PSG finally did it. After a decade of heartbreaks, memes about "bottling it," and more money spent than some small countries' GDPs, the Parisians are European royalty. Honestly, the way it happened was kinda ridiculous. They didn't just win; they absolutely dismantled Inter Milan 5-0 at the Allianz Arena in Munich.
It was a statement.
Usually, Champions League finals are these tense, cagey affairs where one mistake settles it. Think back to 2023 when Manchester City ground out a 1-0 win against Inter, or Real Madrid’s 1-0 tactical masterclass over Liverpool in 2022. But May 31, 2025, was different. It was a demolition.
The Champions League Who Won Debate: Real Madrid vs. The New Guard
For years, the answer to champions league who won was almost always "Real Madrid." They’ve got 15 titles. Fifteen! That’s more than double the next best (AC Milan with 7). When Madrid won La Decimoquinta in 2024 by beating Dortmund 2-0, it felt like the natural order of the world.
But 2025 shifted the axis.
Luis Enrique, the man who already had a treble with Barcelona, became only the second manager ever (after Pep Guardiola) to win the treble twice. PSG secured Ligue 1, the Coupe de France, and then that massive 5-0 victory. It makes you wonder if the era of "Old Money" dominance is finally cracking, or if PSG just caught lightning in a bottle.
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The route PSG took to the final wasn't exactly smooth. They finished 15th in the new league phase—yeah, that weird new format still feels a bit messy—and had to go through the play-offs. They battered Brest 10-0 on aggregate, squeezed past Liverpool on penalties at Anfield, and then took down Aston Villa and Arsenal.
Breaking Down the 2025 Munich Massacre
If you didn't see the game, you missed a clinic. Most people expected Inter’s defense, led by Simone Inzaghi’s tactical rigidity, to hold firm. It didn't.
- Achraf Hakimi opened the floodgates in the 12th minute.
- Désiré Doué, the 19-year-old sensation, scored twice and took home Man of the Match.
- Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Senny Mayulu finished the job.
Inter just looked gassed. They had survived a 7-6 aggregate thriller against Barcelona in the semis, and it seemed like they left all their energy in the San Siro. By the time the 70th minute rolled around, the Inter fans were mostly silent, watching PSG play keep-away.
Every Champions League Winner Since the Turn of the Century
To understand why the champions league who won search is so popular, you have to look at the patterns. Since 2000, the trophy has been a private club for the elite.
In the early 2000s, it was the era of the "Galacticos" and AC Milan's legendary backline. Then came the Pep vs. Jose years, where Barcelona’s tiki-taka faced off against Inter and Chelsea’s "park the bus" masterclasses.
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| Era | Dominant Force | Notable Winners |
|---|---|---|
| 2000-2006 | The Giants | Real Madrid (2000, 2002), AC Milan (2003), Liverpool (2005) |
| 2008-2012 | The Tactical Shift | Barcelona (2009, 2011), Inter (2010), Chelsea (2012) |
| 2014-2018 | The Madrid Dynasty | Real Madrid (2014, 2016, 2017, 2018) |
| 2019-2025 | The Modern Chaos | Bayern (2020), Man City (2023), PSG (2025) |
PSG’s 2025 win makes them the 24th different club to ever lift the trophy. It’s also the first time a French team has won since Marseille in 1993. That’s a long time for a "Top 5" league to go without a European Cup.
Why the 2024-25 Season Felt Different
The "Swiss Model" league phase changed the vibe. Instead of the old groups, we had 36 teams in one giant table. Real Madrid, the defending champs, actually struggled, eventually getting knocked out by Arsenal in the quarter-finals.
Arsenal fans thought this was their year. They’d beaten the kings! But then they ran into Luis Enrique’s PSG in the semis. Football is cruel like that.
The top scorers for the 2024-25 campaign ended up being a tie between Raphinha (Barcelona) and Serhou Guirassy (Dortmund) with 13 goals each. Interestingly, neither made the final. It shows that while individual brilliance gets you the headlines, a cohesive system—like the one Enrique built in Paris—gets you the silver.
The Actionable Truth: How to Track Champions League History
If you're trying to win a pub quiz or just settle a bet about champions league who won which year, keep these "rules of thumb" in mind:
- Check the "First-Timers" club: Manchester City (2023) and PSG (2025) are the newest members. Before them, you have to go all the way back to Chelsea in 2012 to find a brand-new winner.
- The "Ancelotti Factor": If Carlo Ancelotti is coaching, there’s a high probability his team is in the final. He has won more than any other manager (5 titles).
- Watch the "League Phase" ranking: Under the new format, finishing in the top 8 of the league phase is huge—it lets you skip the play-off round. Interestingly, PSG proved you can win it even if you finish 15th and play the extra games, but it’s a grueling path.
- Follow the Super Cup: The winner of the Champions League always plays the Europa League winner. In 2025, that was PSG vs. Tottenham (who won the Europa League). PSG won that too, on penalties.
The 2025-26 season is already underway. Real Madrid is looking for revenge, and Manchester City looks hungry again. But for now, the history books show PSG at the top.
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If you want to stay ahead of the curve for the 2026 final, keep an eye on the injury reports during the new "January window" of the league phase. That’s where the depth of the squad really shows. Start tracking the "balls recovered" and "distance covered" stats on the official UEFA site; they’ve become much better predictors of success than just looking at who has the most famous strikers.