The 2025-26 UEFA Champions League Final takes place on Saturday 30 May 2026 at the Puskas Arena in Budapest, Hungary. Europe’s premier club football showpiece brings the curtain down on a season that has featured the expanded 36-team league phase format for only the second time, with eight quarter-finalists battling through April and May to earn the right to lift the famous trophy. Paris Saint-Germain are the defending champions after their stunning 5-0 victory over Inter Milan in last year’s final at the Allianz Arena in Munich.
What is the Champions League Final?
The UEFA Champions League Final is the single biggest match in European club football, deciding the continental champion for the 2025-26 season. The competition, which began as the European Cup in 1955, has been contested in its current Champions League format since 1992 and attracts a global television audience of hundreds of millions each year.
The 2025-26 edition is the second to use UEFA’s reformed format, which replaced the traditional group stage with a single 36-team league phase. Each club plays eight matches against eight different opponents, with four at home and four away. The top eight finishers qualify directly for the Round of 16, while those ranked 9th to 24th contest a two-legged knockout playoff round. From this season, league phase rankings also determine home advantage in the quarter-finals and semi-finals, with the highest-ranked surviving teams playing their second legs at home.
The knockout rounds follow the established two-legged format through the Round of 16, quarter-finals, and semi-finals, before the single-match final in Budapest. For the first time, the Champions League Final kicks off at 18:00 CEST rather than the traditional 21:00 slot, a significant scheduling change introduced by UEFA from the 2025-26 season onwards.
When is the Champions League Final 2026?
The Champions League Final takes place on Saturday 30 May 2026, with kick-off at 18:00 CEST (17:00 BST / 12:00 ET / 09:00 PT). This earlier start time marks a permanent shift from the traditional 21:00 CEST kick-off that had been standard for decades.
The road to Budapest follows this knockout schedule:
- Quarter-final first legs: 7-8 April 2026
- Quarter-final second legs: 14-15 April 2026
- Semi-final first legs: 28-29 April 2026
- Semi-final second legs: 5-6 May 2026
- Final: Saturday 30 May 2026
Where is the Champions League Final 2026?
The 2026 Champions League Final is hosted at the Puskas Arena in Budapest, Hungary. Named after legendary Hungarian footballer Ferenc Puskas, the stadium was completed in 2019 and has a capacity of 67,215 for football matches. It stands on the same site as the original Nepstadion, which opened in 1953 with a capacity exceeding 100,000 and was one of the largest stadiums in Europe at the time.
The Puskas Arena is a modern, fully enclosed venue with a striking exterior illuminated by LED lighting. It features a continuous roof covering all spectator areas, creating an intense atmosphere. The stadium has already hosted major European finals, including the 2023 UEFA Europa League Final between Sevilla and Roma, as well as several Euro 2020 group stage and knockout matches. For the Champions League Final, the effective ticketed capacity is approximately 61,400.
Budapest itself is well connected by air, with Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport served by major European carriers and low-cost airlines. The Puskas Arena is centrally located, easily accessible by the M2 metro line (Puskas Ferenc Stadion station) and multiple bus and tram routes. The city offers a wide range of accommodation, from budget hostels to luxury hotels, though visitors should book well in advance given the scale of the event.
Key Contenders
Paris Saint-Germain enter the knockout rounds as defending champions after their record-breaking 5-0 demolition of Inter Milan in the 2025 final. That result equalled the largest winning margin in a Champions League Final, matching Real Madrid’s 7-3 victory over Eintracht Frankfurt in 1960 in terms of dominance. PSG’s league phase campaign confirmed their status as genuine contenders to retain the trophy, which would make them only the fourth club to win back-to-back titles in the Champions League era, after AC Milan (1989-90), Real Madrid (2016-18), and no club since.
Real Madrid, the competition’s most successful club with 15 titles, face Bayern Munich in the quarter-finals in a repeat of numerous classic European ties. Madrid’s pedigree in this competition is unmatched, having won five of the last eleven editions. Bayern, six-time winners themselves, are bidding to return to the final for the first time since their 2024 semi-final defeat and have the added motivation of seeing the final held in a country neighbouring their own.
Liverpool, six-time winners and 2019 champions, take on PSG in what promises to be one of the ties of the round. The quarter-final draw has placed two of the competition’s most attacking sides against each other. Barcelona face city rivals Atletico Madrid in an all-Spanish quarter-final, while Arsenal, still searching for their first Champions League title, must overcome Sporting CP to reach the last four.
The semi-final draw is already set: the winners of PSG vs Liverpool face the winners of Real Madrid vs Bayern Munich on one side of the bracket, while the Barcelona/Atletico Madrid winners play the Arsenal/Sporting CP winners on the other.
How to Watch
The Champions League Final is one of the most widely broadcast single sporting events in the world, available in virtually every territory through UEFA’s network of broadcast partners.
United Kingdom: TNT Sports holds exclusive live rights to the Champions League in the UK. The final will be broadcast on TNT Sports 1, with streaming available through the discovery+ app and website. TNT Sports is available through BT, Sky, Virgin Media, and EE.
United States: CBS Sports is the exclusive English-language broadcaster. The final will air live on CBS (free-to-air) with streaming on Paramount+, which carries every Champions League match. Spanish-language coverage is shared between TelevisaUnivision and DAZN.
Australia: Stan Sport holds exclusive rights, with coverage available via a Stan Sport add-on subscription (from AUD $20 per month on top of a standard Stan subscription).
India and South Asia: Sony Sports Network broadcasts the Champions League across India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. Matches are shown on Sony Sports Ten 2 and Sony Sports Ten 3 (Hindi), with live streaming on the SonyLIV platform.
Canada: DAZN holds exclusive streaming rights for all Champions League matches in Canada.
Europe: Coverage varies by country. In Germany, DAZN and Amazon Prime Video share rights. In France, Canal+ is the primary broadcaster. In Spain, Movistar+ carries live coverage. In Italy, Amazon Prime Video and Mediaset share broadcast duties.
History and Records
The European Cup, first contested in 1955-56, was rebranded as the UEFA Champions League in 1992. In the 70 years since its inception, the competition has produced some of football’s most iconic moments and cemented the reputations of the game’s greatest clubs and players.
Real Madrid stand alone at the top of the all-time winners’ list with 15 titles, including a remarkable run of five consecutive triumphs from 2016 to 2018 under Zinedine Zidane and a further two under Carlo Ancelotti. AC Milan are second with seven titles, while Bayern Munich and Liverpool sit joint third with six apiece. Barcelona have won five, and Ajax, Inter Milan, Manchester United, Juventus, Benfica, Nottingham Forest, Porto, Celtic, Hamburg, Steaua Bucharest, Marseille, Borussia Dortmund, Aston Villa, Feyenoord, Red Star Belgrade, Chelsea, and PSG have all lifted the trophy at least once. In total, 24 different clubs have been crowned European champions.
PSG’s 2025 triumph was their maiden European Cup title, ending decades of near-misses that included a runners-up finish in 2020. Their 5-0 victory over Inter Milan was joint-largest winning margin in a final alongside Real Madrid’s 7-3 win over Frankfurt in 1960. On the individual stage, Real Madrid’s Dani Carvajal and Luka Modric hold the record for most Champions League Final victories with six each, while Alfredo Di Stefano and Ferenc Puskas share the record of seven goals scored in finals.
Tickets and Attendance
Tickets for the 2026 Champions League Final are distributed through UEFA’s official ticketing portal. Of the approximately 61,400 available seats, 39,000 are allocated directly to fans and the general public, with the two finalist clubs receiving 17,200 tickets each. The remaining allocation goes to the local organising committee, commercial partners, and UEFA’s football family.
General public tickets are sold through a ballot (lottery) system via UEFA.com/tickets, not on a first-come, first-served basis. Applicants register during the application window, and successful applicants are selected at random. Face-value ticket prices start at EUR 70 for the Fans First category, with prices rising through Category 4 (EUR 180), Category 3 (EUR 300), Category 2 (EUR 490), and Category 1 (EUR 690). Accessibility tickets for disabled supporters are priced at EUR 70 and include a complimentary companion ticket.
UEFA also offers official hospitality packages through its dedicated hospitality portal, ranging from approximately EUR 5,900 per person for shared lounge access up to EUR 12,900 for private box experiences. These packages include premium seating, food and drink, and exclusive pre-match entertainment.
Fans are strongly advised to purchase tickets only through official UEFA channels. Secondary market prices for major finals can reach many times face value, and UEFA actively cancels tickets found to have been resold through unauthorised platforms.
Frequently Asked Questions
When does the Champions League Final 2026 start?
The 2026 Champions League Final kicks off at 18:00 CEST (17:00 BST / 12:00 ET) on Saturday 30 May 2026. This is an earlier start time than in previous years, when the final traditionally kicked off at 21:00 CEST.
Where is the 2026 Champions League Final being held?
The final takes place at the Puskas Arena in Budapest, Hungary. The stadium has a capacity of 67,215, with approximately 61,400 seats available for the final.
How can I watch the Champions League Final?
In the UK, the final is live on TNT Sports and streaming on discovery+. In the US, it airs on CBS and streams on Paramount+. In Australia, Stan Sport holds the rights. In India, Sony Sports Network and SonyLIV carry the broadcast. Check UEFA.com for a full list of broadcasters by country.
Who won the Champions League last year?
Paris Saint-Germain won the 2024-25 Champions League, beating Inter Milan 5-0 in the final at the Allianz Arena in Munich on 31 May 2025. It was PSG’s first ever European Cup title.
How much do Champions League Final tickets cost?
Face-value tickets range from EUR 70 (Fans First category) to EUR 690 (Category 1). Tickets are sold through a ballot system on UEFA.com/tickets. Official hospitality packages start from approximately EUR 5,900 per person.