UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League, or simply known as the UCL is a football competition organized by UEFA, between some of the top club teams in Europe. The top team in the league comes out UEFA champions league every year. 32 teams will play the game and determines the best football club. At first, it was started by France, not the European Football Federation. It was played only as a home and away tournament, but a group stage was added from the 1991-92 season. The teams are selected because of good performances in their respective domestic leagues. The teams used to have to win their countries' league, but more than one team can play in the competition depending on how good their league is. For example: the Spanish League can get 4 Spanish clubs in the competition compared to the Kazakhstan League which can only get one team in the competition.
| Founded | 1955 (rebranded in 1992) |
|---|---|
| Region | Europe (UEFA) |
| Number of teams | 32 (group stage) 79 (total) |
| Qualifier for | UEFA Super Cup FIFA Club World Cup |
| Related competitions | UEFA Europa League (2nd tier) UEFA Europa Conference League (3rd tier) |
| Current champions |  Real Madrid CF (15th title) |
| Most successful club(s) | Real Madrid (15 titles) |
| Website | Official website |
 2023–24 UEFA Champions League | |
Real Madrid won the Champions League the first five times it was held, still a record. They have also won the Champions League/European Cup 15 times, which is also a record.
A total of 23 clubs from 10 European countries won the Champions League. 12 clubs won it more than once: Real Madrid, Milan, Bayern, Liverpool, Barcelona, Ajax, Manchester United, Inter Milan, Juventus, Benfica, Porto, Chelsea and Nottingham Forest.
Records and statistics
Winners and runners-up
- As of 2024
Club
|
Winners | Runners-up | Years won | Years runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Real Madrid
|
15 | 3 | 1962, 1964, 1981 | |
 Milan
|
7 | 4 | 1963, 1969, 1989, 1990, 1994, 2003, 2007 | 1958, 1993, 1995, 2005 |
 Bayern Munich
|
6 | 5 | 1974, 1975, 1976, 2001, 2013, 2020 | 1982, 1987, 1999, 2010, 2012 |
 Liverpool
|
6 | 4 | 1977, 1978, 1981, 1984, 2005, 2019 | 1985, 2007, 2018, 2022 |
| Barcelona
|
5 | 3 | 1992, 2006, 2009, 2011, 2015 | 1961, 1986, 1994 |
 Ajax
|
4 | 2 | 1971, 1972, 1973, 1995 | 1969, 1996 |
| Internazionale
|
3 | 3 | 1964, 1965, 2010 | 1967, 1972,
2023 |
| Manchester United
|
3 | 2 | 1968, 1999, 2008 | 2009, 2011 |
| Juventus
|
2 | 7 | 1985, 1996 | 1973, 1983, 1997, 1998, 2003, 2015, 2017 |
 Benfica
|
2 | 5 | 1961, 1962 | 1963, 1965, 1968, 1988, 1990 |
| Chelsea
|
2 | 1 | 2012, 2021 | 2008 |
| Nottingham Forest
|
2 | 0 | 1979, 1980 | — |
| Porto
|
2 | 0 | 1987, 2004 | — |
 Celtic
|
1 | 1 | 1967 | 1970 |
| Hamburg
|
1 | 1 | 1983 | 1980 |
 Steaua București
|
1 | 1 | 1986 | 1989 |
 Marseille
|
1 | 1 | 1993 | 1991 |
| Borussia Dortmund
|
1 | 1 | 1997 | 2013, 2024 |
| Manchester City
|
1 | 1 | 2023 | 2021 |
| Feyenoord
|
1 | 0 | 1970 | — |
| Aston Villa
|
1 | 0 | 1982 | — |
| PSV Eindhoven
|
1 | 0 | 1988 | — |
 Red Star Belgrade
|
1 | 0 | 1991 | — |
| Atlético Madrid
|
0 | 3 | — | 1974, 2014, 2016 |
| Stade de Reims
|
0 | 2 | — | 1956, 1959 |
| Valencia
|
0 | 2 | — | 2000, 2001 |
| Fiorentina
|
0 | 1 | — | 1957 |
| Eintracht Frankfurt
|
0 | 1 | — | 1960 |
| Partizan
|
0 | 1 | — | 1966 |
 Panathinaikos
|
0 | 1 | — | 1971 |
| Leeds United
|
0 | 1 | — | 1975 |
| Saint-Étienne
|
0 | 1 | — | 1976 |
| Borussia Mönchengladbach
|
0 | 1 | — | 1977 |
 Club Brugge
|
0 | 1 | — | 1978 |
 Malmö FF
|
0 | 1 | — | 1979 |
| Roma
|
0 | 1 | — | 1984 |
| Sampdoria
|
0 | 1 | — | 1992 |
| Bayer Leverkusen
|
0 | 1 | — | 2002 |
| Monaco
|
0 | 1 | — | 2004 |
| Arsenal
|
0 | 1 | — | 2006 |
| Tottenham Hotspur
|
0 | 1 | — | 2019 |
| Paris Saint-Germain
|
0 | 1 | — | 2020 |
By nation
- As of 23 August 2020
| Nation | Winners | Runners-up | Winning Clubs |
|---|---|---|---|
 Spain
|
20 | 11 | 2 |
 England
|
13 | 10 | 5 |
 Italy
|
12 | 16 | 3 |
 Germany
|
8 | 10 | 3 |
 Netherlands
|
6 | 2 | 3 |
 Portugal
|
4 | 5 | 2 |
 France
|
1 | 6 | 1 |
 Scotland
|
1 | 1 | 1 |
 Romania
|
1 | 1 | 1 |
 Yugoslavia
|
1 | 1 | 1 |
 Greece
|
0 | 1 | 0 |
 Belgium
|
0 | 1 | 0 |
 Sweden
|
0 | 1 | 0 |
Final venues
| Stadium | Hosts | Years |
|---|---|---|
| Wembley Stadium, London
|
1963, 1968, 1971, 1978, 1992, 2011, 2013, 2024 | |
| San Siro, Milan
|
1965, 1970, 2001, 2016, 2027 | |
| Estadio Santiago Bernabéu, Madrid
|
4 | 1957, 1969, 1980, 2010 |
| Heysel Stadium, Brussels
|
1958, 1966, 1974, 1985 | |
 Praterstadion, Wien
|
1964, 1987, 1990, 1995 | |
| Stadio Olimpico, Rome
|
1977, 1984, 1996, 2009 | |
| Parc des Princes, Paris
|
3 | 1956, 1975, 1981 |
| Stade de France, Saint-Denis
|
2000, 2006, 2022 | |
| Olympiastadion, Munich
|
1979, 1993, 1997 | |
| Hampden Park, Glasgow
|
1960, 1976, 2002 | |
 Olympic Stadium, Athens
|
1983, 1994, 2007 | |
| Camp Nou, Barcelona
|
2 | 1989, 1999 |
| Estádio da Luz, Lisbon
|
2014, 2020 | |
| De Kuip, Rotterdam
|
1972, 1982 | |
| Allianz Arena, Munich
|
2012, 2025 | |
| Neckarstadion, Stuttgart
|
1959, 1988 | |
 Atatürk Olympic Stadium, Istanbul
|
2005, 2023 | |
 Wankdorf Stadium, Bern
|
1 | 1961 |
| Olympisch Stadion, Amsterdam
|
1962 | |
| Estádio do Jamor, Lisbon
|
1967 | |
| Red Star Stadium, Belgrade
|
1973 | |
| Estadio Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán, Seville
|
1986 | |
| Stadio San Nicola, Bari
|
1991 | |
| Amsterdam Arena, Amsterdam
|
1998 | |
| Old Trafford, Manchester
|
2003 | |
| Arena AufSchalke, Gelsenkirchen
|
2004 | |
 Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow
|
2008 | |
| Olympiastadion, Berlin
|
2015 | |
 Millennium Stadium, Cardiff
|
2017 | |
 NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium, Kyiv
|
2018 | |
| Wanda Metropolitano, Madrid
|
2019 | |
| Estádio do Dragão, Porto
|
2021 | |
 Puskás Arena, Budapest
|
2026 |
All-time top goalscorers
| Rank | Player | Goals | Apps | Ratio | Years | Club(s) (Goals) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cristiano Ronaldo
|
140 | 183 | 0.77 | 2003– | Manchester United (21), Real Madrid (105), Juventus (14) |
| 2 |  Lionel Messi
|
129 | 161 | 0.8 | 2005– | Barcelona (120), Paris Saint-Germain (9) |
| 3 |  Robert Lewandowski
|
91 | 111 | 0.82 | 2011– | Borussia Dortmund (17), Bayern Munich (69), Barcelona (5) |
| 4 | Karim Benzema
|
86 | 145 | 0.59 | 2005– | Lyon (12), Real Madrid (74) |
| 5 | Raúl
|
71 | 142 | 0.5 | 1995–2011 | Real Madrid (66), Schalke 04 (5) |
| 6 | Ruud van Nistelrooy
|
56 | 73 | 0.77 | 1998–2009 | PSV Eindhoven (8), Manchester United (35), Real Madrid (13) |
| 7 | Thomas Müller
|
53 | 138 | 0.38 | 2009– | Bayern Munich |
| 8 | Thierry Henry
|
50 | 112 | 0.45 | 1997–2012 | Monaco (7), Arsenal (35), Barcelona (8) |
| 9 |  Alfredo Di Stéfano  |
49 | 58 | 0.84 | 1955–1964 | Real Madrid |
| 10 | Andriy Shevchenko
|
48 | 100 | 0.48 | 1994–2012 | Dynamo Kyiv (15), Milan (29), Chelsea (4) |
| Zlatan Ibrahimović
|
48 | 124 | 0.39 | 2001– | Ajax (6), Juventus (3), Inter Milan (6), Barcelona (4), Milan (9), Paris Saint-Germain (20) | |
| 12 | Eusébio |
46 | 65 | 0.71 | 1961–1974 | Benfica |
| Filippo Inzaghi
|
46 | 81 | 0.57 | 1997–2012 | Juventus (17), Milan (29) | |
| 14 |  Didier Drogba
|
44 | 92 | 0.48 | 2003–2015 | Marseille (5), Chelsea (36), Galatasaray (3) |
| 15 |  Mohamed Salah
|
43 | 77 | 0.56 | 2013– | Basel (2), Roma (1), Liverpool (40) |
 Neymar
|
43 | 80 | 0.54 | 2013– | Barcelona (21), Paris Saint-Germain (22) | |
| 17 | Alessandro Del Piero
|
42 | 89 | 0.47 | 1995–2009 | Juventus |
| 18 | Sergio Agüero
|
41 | 79 | 0.52 | 2008–2021 | Atlético Madrid (5), Manchester City (36) |
| 19 | Kylian Mbappé
|
40 | 59 | 0.68 | 2016– | Monaco (6), Paris Saint-Germain (34) |
| 20 | Ferenc Puskás |
36 | 41 | 0.88 | 1956–1966 | Budapest Honvéd (1), Real Madrid (35) |
UEFA Champions League Media
Alfredo Di Stéfano (pictured in 1959) led Real Madrid to five consecutive European Cup titles between 1956 and 1960.
Johan Cruyff (pictured in 1972) won the European Cup three times in a row with Ajax.
The two teams line up for the UEFA Champions League Anthem before each match and a flag of the Champions League "starball" logo is waved in the centre circle.
The "starball" logo is incorporated into the design of the competition's official match ball, the Adidas Finale.
A map of UEFA countries whose teams have reached the league phase or group stage of the UEFA Champions League UEFA member state that has been represented in the league phase or group stage UEFA member state that has not been represented in the league phase or group stage
Trofeo Champions League
A can of Heineken with the branding of the 2011 UEFA Champions League final
Real Madrid were barred from wearing their bwin-sponsored jerseys when they played against Galatasaray in Turkey in April 2013, where gambling advertisements are banned.
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