the highest-scoring ever, saw Real Madrid beat which team 7-3 at Hampden Park?

Ferenc Puskás scored four and Alfredo Di Stéfano a hat-trick.

Which club ended Real Madrid's five-title run by knocking them out in the 1960-61 first round?

Barcelona then lost the final 3-2 to Benfica; the trophy left Iberia for the first time only in 1963.

Which club in 1967 became the first British winner, with a team all born within 30 miles of Glasgow?

Jock Stein's "Lisbon Lions" beat Inter Milan 2-1.

Which team was the first English club to win the European Cup, beating Benfica 4-1 in 1968?

It was ten years after the Munich air disaster; their next win came in the 1999 comeback final.

Which two clubs each won three titles in a row in the 1970s?

Ajax won 1971-73 and Bayern 1974-76.

Brian Clough's Nottingham Forest won back-to-back European Cups in which years?

Forest remain the only club with more European Cups (two) than domestic league titles (one).

Why were English clubs banned from European competition for five years from 1985?

Liverpool, involved in the 1985 final, were banned for six years.

Which Romanian club won the European Cup in 1986?

Porto (1987) and PSV Eindhoven (1988) followed during the English ban.

Which club won the last Champions League open only to domestic champions, in 1996-97?

From the next season, several countries could enter multiple teams.

The Champions League anthem, written by Tony Britten in 1992, is an adaptation of which Handel work?

The Royal Philharmonic recorded it, and it plays as the teams line up before every match.

What is the name of the Champions League's logo, created by Design Bridge in 1991?

By 1999 it reportedly had a 94 percent recognition rate among fans.

How much does the Champions League trophy in use since 1967 weigh?

Bern jeweller Jürg Stadelmann designed the 74 cm silver cup after Real Madrid were given the original permanently in 1966.

Before 2009, a club kept the Champions League trophy by winning it three times in a row or how many times overall?

The rule applied from 1968-69 until the 2008-09 season.

Who is the all-time top scorer in the competition with 140 goals?

He scored them between 2003 and 2022 for three clubs in England, Spain and Italy.

Which two players share the record of eight appearances in finals?

Gento's were all for Real Madrid between 1956 and 1966; Maldini's all for Milan between 1989 and 2007.

Which manager has won the competition a record five times?

Twice with Milan and three times with Real Madrid, most recently in 2023-24.

Who scored the fastest goal in the competition's history, after 10.12 seconds, in 2007?

He struck for Bayern Munich against Real Madrid.

The 2005 final in Istanbul saw Liverpool come back from 3-0 down at half-time against which team?

Gerrard, Šmicer and Xabi Alonso scored in six minutes and Liverpool won on penalties.

Which two substitutes scored the 1999 winners' injury-time goals to beat Bayern Munich in the final?

The win at Camp Nou completed United's treble.

Zinedine Zidane's famous volley won the 2002 final at Hampden Park against which German club?

It was Real Madrid's ninth European Cup and Leverkusen's first final.

Which club became the first from London to win the Champions League, beating Bayern on penalties in 2012?

Didier Drogba equalized late and Petr Čech saved Arjen Robben's extra-time penalty.

Who scored a penalty after just 106 seconds of the 2019 final against Tottenham?

Origi added a second late on for Liverpool's sixth title.

Which club won the 2025 final 5-0, the biggest margin ever in a final?

It was PSG's first European Cup and only the second by a French club, after Marseille in 1993, and it completed a domestic-and-European treble.

How many teams take part in the league phase introduced in 2024-25?

Each plays eight different opponents in a single Swiss-style table instead of groups of four.

Which two clubs from outside the "Big Five" leagues have reached the final since the 1992 rebrand?

Ajax won in 1995 and lost in 1996; Porto won in 2004 under José Mourinho.

In which season did Bayern Munich win every match on the way to the title, the only club ever to do so?

That was the pandemic season, finished with single-leg ties in empty stadiums in Lisbon.

Which club won the Champions League in 2023 to complete an English treble?

Only one other English club, in 1999, has won the continental treble.

Which club has lost a record seven finals despite winning only two?

Their wins came in 1985 and 1996; Benfica have lost five finals against two wins.

Which club has appeared in three finals without ever winning, in 1974, 2014 and 2016?

Valencia lost in 2000 and 2001, and Arsenal in 2006 and 2026.

How many consecutive Champions League seasons had Real Madrid played by 2026-27, a record?

They also share the record for most group-stage appearances, at 29.

Which manager holds the record for most Champions League matches with a single club, 190?

Ancelotti holds the record for most appearances with different clubs, eight.

Which player made a record 163 appearances for a single club, Bayern Munich?

Iker Casillas holds the record for most minutes played, over 16,000.

Which club recorded the biggest ever margin of victory, 11-0 over Crusaders in 1973-74?

Feyenoord scored the most goals in a single match, beating KR Reykjavík 12-2 in 1969-70.

Which club won the trophy on its European Cup debut in 1982 and has never returned to a final?

Feyenoord (1970), PSV (1988) and Red Star (1991) also won their only finals.

Which two Real Madrid greats share the record for most goals in finals, with seven?

Puskás scored four in 1960 and three in 1962; the Champions League-era record is four.

Which competitions does the Champions League winner automatically qualify for?

The winner also gets a place in the next Champions League and the FIFA Intercontinental Cup.

Which club won the European Cup in 1991 as the last champion before the Champions League rebrand?

The last European Cup-branded final was in 1992, and Marseille won the first Champions League in 1993.

How many teams took part in the first European Cup in 1955-56?

Some entered by invitation, including Hibernian of Scotland and Saarbrücken of the Saar.

Which Scottish club was among the 16 entrants of the inaugural 1955-56 European Cup?

Other invitees included Servette, Sporting CP and Reims.

Whose brace for Milan at Wembley in 1963 took the trophy out of Iberia for the first time?

Benfica were the beaten finalists after two straight titles.

Who scored a hat-trick for Milan in the 4-1 defeat of Ajax in the 1969 final?

Ajax were the first Dutch team to reach the final; Feyenoord became the first Dutch winners a year later.

Which Greek club did Ajax beat in the 1971 final?

It was the first of three straight Ajax titles.

How many clubs own a version of the official trophy outright?

They are Real Madrid, Ajax, Bayern Munich, Milan and Liverpool; since 2008 winners get a replica.

Which Bern jeweller designed the current trophy after the original went to Real Madrid in 1966?

The 74 cm silver trophy cost 10,000 Swiss francs to make.

When the Champions League launched in 1992, what was the maximum number of sponsors allowed?

Each got four advertising boards around the pitch and priority on TV ads during matches.