There have not been many dynasties in the history of the Champions League.
Great teams have defined certain eras, such as Barcelona under Pep Guardiola or Real Madrid’s galacticos at the turn of the century. But back-to-back trophies have become incredibly rare. In fact, since the competition’s format changed in 1992, only one club has retained the title: Madrid, when they won three successive finals from 2016 to 2018.
Before that, you have to go back to 1990 for consecutive triumphs when Milan won successive European Cups. And before that? Well, Nottingham Forest of course (1979 and 1980), who completed a 10-year run of teams fending off challengers for their crown (Ajax 1971 to 1973, Bayern Munich from 1974 to 1976, and then Liverpool in 1977 and 1978).
To complete the set, Inter doubled up in 1964 and in 1965, and to kick the competition off from 1956 to 1960, Madrid delivered a remarkable quintet of triumphs.
It may have been commonplace during the European Cup era for teams to create dynasties, mini or otherwise, but in the Champions League, it has been very difficult to achieve. In that context, Luis Enrique’s Paris Saint-Germain are threatening to — at the very least — define this era of European football and potentially even create a dynasty of their own.
Paris Saint-Germain’s players celebrate after progressing beyond Bayern Munich to a second successive Champions League final (Alex Grimm/Getty Images)
Perhaps it’s a bit early for talk of legacies, but what is certain is that PSG are just one victory away from joining that exclusive club of back-to-back European club champions.
Watching them hold off Bayern with relative ease in Munich on Wednesday night, they certainly looked like the most complete team the competition has seen since Zinedine Zidane’s all-conquering Madrid, featuring Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale et al.
After their never-to-be-forgotten 5-4 win in last week’s semi-final first leg, there was a lot of “They only know one way to play” kind of talk, seemingly teeing up the second leg for more of the same.
Instead, PSG produced something akin to a textbook away performance in the Champions League, racing out of the blocks to score early through Ousmane Dembele and, thereafter, suffocating arguably Europe’s best attack — the centurion goalscorers of Harry Kane, Luis Diaz and Michael Olise — for the next 91 minutes.
Bayern, who had scored in all 51 matches they had played this season, were often reduced to hopeful long shots or handball appeals against Joao Neves. Kane’s equaliser on the night, which said more about his unerring ability to find half a yard in a crowded penalty area, came too late to change the destiny of the tie, with PSG’s defence otherwise proving impregnable.
Police officers on the Champs-Elysees last night as Parisians celebrate PSG’s progress (Simon Wohlfahrt/AFP via Getty Images)
But while PSG spent much of the match defending as a team (there were numerous times when 10 black shirts were behind the ball), it did not make for much less of a spectacle than last week’s glorified park kick-about, when both teams attacked like it was first to 10 goals wins.
It was intense, it was high quality and it was engrossing.
It also felt, despite a couple of rough handball calls against Bayern over the two legs, like the right result. PSG have, as Bayern head coach Vincent Kompany conceded afterwards, been Europe’s best team for two seasons now. Except in the autumn, when they just take things a bit easier.
“We have to acknowledge that we played against great opponents,” Kompany said. “The level of both teams was very, very high. PSG have so much quality. They’ve probably been the best team in Europe in the last two years. We’ve played against them five times now — we’ve won twice, lost twice and drawn once. We tried everything, I have to say. Congratulations to PSG, but we’ll try again.”
In a team with no obvious weaknesses, PSG appear to have added two more facets to their game this season: assuredness in the big matches and endurance.
The latter comes from how they can still produce their best after an incredibly long 12 months, with last season not actually ending until July 13, after they reached the Club World Cup final, and then their 2025-26 campaign beginning exactly a month later.
The manner in which they have reached the May 30 final has reflected their increasing maturity.
They rode their luck on their way to the edition in Munich last year, relying on a couple of Gianluigi Donnarumma masterclasses to squeeze past three English teams in the knockout rounds (beating Liverpool on penalties, Aston Villa 5-4 on aggregate and then Arsenal 3-1 in the semi-finals).
Progress this year has been more serene and assured (4-0 versus Liverpool this time and 8-2 against Chelsea — although, at the moment, that isn’t saying much). They could and should have been more comfortable in the semi-finals too, allowing Bayern back into that first leg when 5-2 up after an hour.
PSG supporters take to the streets of Paris after their team’s qualification for the final (Simon Wohlfahrt/AFP via Getty Images)
“It’s incredible,” Luis Enrique said. “I think what we showed tonight, and throughout the season, especially in the Champions League, is of an incredible standard.
“We played against one of the very best sides in the world, away from home, and we did it with all the maturity and personality necessary. It shows what type of team we are.”
With an average squad age of 24 and with just three players older than 28 — Fabian Ruiz is 30, as is back-up left-back Lucas Hernandez, while the imperious Marquinos is 31 — this team can continue to grow and improve together for years to come.
They have already achieved greatness. Now for a dynasty.