Ranking The Top 10 Champions League Finals In History As PSG and Inter Prepare To Face Off In Munich

As the 2024-25 Champions League final between Paris Saint-Germain and Inter Milan edges ever closer, we at SportsCasting are taking a look at the top 10 finals in the competition’s history.

Top 10 Champions League Finals: Ranked

10. 2018: Real Madrid 3-1 Liverpool

Gareth Bale was the star of the show in the 2018 Champions League final, netting twice and picking up the Man of the Match award despite only featuring for half an hour, as Real Madrid beat Liverpool 3-1.

An error from Loris Karius gifted Los Blancos the opener, converted by 2022 Ballon d’Or winner Karim Benzema, however Sadio Mane struck back for Jurgen Klopp’s Reds only four minutes later.

Bale was introduced on the 61 minute mark, and just two minutes after coming on, the Welshman produced an incredible bicycle kick from Marcelo’s cross to restore his side’s lead.

Many consider his effort to be the greatest Champions League final goal in history.

20 minutes later, Real had their third. Bale’s long-distance effort, which undoubtedly should’ve been dealt with by Karius, crept into the back of the net to seal another continental title for the LaLiga giants.

9. 2002: Bayer Leverkusen 1-2 Real Madrid

Record winners Real Madrid came out on top in an evenly contested affair against Bayer Leverkusen in 2002, but what the game is mostly ed for is Zinedine Zidane’s iconic game-winning volley.

Raul handed Los Blancos the lead after eight minutes, with Lucio quickly responding six minutes later for the German side, and Zidane’s moment of magic would follow close to 30 minutes later.

After an attempted cross from Roberto Carlos failed, the ball looped up into the air towards the Frenchman, who was standing just inside the box, and his beautifully struck first-time volley left Hans-Jorg Butt no chance.

8. 1997: Borussia Dortmund 3-1 Juventus

Borussia Dortmund’s win over Juventus in 1997 is considered one of the biggest upsets in Champions League final history.

The Serie A giants were the reigning champions and came into the tie as one of the best teams in Europe. However, Scotland midfielder Paul Lambert was a constant thorn in their side and inspired Die Borussen to victory.

Karl-Heinze Riedle netted a quick-fire brace to put the Bundesliga side two goals to the good heading into the half-time break, but the legendary Alessandro Del Piero halved the deficit 20 minutes into the second half.

Dortmund quickly restored their two goal advantage though, with Lars Ricken converting past Angelo Peruzzi, thus securing his club’s one and only UEFA Champions League title.

7. 2011: Barcelona 3-1 Manchester United

The 2011 Champions League final is potentially the most iconic game in Pep Guardiola’s tenure as manager.

Their tiki-taka style was prevalent throughout, and despite Wayne Rooney drawing Manchester United level after Pedro’s opener in the first period, the Red Devils never really looked like they had a chance.

Lionel Messi restored his side’s lead in the second period before David Villa capped off the performance with a third.

After the full-time whistle, Sir Alex Ferguson said: “In my time as a manager, it’s the best team I’ve faced.”

6. 2008: Manchester United 1-1 Chelsea (6-5 pens)

A dramatic clash between Manchester United and Chelsea in Moscow, which is now one of six all-English European finals, saw the Red Devils claim their third European Cup/Champions League title in 2008.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Frank Lampard scored in the first period to cancel each other out, and after a goalless second period and extra-time, a penalty shootout would decide the winner of the competition.

Incredibly, Ronaldo was the first to miss his spot kick, which handed the Blues an opportunity to win the game.

In what would’ve been the decisive penalty though, John Terry slipped in the Russian rain, and his effort smashed against the post, much to the delight of Ronaldo, sending the shootout to sudden death.

Anderson and Solomon Kalou netted their penalties, followed by Ryan Giggs converting his. Nicolas Anelka though, was denied by Edwin van der Sar, as United won the game in the most remarkable fashion.

5. 2012: Chelsea 1-1 Bayern Munich (4-3 pens)

Another iconic final involving an English side came in 2012, when Chelsea defeated Bayern in their own backyard.

It was a cagey affair throughout, so when Thomas Muller put the Bavarians in front seven minutes from time, it looked as though that was the decider. Thankfully for the Blues, that wasn’t the case.

With less than two minutes of regular time remaining, Didier Drogba equalised from Juan Mata’s corner to send the tie to extra-time, where the pair were unable to find a winner, meaning a penalty shootout was required.

Misses from Ivica Olic and Bastian Schweinsteiger opened the door for Drogba to seal the win for Chelsea, and he did just that, slotting his spot kick into the bottom left corner to secure his club’s first ever Champions League title.

4. 2014: Real Madrid 4-1 Atletico Madrid

An all-Madrid Champions League final was always going to be a dramatic one, and the 2014 meeting between Atletico and Real certainly didn’t disappoint, with the record winners prevailing 4-1 after extra-time.

It looked as though Atleti would claim the bragging rights for the majority of the tie, as they led for close to an hour after Diego Godin’s opener after 36 minutes. However, it wasn’t to be for Diego Simeone and co.

Los Blancos legend Sergio Ramos responded with a leveller in the 93rd minute to send the game to extra-time.

Gareth Bale put Real in front, followed by Marcelo extending the advantage at 118 minutes. Cristiano Ronaldo, who has scored the most goals in Champions League finals, found the fourth to complete the turnaround for Carlo Ancelotti’s side.

3. 1994: AC Milan 4-0 Barcelona

Managed by Fabio Capello, AC Milan produced what many consider to be the greatest Champions League final performance in history in 1994, as they overcame Johan Cruyff’s Barcelona by an incredible 4-0 scoreline.

A Daniele Massaro double put them two goals ahead at the break, and it would only get better from there.

Dejan Savicevic, who shone in the first half, made it 3-0 on 47 minutes with a beautifully lobbed effort over Andoni Zubizarreta. Marcel Desailly would complete the rout 11 minutes later with a curled finish from close range.

2. 1999: Manchester United 2-1 Bayern Munich

Although the match was largely uneventful on the whole, the final sequences of the 1999 final between Manchester United and Bayern Munich make it one of the most memorable cup finals in football history.

The Bavarians led through Mario Basler after six minutes, and despite leading and dominating for the majority of the tie, a tactical masterclass from Sir Alex Ferguson would completely turn the game on its head.

It would be the introductions of both Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer that made the difference.

Sheringham, subbed on after 67 minutes, equalised in the 91st minute to keep the Red Devils’ dreams alive, before Solskjaer, subbed on after 81 minutes, turned home the winner from a corner in the 93rd minute.

As Bayern were left despondent, United were on top of the world as they completed an iconic treble.

1. 2005: AC Milan 3-3 Liverpool (2-3 pens)

Undoubtedly the most iconic Champions League final came in 2005 when Liverpool beat AC Milan on penalties.

The Reds trailed after less than a minute, with Paolo Maldini handing the Rossoneri an early lead from a set-piece, before Hernan Crespo netted a quick-fire double to put his side 3-0 up at the break.

What followed was perhaps the greatest comeback football has ever seen, given the occasion. In the space of six minutes, between the 54th and 60th minute, Liverpool were level at 3-3.

Club captain Steven Gerrard scored the first with a header, Vladimir Smicer followed with a long-range effort for the second, and Xabi Alonso completed the comeback with a rebound from a penalty.

Extra-time and penalties were next, and the man that stepped up to the task was none other than Jerzy Dudek.

The Polish stopper denied Andriy Shevchenko with a fine double stop in extra-time, and denied him once more in the shootout to win the match for the Merseyside club, thus sealing their fifth European title.