Since the Europa Cup I was rebrandished to the UEFA Champions League in 1992, we have seen some amazing games. What about the numerous spectacular comebacks, like when FC Barcelona completed their famous 'Remontada' against Paris Saint-Germain? And what to think of the fairytale stories like Ajax in 2019 and Bodø/Glimt in 2026?
In this article, though, we take a look at the best UEFA Champions League finals of all time and the moments that made them legendary. John Terry's slip in Moscow, Sergio Ramos' 93rd-minute equaliser that made La Décima possible, Didier Drogba's heroics in Munich, and, of course, the comebacks of Manchester United in 1999 and Liverpool in 2005. Spectacular, legendary, historic - UCL finals treat us to everything.
So, without further ado, Flashscore takes a look at the 10 best, most shocking, most exciting, most dramatic, and most historic UEFA Champions League finals of all time.
10: Bale's dream, Karius' nightmare (Real Madrid - Liverpool, 3-1, 2018)
The 2018 UEFA Champions League final was spectacular for multiple reasons. Real Madrid were the favourites after winning three of the previous four competitions, but didn't win the game in the way you'd expect them to.
With Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson out injured, Loris Karius took over and delivered one of the most infamous performances in the competition's rich history: Karius threw the ball at Karim Benzema, causing the 1-0, and was at fault for the 3-1 when Gareth Bale's shot from miles out slipped through the German's gloves.
Bale was the other key figure in the final, scoring an unbelievable bicycle kick to restore Real Madrid's lead after Sadio Mané equalised minutes earlier. It was the cherry on top of a truly unique cake.
9: Porto win Battle of the Underdogs (FC Porto - AS Monaco, 3-0, 2004)
Bearing the burden of an entire nation solely on their shoulders, José Mourinho and FC Porto kick-started a miraculous football summer by winning a true battle of the underdogs in the 2004 UEFA Champions League final.
Against fellow miracle workers AS Monaco, Porto were wary of the Monegasque striker duo of Dado Prso and Fernando Morientes, who were considered two of the best headers in the world at the time. Playing a defensively stout and attackingly more opportunistic brand of football, Porto struck coldly and efficiently as Monaco were downed 3-0 thanks to goals from Carlos Alberto, Deco, and Dmitri Alenichev.
A week later, Mourinho moved to Chelsea and gave himself the moniker we all know him by: "Please don't call me arrogant, but I'm European champion, and I think I'm a special one."
8: Ajax's fairytale team down mighty Milan (Ajax - AC Milan, 1-0, 1995)
A lot can change in 32 years. Ajax can tell you all about that. 32 years after their third-straight Europa Cup I win, Ajax returned to the grandest stage of European football in 1995, facing Fabio Capello's famous AC Milan.
Under the tutelage of karate master Louis van Gaal and with nine academy products in the starting XI, Ajax shocked the world after Milan legend Frank Rijkaard, who left the club a year earlier to end his career in Amsterdam, assisted an 18-year-old Patrick Kluivert, who toe-punted an 85th-minute winner past Sebastiano Rossi to claim a famous UEFA Champions League win.
Almost poetically, this UEFA Champions League final marked the end of the road for two Ajax and AC Milan legends - Marco van Basten and Frank Rijkaard, who both ended their careers following the season.
7: Tiki-Taka takes the throne (FC Barcelona - Manchester United, 2-0, 2009)
In his first season as a first-team manager, Pep Guardiola enchanted Europe with a revolutionary style of football: tiki-taka. The fast-paced, technically superior tactic dazzled throughout the tournament and was put to its ultimate test in the 2009 UEFA Champions League final against reigning champions Manchester United.
Sir Alex Ferguson's team boasted the likes of Rio Ferdinand, Edwin van der Sar, Nemanja Vidic, Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs, Wayne Rooney... The list goes on and on. Still, it wasn't enough to stop the Catalan machine, with Samuel Eto'o and Lionel Messi capping off a majestic performance at Wembley.
It was the final game in red for Cristiano Ronaldo, who was left furious after the game: "We didn't do well. The tactics were not good, and everything went wrong for us. We were only in it for 10 minutes," the Portuguese superstar said two weeks before moving to Real Madrid.
6: Milan demolish Cruyff's 'Dream Team' (AC Milan - FC Barcelona, 4-0, 1994)
In their first season without the legendary Dutch trio of Ruud Gullit, Frank Rijkaard, and the injured Marco van Basten, AC Milan played perhaps their greatest-ever season. Led by Franco Baresi and Paolo Maldini from the back, Milan conquered Italy and Europe through rock-hard defence. Until Johan Cruyff's 'Dream Team' was the opponent in the 1993/94 UEFA Champions League final.
FC Barcelona were the polar opposites of AC Milan. With Romário, Michael Laudrup, and Hristo Stoichkov leading the line, the final was set to become the battle between an unstoppable force and an immovable object. And in the end, the immovable object obliterated the former.
Milan surprised friends and foes by beating Barcelona 4-0 and scoring almost half of their UEFA Champions League goals to that point. Daniele Massaro struck twice in the first half, after which Dejan Savićević's delightful lob and Marcel Desailly finished the job.
5: John Terry's slip decides all-English final (Manchester United - Chelsea, 1-1 (6-5 after penalties), 2008)
Manchester United and Chelsea were fighting out a tiresome battle in Moscow, where the rain fell from the heavens in buckets. After Cristiano Ronaldo's towering header put Sir Alex Ferguson's Red Devils up one, Frank Lampard smartly pounced on a deflected short from Michael Essien to level the scoring right before half-time.
It went all the way to penalties in the Luzhniki Stadium, where Ryan Giggs wrote history by becoming the most-capped Manchester United player of all time and Didier Drogba was sent off in the 116th minute after slapping Nemanja Vidic. Petr Cech made the first move on the rain-soaked pitch, stopping Cristiano Ronaldo's spot kick, but it went downhill for Chelsea after that.
John Terry famously slipped on the slippery Russian grass, firing his penalty wide of Edwin van der Sar's goal - a moment he later called the saddest of his career in our first episode of BIG PETE. Van der Sar then saved Anelka's attempt to end his career on a terrific high, winning Manchester United their second UEFA Champions League trophy.
4: Real Madrid finally get La Décima (Real Madrid - Atlético Madrid, 4-1 A.E.T., 2014)
It felt like an endless wait for Real Madrid, who were stuck on nine UEFA Champions League titles for over a decade. The most decorated club in international European football finally returned to Europe's summit in 2014, when noisy neighbours Atlético Madrid looked to complete a fairytale season by adding a maiden UEFA Champions League title to their first LaLiga title in 18 years.
For the longest time, the final seemed to go Diego Simeone's way. Diego Godín headed Atlético in front after 36 minutes, meaning the Colchoneros could sit back and frustrate Carlo Ancelotti and Real Madrid in the Estadio Da Luz. The plan worked until the 93rd minute, when Sergio Ramos expertly headed in a corner and sent the game to extra time.
With momentum now shifted, Real Madrid ran riot in Lisbon. Gareth Bale headed in a rebound, Marcelo blasted the ball past Thibaut Courtois, and Cristiano Ronaldo fired in the exclamation mark from the penalty spot as Real Madrid ended their wait for La Décima - their tenth UEFA Champions League title.
3: Drogba writes Blues history (Bayern Munich - Chelsea, 1-1 (3-4 after penalties), 2012)
The final of the 2011-12 UEFA Champions League was one steeped in history. After scintillating semifinals, in which Chelsea knocked out holders FC Barcelona in the 91st minute at Camp Nou and Bayern Munich eliminated Real Madrid after penalties, the Allianz Arena saw its own Bayern take on the Blues in the first final with home advantage since the 1980s.
After a lopsided game, Thomas Müller finally scored the opener in the 83rd minute as Bayern looked to win their first UEFA Champions League title since 2001. The game wasn't over just yet, however, as Didier Drogba rose from the crowd to powerfully head in a Juan Mata corner in the 88th minute.
After Arjen Robben missed a penalty in the ensuing extra time, penalties were to decide the winner of the UEFA Champions League. Manuel Neuer dealt the first blow by saving Juan Mata's spot kick, but it was Petr Cech who first saved Ivica Olic's penalty and then saw Bastian Schweinsteiger hit the post. Didier Drogba's penalty was the nail in the coffin - Chelsea had won their first-ever UEFA Champions League title in the lion's den.
2: It's Fergie Time (Manchester United - Bayern Munich, 2-1, 1999)
It took a miracle for Manchester United to complete a fabled treble in 1999. After winning the Premier League and FA Cup in the ten days leading up to the 1999 UEFA Champions League final in Camp Nou, Bayern Munich were looking to put a dagger in the hearts of the Red Devils.
For the longest time, they seemed to succeed. Mario Basler, who played in place of the injured Élber, snuck a free kick into Schmeichel's bottom corner in the sixth minute to give Bayern an early edge. Manchester United took the initiative thereafter, but Bayern's stout defence, led by sweeper Lothar Matthäus and goalkeeper Oliver Kahn, withstood the red storm.
But then came injury time, in England better known as 'Fergie Time', because with the Scotsman on the bench, you never knew what would happen in the dying seconds.
A corner was cleared by Bayern, but fell kindly to Ryan Giggs in the 92nd minute. The Welshman took a shot, which was deflected in by Teddy Sheringham to level the score. And as if that wasn't enough of a miracle, David Beckham swung in another corner in the 93rd minute, which Teddy Sheringham nodded to fellow substitute Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who punted the ball into the roof of Kahn's goal to seal the unlikeliest of comebacks.
1: The Miracle of Istanbul (AC Milan - Liverpool, 3-3 (2-3 after penalties), 2005)
However miraculous Manchester United's 1999 victory may be, no UEFA Champions League final could possibly beat the 2005 edition between AC Milan and Liverpool.
The Atatürk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul was the stage for the greatest UEFA Champions League final we'd ever seen. A fierce AC Milan team that featured the likes of Kaká, Jaap Stam, Cafu, Paolo Maldini, Clarence Seedorf, and Alessandro Nesta, faced off against Rafael Benitez's underdog Liverpool, who realised the magnitude of the task at hand: "Maybe Milan are favourites, but we have confidence, and we can win."
After Milan asserted their dominance early and headed into half-time up 3-0, the Reds staged a spirited comeback in the first 15 minutes of the second half through Steven Gerrard, Vladimir Šmicer, and Xabi Alonso, who magically erased Milan's lead in the blink of an eye.
After outlasting the remaining 60 minutes of regular and extra time, it was Jerzy Dudek who stole the show with two saves in the penalty shootout and sealed an all-time great comeback, which would deservedly be dubbed the 'Miracle of Istanbul'.
FAQ
Which Champions League final is considered the greatest of all time?
Typically, the 2005 "Miracle of Istanbul" is considered the greatest Champions League of all time.
Which team has won the most Champions League titles in the modern era?
Real Madrid with 7 titles.
Has a team ever won the Champions League final after trailing by 3 goals?
Only Liverpool, in 2005.
Who scored the fastest goal in a Champions League final?
Paolo Maldini's goal after 52 seconds against Liverpool in 2005.
Which player has won the most Champions League titles?
Dani Carvajal and Toni Kroos, both with 6 Champions League titles.
Which player has the most goals in Champions League final history?
Cristiano Ronaldo, with 4 goals.
Which player has appeared in the most Champions League finals?
Dani Carvajal, Toni Kroos, Luka Modric, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Paolo Maldini, all with 6.