When Qatar Sports Investments, spearheaded by Nasser Al-Khelaifi, purchased Paris Saint-Germain back in 2011, they did so in the hopes of making the Parisians a UEFA Champions League winner. The capital city outfit wasn’t even the dominant force in France at the time, having not won Ligue 1 since 1994. But while domestic dominance would come quite easily, continental success was far more difficult to achieve.
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Countless different teams wearing the famed Navy and Red of PSG had attempted to crack the continental stage. Firstly, Zlatan Ibrahimovic led the likes of Edinson Cavani, Thiago Silva, and Marco Verratti to four straight semifinal appearances. Then, a new crop headlined by Neymar and Kylian Mbappe took the French outfit to a maiden final in 2020, but unfortunately, that would end in defeat at the hands of Bayern Munich.
The greatest player of all time, Lionel Messi, was brought in with the sole objective of bringing the famed Big-Eared trophy to the Parc Des Princes for the first time. Ultimately, he couldn’t even take them past the Round of 16. This season, though, things finally clicked into place.
Paris Saint-Germain Finally Win the UEFA Champions League
The Champions League had a new look this season, and PSG initially struggled to adapt. Rocked by the departure of talisman Kylian Mbappe, the French champions finished outside of the top eight in the initial league phase and, as such, had a more difficult route through the knockout stages. However, the January addition of Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and the blistering form of a more mature Ousmane Dembele proved that the Parisians were up to the challenge.
After thumping compatriots Brest and eliminating three English Premier League sides, PSG found themselves in the final for the second time, five years on from the first. This time around, they met an Inter Milan side that many thought was defensively resolute and would prove to be a tough nut to crack. Manager Luis Enrique, however, had other ideas.
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The Catalonian boss took the fight to the Nerazzurri, and he would reap the rewards for his attacking approach. PSG raced into a two-goal lead thanks to goals from Achraf Hakimi and Désiré Doué, and when the teenage winger added a third in the hour mark, it was game over. Further goals followed from the aforementioned Kvaratskhelia and youngster Senny Mayulu to secure a 5-0 victory, the biggest-ever winning margin in Champions League final history.
The result ensured that the record French champions left Munich’s Allianz Arena with the trophy for the first time in the club’s history. Now, online sports betting sites think further success could be around the corner. The latest sports betting odds currently price Luis Enrique’s men as a 9/2 second favorite to win this summer’s FIFA Club World Cup, only behind 4/1 favorites Real Madrid in the betting charts.
But while the Parisians may be the most recent new name on the Champions League trophy, plenty of others have also led the way in recent years. Here are the two other most recent first-time winners of the UEFA Champions League.
Manchester City
Much like PSG, Manchester City were also taken over by oil-rich new owners and completely revolutionized, and much like their rivals across the English channel, they too struggled to climb the European mountain.
After years of dominance domestically under Pep Guardiola, the Blues were unable to get over their Champions League curse. Embarrassing exits to the likes of Tottenham Hotspur and Lyon gave opposition supporters plenty of ammunition to aim at the Etihad Stadium club, as did defeat in their first-ever final appearance in 2021. But two years on from that defeat to Chelsea in Porto, City would finally have their moment in the sun.
Their triumph would also come against Inter Milan, just like PSG this year. A thumping victory against Real Madrid in the semifinals secured their spot opposite the Nerazzurri in the Istanbul showpiece, and this time around, they made no mistake.
Spanish midfielder Rodri scored the only goal of the game deep into the second half to secure the trophy for the first time. The triumph was the third leg of a famous treble, having also claimed the Premier League and FA Cup in the weeks prior.
Chelsea
Chelsea’s first Champions League triumph in 2012 was a fairytale for the ages. But their story followed the same blueprint of the two aforementioned sides that would follow in their footsteps.
Much like both PSG and Manchester City, the Blues also had a mega-rich new owner take over, this time in the form of Roman Abramovich. And just like the two previous sides, they too would lose in their first trip to the final. That came in 2008, when they were beaten by their compatriots, Manchester United, in Moscow in the first-ever all-English final. Four years later, they wouldn’t make the same mistakes.
After famously beating Barcelona in the semifinals against all odds, Chelsea faced off against Bayern Munich, and they did so in the Germans’ Allianz Arena home. Much like in the semis, they were huge underdogs once again, but just like in Catalonia, fate was on their side.
The Bavarians took the lead deep into the second half through Thomas Mueller, but the Blues struck back immediately thanks to Didier Drogba’s bullet header. Petr Cech would then save a penalty from former Chelsea winger Arjen Robben in extra time, taking the contest to a penalty shootout. There, the Czech shot-stopper became the hero, saving from both Ivica Olic and Bastian Schweinsteiger to allow Drogba to sweep home and secure the title.
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