UEFA Champions League Trivia: 20 Facts You Didn’t Know!

The Champions League is comfortably the biggest domestic competition in world football. But there’s probably an awful lot you really don’t know about it.

Tottenham and Liverpool go head-to-head in this year’s Champions League Final, with the Reds looking to secure their sixth trophy, putting them ahead of Bayern and Barcelona and into the position of third most successful side of all-time.

With kick off approaching, we decided to run down 20 intriguing facts about the Champions League you never knew you wanted to know…

 

1 The Champions League Final is the most watched annual event on the planet.

As many as 360 million watch the event. Move over Super Bowl!

2 Clarence Seedorf is the only man to win the tournament with three different teams (Ajax, Real Madrid and Milan).

Ronaldo is on his tail though.

3 Roy Makaay netted for Bayern in just over 10 seconds.

The fastest in tournament history!

4 Tottenham v Liverpool will be the seventh Final with teams from the same country.

Real Madrid v Atlético Madrid was the last.

5 Madrid is the only city that has seen two teams make the final.

Real Madrid were victorious both times it has occurred.

6 Only seven people have lifted the trophy as a player and manager:

Zinedine Zidane, Giovanni Trapattoni, Johan Cruyff, Carlo Ancelotti, Frank Rijkaard, Pep Guardiola and Miguel Munoz.

7 Three managers have won the tournament three times:

Zidane, Ancelotti and Bob Paisley

8 Between 1977 and 1982 (6 seasons) the European Cup was only won by English teams.

Liverpool (x3), Nottingham Forest (x2) and Aston Villa.

9 Marseille won the inaugural Champions League.

This followed the rebrand and structure for the 1991/92 season.

10 Only Real Madrid have retained their title in the Champions League era.

They went on to win it three times consecutively.

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11 The chorus of the Champions League anthem contains three different languages!

English, German and French are acknowledged; the three official languages of the competition.

12 Referees must be under the age of 45 to officiate a match in the competition.

No room for the oldies.

13 Spanish clubs are the most successful with 18 wins overall.

Despite that, only Barcelona and Real Madrid have ever won the tournament!

14 Manchester United lifted the trophy in 1999 despite winning just five games.

That’s the lowest number in history.

15 Nottingham Forest are the only club to have won the tournament more than they have their domestic league.

It’s 2-1 to, err Nottingham Forest.

16 Only three clubs have won with a team with only players from their country.

Those are Celtic (1967), Real Madrid (1966) and Steaua Bucharest (1986).

17 Wembley has hosted the final more than any other venue.

The last time being an all-German tie between Bayern and Dortmund in 2013.

18 The trophy weighs 7.5kg.

That’s the equivalent of 17 footballs.

19 Alfredo Di Stéfano and Ferenc Puskas have the most goals in competition finals with seven.

Cristiano Ronaldo has the most in the Champions League era with four.

20 Only Juventus and Valencia have lost in successive finals.

Neither have won the tournament since.

 

Read More: See our Champions League final predictions between Spurs and Liverpool.

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