Top 10 Champions League Losing Finalists

jonjoward1998
Apr 29, 2025
7 min read

I would normally do a European football top 10 later in the week. But with this week being a Champions League week I've decided to do another Champions League related top 10.

This week's European football top 10 is Champions League losing finalists.

Many great sides have won the Champions League over the years, but there have also been some good sides that haven't won it.

But those teams are never remembered as they're the side that lost and as the saying goes, 'no one remembers the losers'.

Whilst those sides may not be remembered due to them losing the final, they were still great teams due to the quality of players they had and how good they were.

Some of the teams on the list won their domestic league titles in the season they reached the final whilst the rest didn't win anything at all.

All of them are good team whether they won something or not and here it is.

Man United - 2008/09

AC Milan - 2004/05

PSG - 2019/20

Liverpool - 2021/22

Juventus - 2016/17

Chelsea - 2007/08

Man City - 2020/21

Atletico Madrid - 2015/16

Arsenal - 2005/06

Bayern Munich - 2011/12

Atletico Madrid - 2015/16

Atletico Madrid reached the final two seasons before in 2014 where they lost to the same opponents on both occasions in Real Madrid.

2016 was their best chance to win it out of the two as they were a team in their prime under Diego Simeone, and were closer to winning it, only to lose on penalties.

Some of their players were part of the side that reached the final in 2014 including Koke, Gabi, Felipe Luis, Juanfran, and captain Diego Godin who was a colossus at the back.

The rest of the team included Antoine Griezmann, whose goals played a key role in Atletico reaching the final, and keeper Jan Oblak, who was beginning to turn into one of the keepers in Europe.

I had to put this team in 10th because the other teams had won more and had more proven players.

Arsenal - 2005/06

This Arsenal side were leading the final in 2006 against Barcelona after Sol Campbell put them in front a few minutes before half time. But after missing chances to build on their lead, Barcelona turned the game around by scoring twice in four minutes to win the game and the competition.

Most of this side were part of the Invincibles side from 2004 including Thierry Henry, Gilberto SIlva, Robert Pires and Dennis Bergkamp, who didn't play a minute of the final in what could've been his final game for the club.

They beat two big sides on their way to the final in Real Madrid in the last 16, and Juventus in the Quarter Finals with their win over Real at the Bernabeu arguably being the most impressive.

PSG - 2019/20

PSG have been known for bottling it in the Champions League over the years, but that wasn't case for them during the 2019/20 season as they went all the way to the final, only to lose to Bayern Munich courtesy of ex-player Kingsley Coman's goal.

They did have a favourable run in to the final as they beat sides they were expected to beat in Atalanta in the Quarter Finals and RB Leipzig in the semi finals after beating Borussia Dortmund in the last 16. Also the knockout games from the Quarter Finals onwards were decided over one leg due to the season having paused due to the COVID outbreak.

This was their final season with the MCN trio of Mbappe, Cavani and Neymar but only Mbappe and Neymar played the entire season as Cavani decided not to sign a short term contract to play the remainder of the Champions League, leading him to missing the final.

They had a number of good chances in the final but they were constantly denied by Manuel Neuer in the Bayern goal.

Chelsea - 2007/08

This Chelsea team had won everything domestically in the seasons prior to this one and were determined to complete the lot by winning the Champions League.

Their team in 2008 was pretty much the same side from the previous seasons in Cech, Terry, Makelele, Lampard, Joe Cole, and Drogba, all of whom were a key part of their success during the early years of the Abramovich era.

But they weren't able to add a Champions League medal to their collection as they were beaten on penalties by Man United in Moscow following a 1-1 draw after extra time.

They missed two penalties in the shootout with one of them being John Terry's famous slip just as he was about to hit the ball. Nicolas Anelka missed the other one which was saved by Van Der Sar and was the penalty that sealed the win for United.

Bayern Munich - 2011/12

Bayern Munich were the clear favourites going into the 2012 final against Chelsea and especially as the final was in their home stadium.

They also had the stronger team on paper as it included Neuer, Lahm, Schweinsteiger, Kroos, Robben, Ribery, Muller and Mario Gomez.

They looked set to win the final heading into the final few minutes after Thomas Muller put them ahead in the 83rd minute, until Didier Drogba equalised for Chelsea a few minutes later to send the game to extra time.

The game later went to penalties and after scoring their first three, they missed their next two as Ivica Olic and Bastian Schweinsteiger had their spot kicks saved by Petr Cech before Drogba scored the winning spot kick to win the final for Chelsea.

They ended that season without a trophy after finishing second in the Bundesliga to Borussia Dortmund, who would also beat them in the final of the German Cup.

Juventus - 2016/17

Juventus must be the unluckiest team in Champions League history as they've more finals than any other team with 7.

Out of all the finals they've lost in the modern era, their team from 2017 was the best of the lot as they had established themselves as the dominant force in Italy, and were a team in their prime.

Their team had such a solid backbone in Buffon in goal and two of the best central defenders in Europe at the time in Chiellini and Bonucci, who had such a strong partnership.

They also had two disciplined midfielders in Sami Khedira and Miralem Pjanic, and players in their attack who could score goals in Paolo Dybala and Gonzalo Higuain.

But despite the quality they possessed, they got well beaten 4-1 in the final by Real Madrid who were in complete control of the second half.

Liverpool - 2021/22

This Liverpool team won every game during the group stage and were a side who spent were chasing a quadruple for most of the season.

But they were chasing a treble heading into the final as they won both domestic cup competitions but missed out on winning the Premier League to Man City, who pipped them by just one point.

Their team was pretty much the same one that won the competition in 2019 as the majority of their squad were part of that winning side a few years prior, including Salah, Mane, Van Dijk, Henderson and Alexander-Arnold.

They were against the side they were beaten by the year before they won it in Real Madrid who got the better of them once again. They threw everything at Real on the day but were constantly denied by Thibaut Courtois whose saves played a key role in Real winning the final.

Man City - 2020/21

Man City were a club desperate to win the Champions League in the lead up to the 2021 because they won everything domestically in England, and wanted that Champions League to cement themselves as the best team in Europe.

But it wasn't to be for them for them as they struggled to break down and resilient and organised Chelsea defence, and surprisingly didn't start a defensive midfielder with Ilkay Gundogan being chosen in that position ahead of both Fernandinho and Rodri.

That was a move that backfired badly as the defence had no protection and Chelsea pounce on this when Kai Havertz scored the winning goal.

They also lost Kevin De Bruyne to injury following a clash with Antonio Rudiger which also played a part. But it was Pep's decision not to play a recognised holding midfielder that cost them on the day.

The final was Sergio Aguero's final game as a City player and it was so unfortunate for him not to win the Champions League after all he achieved during his time with the club and the goals he scored.

Man United - 2008/09

This Man United side went into this season as the holders and it was pretty much the same team that won it the season before.

They still had the likes of Rooney, Scholes, Ferdinand, Vidic, and of course Ronaldo who was once again their main man.

Ronaldo came up with some incredible moments during that season including his long range rocket against Porto in the Quarter Finals, and his 40 yard strike and all-round performance against Arsenal in the semi finals.

But they couldn't make it back to back wins as they were outclassed by an incredible Barcelona side who would go on to dominate the European stage over the next few seasons.

AC Milan - 2004/05

When I look at this Milan team, I begin to wonder how they threw away a three goal lead against not the greatest Liverpool side with the likes of Maldini, Cafu, Stam, Kaka, Pirlo, Gattuso and Shevchenko in their team.

Milan were the clear favourites heading into the 2005 final and appeared to have one hand on the trophy after a dominating the first half where they blew Liverpool away.

The Liverpool side they faced were average at best with Steven Gerrard being their only superstar, yet they somehow pulled off one of the most unlikeliest of comebacks against one of the greatest Milan sides of all time.

They would get their revenge on Liverpool a couple of years later by beating them in the 2007 final in Athens.

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