The Champions League is a crown that is coveted by every top team in Europe, but only a few can get their hands on the glittering silver crown. 42 teams have reached the showpiece of the competition in its 69-year history, of which 23 have secured the tag of being the kings of Europe. Only 13 sides have won the trophy more than once. Those who have triumphed for the silverware have produced some staggering moments in the competition's history and set some unique records that will be hard to match or break in future. For that, each of their triumphs has been special and has engraved a long-standing legacy in the competition.
Here we look at the five most unique records set in the Champions League final
One scorer, five finals
It is one thing to score in a Champions League final, but to do so in five different showpieces is unreal stuff. Real Madrid legend Alfredo Di Stéfano achieved the remarkable feat of scoring in each of the first five European Cup finals, the former name of the Champions League, from 1956 to 1960 and claimed the silverware each time. Not even the best forwards in the world could manage that. Born Argentinian, who played for three international teams, Stéfano scored seven goals in those finals and also became the first player, alongside teammate Ferenc Puskás, who netted four, to score a hat-trick in the showpiece, contributing to all goals in the 7-3 victory over Frankfurt in 1960.
Losing curse
Winning the Champions League could become a habit, as Real Madrid has shown with its sheer dominance in securing 15 continental titles. However, the pressure of a final can be so huge for a team that they could fall victim to repeating their failures again and again on the biggest stage of European club football. Italian giants Juventus are a prime example. Although the Bianconeri have lifted the Champions League trophy twice, they carry the unwanted record of losing the final more than any other side, shockingly, seven times. Three of those came in the modern era, with their last final loss in 2017 coming at the hands of Los Blancos, a crushing 4-1 defeat.
Overturning a three-goal deficit
To go down by a substantial margin in the final of Europe’s premier club competition, any other team would have seen the end of their journey in the competition, but not Liverpool. The most successful English club, with six titles, made a remarkable turnaround from 3-0 down at the break against AC Milan in the 2005 Champions League final hosted in the Turkish capital, which came to be known as the ‘Miracle of Istanbul’. After a ruthless first-half show from the Rossoneri initiated by Paolo Maldini and Hernan Crespo, under competition’s most successful coach Carlo Ancelotti, the Reds made their own surge guided by Rafa Benitez with Steven Gerrard, Vladimir Smicer and Xabi Alonso overturning the deficit before winning a dramatic shootout thanks to Jerzy Dudek’s heroics. Liverpool became the only side to win the final from a three-goal deficit.
Lucky charm
Success in the Champions League could be the epitome of a player’s career at a club level, but for some, it is a lucky charm to wear to win the trophy wherever they go, helping that club to create history in the competition. Such has been the journey of Dutch legend Clarence Seedorf. He is the only player to win the Champions League with three different clubs, sprinkling the gold dust. Seedorf won the tournament for the first time with Ajax at the tender age of 19 in 1995 before winning it again with Real Madrid three years later. His final two successes came with AC Milan in 2003 and 2007, proving to be an asset for each team.
New Champion
Not only teams, players, or coaches, but also the venue hosting the Champions League final could become a holy grail for crowning unexpected champions in the competition's history. The city of Munich, Germany, holds a unique record of having a maiden winner of the Champions League each time the final has been hosted there. The streak began in 1979 with Nottingham Forest picking their first of the two back-to-back crowns, defeating Swedish side Malmö. Olympique Marseille became the first French club to win the trophy at the Munich Olympic Stadium in 1993. Dortmund was next to create history in 1997, with Chelsea beating the home side Bayern Munich on penalties at the Allianz Arena in 2012, becoming one of the shocking winners of the contest.
