The unwritten rules of the Champions League say that, in order to win the title, you must first lose it… and that’s exactly what happened to PSG in their first final against Bayern Munich in 2020. However, while the club has enough footballing arguments this season to dream of lifting the trophy, it just so happens that all four finals held in Munich throughout history have seen a new team win the Champions League for the first time.

Nottingham Forest’s Rise and a Trophy Marseille Still Brags About

The first club to begin this path in Munich was Nottingham Forest back in 1979—a team that, interestingly, is now pushing hard to return to the European Cup. Their case was truly remarkable, as the season before they had been promoted to the First Division in England, won the league title that qualified them for the European Cup… and went on to lift the trophy after defeating Malmo in the final thanks to a lone goal by Trevor Francis.

If that title won by Nottingham Forest was already striking… what Olympique de Marseille achieved in 1993 was just as impressive. That year, the European Cup underwent its biggest format change and was renamed the Champions League. In the final, they faced the legendary AC Milan coached by Fabio Capello and featuring the Dutch trio (Rijkaard, Gullit, and Van Basten). However, Olympique de Marseille managed to win the title with another single goal by Basile Boli, two years after losing the 1991 final to Red Star Belgrade. Since then, Olympique de Marseille remains the only French club to have won the Champions League—a record PSG hopes to match this year.

Borussia Dortmund’s Surprise and Chelsea’s Madness

With the Champions League name now well established, it didn’t take long for Munich to host another final, this time in the 1996-1997 season. On that occasion, a surprising Borussia Dortmund led by Matthias Sammer reached their first-ever final… and convincingly beat one of the best Juventus squads in history (3–1), a team featuring future legends like Alessandro Del Piero and Zinedine Zidane.

If the stories from previous Munich finals were remarkable, what happened in the 2011-2012 Champions League final held in Munich made even less sense. Bayern Munich was playing the final in their own stadium against a Chelsea team led by interim coach Roberto Di Matteo after the dismissal of André Villas-Boas. Against all odds, Chelsea reached the final after defeating Barcelona, the reigning champions, in the semifinals. Then, thanks to a goal from Drogba in stoppage time, they forced extra time and eventually won on penalties, lifting their first-ever Champions League trophy.