11 things you need to know about the Champions League features statistics and informations about the UEFA Champions League.
- # 1 When was the Champions League introduced?
- #2 Who won the Champions League?
- #3 All-Time Most appearances in the Champions League
- #4 Biggest Wins
- #5 All-time top scorers of the Champions League
- #6 All-time Most assists
- #7 Fantasy Champions League
- #8 Set-Piece Takers Champions League 2019/20
- #9 The trophy of the UEFA Champions League
- #10 Overview of the matchdays of the 2019/20 UEFA Champions League
- #11 The UEFA Champions League on Social Media
# 1 When was the Champions League introduced?
Introduced in 1955 as the European Champion Clubs’ Cup, more commonly known as the European Cup, it was initially a straight knockout tournament open only to the champion club of each national championship. The competition took on its current name in 1992, adding a round-robin group stage and allowing multiple entrants from certain countries. (from UEFA Champions League on wikipedia)
🔴⚪️🔴 Jan Oblak in sensational form against Leverkusen in 2017 🙌#UCL | #MondayMotivation | @Atleti pic.twitter.com/E5RgSdEV0m
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) September 2, 2019
#2 Who won the Champions League?
Find enclosed the full list of the previous Winners of the Champions League. Who won the CL the most and who are the runner-ups in the entire competition history? (find more information on wikipedia)
There is a lot of information to extractfrom this table. Not only you can see the winning teams of the CL history, but also the tragic between the lines. Record holder for runner-ups is Juventus Turin with 6 lost finals with only 2 wins.
Funfact: Nottingham Forest have won the Champions League/European Cup more times than the English League!
| Club | Titles | Runners-up |
|---|---|---|
| Real Madrid | 13 | 3 |
| Milan | 7 | 4 |
| Liverpool | 6 | 3 |
| Bayern Munich | 5 | 5 |
| Barcelona | 5 | 3 |
| Ajax | 4 | 2 |
| Internazionale | 3 | 2 |
| Manchester United | 3 | 2 |
| Juventus | 2 | 7 |
| Benfica | 2 | 5 |
| Nottingham Forest | 2 | 0 |
| Porto | 2 | 0 |
| Celtic | 1 | 1 |
| Hamburger SV | 1 | 1 |
| Steaua București | 1 | 1 |
| Marseille | 1 | 1 |
| Borussia Dortmund | 1 | 1 |
| Chelsea | 1 | 1 |
| Feyenoord | 1 | 0 |
| Aston Villa | 1 | 0 |
| PSV Eindhoven | 1 | 0 |
| Red Star Belgrade | 1 | 0 |
| Atlético Madrid | 0 | 3 |
| Reims | 0 | 2 |
| Valencia | 0 | 2 |
| Fiorentina | 0 | 1 |
| Eintracht Frankfurt | 0 | 1 |
| Partizan | 0 | 1 |
| Panathinaikos | 0 | 1 |
| Leeds United | 0 | 1 |
| Saint-Étienne | 0 | 1 |
| Borussia Mönchengladbach | 0 | 1 |
| Club Brugge | 0 | 1 |
| Malmö FF | 0 | 1 |
| Roma | 0 | 1 |
| Sampdoria | 0 | 1 |
| Bayer Leverkusen | 0 | 1 |
| Monaco | 0 | 1 |
| Arsenal | 0 | 1 |
| Tottenham Hotspur | 0 | 1 |
Funfact: Barcelona and Real Madrid faced each other 15 times in the CL, but never in the finals!
#3 All-Time Most appearances in the Champions League
Who has the most appearances in the CL?
🔥 First touch
👌 The awareness💙❤️ Midfield maestro Xavi Hernández
#UCL | #ThrowbackThursday pic.twitter.com/vHykweqcqu— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) September 5, 2019
It is not Xavi who shows a superb control, but rather a goalkeeper. Iker Casillas has the most appearances with 177.
Will Cristiano catch up? Leave your comments below.
| Player | Apps | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Iker Casillas | 177 |
| 2 | Cristiano Ronaldo | 162 |
| 3 | Xavi | 151 |
| 4 | Ryan Giggs | 145 |
| 5 | Raúl | 142 |
| 6 | Paolo Maldini | 135 |
| Lionel Messi | 135 | |
| 8 | Andrés Iniesta | 130 |
| 9 | Clarence Seedorf | 125 |
| 10 | Paul Scholes | 124 |
#4 Biggest Wins
The following teams won a single match by ten goals or more in the preliminary rounds of the European Cup:
- Dinamo București beat Crusaders 11–0 in 1973–74
- Feyenoord beat KR Reykjavík 12–2 in 1969–70
- Manchester United beat Anderlecht 10–0 in 1956–57
- Ipswich Town beat Floriana 10–0 in 1962–63
- Benfica beat Stade Dudelange 10–0 in 1965–66
- ds United beat Lyn 10–0 in 1969–70
- Borussia Mönchengladbach beat EPA Larnaca 10–0 in 1970–71
- Ajax beat Omonia 10–0 in 1979–80
The largest margin of victory in the current Champions League format is 10–0: HJK Helsinki beat Bangor City in the second qualifying round in 2011–12. all information from wikipedia.org
#5 All-time top scorers of the Champions League
In our 11 things you need to know about the Champions League we need to talk about the top-scorers for sure. Amongst the top scorers in the great history of the CL there are a lot of legends and famous players. But there are still 2 players, who are in a totally different league: Cristiano Ronaldo and Leo Messi.
Their scoring rate per game is incredible and only Real legend Alfredo di Stefano has a higher scoring rate.
| Player | Goals | Apps | Ratio | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cristiano Ronaldo | 126 | 162 | 0.78 |
| 2 | Lionel Messi | 112 | 135 | 0.83 |
| 3 | Raúl | 71 | 142 | 0.5 |
| 4 | Karim Benzema | 60 | 112 | 0.54 |
| 5 | Ruud van Nistelrooy | 56 | 73 | 0.77 |
| 6 | Robert Lewandowski | 53 | 80 | 0.66 |
| 7 | Thierry Henry | 50 | 112 | 0.45 |
| 8 | Alfredo Di Stéfano | 49 | 58 | 0.84 |
| 9 | Andriy Shevchenko | 48 | 100 | 0.48 |
| Zlatan Ibrahimović | 48 | 120 | 0.4 |
#6 All-time Most assists
Similar to the all-time scorer the all-time most assists are a head-to-head between Cristiano Ronaldo and Messi.
| Name | Assists |
|---|---|
| Cristiano Ronaldo | 39 |
| Lionel Messi | 32 |
| Ryan Giggs | 31 |
| Xavi | 30 |
| Andres Iniesta | 29 |
| Zlatan Ibrahimovic | 26 |
| Francesc Fabregas | 26 |
| Franck Ribery | 25 |
| Karim Benzema | 25 |
| Mesut Ozil | 24 |
| Angel Di Maria | 24 |
| Dani Alves | 23 |
| Neymar | 22 |
| Frank Lampard | 22 |
| Wayne Rooney | 21 |
Find out more on the All-Time Stats page on UEFA.com.
#7 Fantasy Champions League
The online fantasy manager game of the Champions League is growing in popularity. Daily Fantasy Football Tutorial: What is Fantasy Football?
Two #UCLfantasy powerhouses 💪
Last season 👇
🔴 Salah – 59 pts
🔵 Sterling – 55 pts— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) September 7, 2019
You can play for free when you register on the offical UEFA page. If you want to find out where else you can play fantasy football tournaments for the Champions League then check it out here.
#8 Set-Piece Takers Champions League 2019/20
Do you know who takes the penalties for Galatasaray Istanbul and who is the backup for corners at Lokomotiv Moscow? Even football experts struggle with a quick answer.
Galácticos 🤩
3⃣ Options
1⃣ Free-kick takerWho are you picking?#UCL | #ThrowbackThursday pic.twitter.com/uGwPI9S3OC
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) September 5, 2019
Set-Piece Takers Champions League
#9 The trophy of the UEFA Champions League
Did you know? The current UEFA Champions League trophy stands 73.5cm tall and weighs 7.5kg.
A new rule was introduced in 1968/69: the cup becomes the property of any club who wins the competition five times or three years in a row. The club then start a new cycle from zero. Real Madrid, Ajax, Bayern München, Milan, Liverpool and Barcelona all have a version in their trophy rooms.
The rule was changed ahead of 2008/09, with the original trophy remaining with UEFA and the clubs awarded a replica. The current trophy is the fifth version of the current design. It was commissioned by UEFA General Secretary Hans Bangerter after Real Madrid were allowed to keep the original in 1967. Find out more on the trophy page of the UEFA.
#10 Overview of the matchdays of the 2019/20 UEFA Champions League
The official result of the 2019/20 #UCLdraw! 😍
3⃣ toughest groups are __ __ & __ 🤔 pic.twitter.com/c7Xdro1vhn
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) 29. August 2019
Group stage
All kick-off times 21:00 CET unless stated. This is the official schedule from UEFA.com.
Tuesday 17 September
Group E: Napoli v Liverpool, Salzburg v Genk
Group F: Inter v Slavia Praha (18:55 CET), Dortmund v Barcelona
Group G: Lyon v Zenit (18:55 CET), Benfica v Leipzig
Group H: Chelsea v Valencia, Ajax v LOSC Lille
Wednesday 18 September
Group A: Club Brugge v Galatasaray (18:55 CET), Paris v Real Madrid
Group B: Olympiacos v Tottenham (18:55 CET), Bayern v Crvena zvezda
Group C: Shakhtar v Manchester City, Dinamo Zagreb v Atalanta
Group D: Atlético v Juventus, Leverkusen v Lokomotiv Moskva
Matchday two
Tuesday 1 October
Group A: Real Madrid v Club Brugge (18:55 CET), Galatasaray v Paris
Group B: Tottenham v Bayern, Crvena zvezda v Olympiacos
Group C: Atalanta v Shakhtar (18:55 CET), Manchester City v Dinamo Zagreb
Group D: Juventus v Leverkusen, Lokomotiv Moskva v Atlético
Wednesday 2 October
Group E: Genk v Napoli (18:55 CET), Liverpool v Salzburg
Group F: Slavia Praha v Dortmund (18:55 CET), Barcelona v Inter
Group G: Zenit v Benfica, Leipzig v Lyon
Group H: Valencia v Ajax, LOSC Lille v Chelsea
Matchday three
Tuesday 22 October
Group A: Club Brugge v Paris, Galatasaray v Real Madrid
Group B: Tottenham v Crvena zvezda, Olympiacos v Bayern
Group C: Shakhtar v Dinamo Zagreb (18:55 CET), Manchester City v Atalanta
Group D: Atlético v Leverkusen (18:55 CET), Juventus v Lokomotiv Moskva
Wednesday 23 October
Group E: Salzburg v Napoli, Genk v Liverpool
Group F: Inter v Dortmund, Slavia Praha v Barcelona
Group G: Leipzig v Zenit (18:55 CET), Benfica v Lyon
Group H: Ajax v Chelsea (18:55 CET), LOSC Lille v Valencia
Matchday four
Tuesday 5 November
Group E: Liverpool v Genk, Napoli v Salzburg
Group F: Barcelona v Slavia Praha (18:55 CET), Dortmund v Inter
Group G: Zenit v Leipzig (18:55 CET), Lyon v Benfica
Group H: Chelsea v Ajax, Valencia v LOSC Lille
Wednesday 6 November
Group A: Paris v Club Brugge, Real Madrid v Galatasaray
Group B: Bayern v Olympiacos (18:55 CET), Crvena zvezda v Tottenham
Group C: Dinamo Zagreb v Shakhtar, Atalanta v Manchester City
Group D: Lokomotiv Moskva v Juventus (18:55 CET), Leverkusen v Atlético
Matchday five
Tuesday 26 November
Group A: Galatasaray v Club Brugge (18:55 CET), Real Madrid v Paris
Group B: Tottenham v Olympiacos, Crvena zvezda v Bayern
Group C: Manchester City v Shakhtar, Atalanta v Dinamo Zagreb
Group D: Lokomotiv Moskva v Leverkusen (18:55 CET), Juventus v Atlético
Wednesday 27 November
Group E: Liverpool v Napoli, Genk v Salzburg
Group F: Barcelona v Dortmund, Slavia Praha v Inter
Group G: Zenit v Lyon (18:55 CET), Leipzig v Benfica
Group H: Valencia v Chelsea (18:55 CET), LOSC Lille v Ajax
Matchday six
Tuesday 10 December
Group E: Napoli v Genk (18:55 CET), Salzburg v Liverpool (18:55 CET)
Group F: Dortmund v Slavia Praha, Inter v Barcelona
Group G: Benfica v Zenit, Lyon v Leipzig
Group H: Chelsea v LOSC Lille, Ajax v Valencia
Wednesday 11 December
Group A: Paris v Galatasaray, Club Brugge v Real Madrid
Group B: Bayern v Tottenham, Olympiacos v Crvena zvezda
Group C: Shakhtar v Atalanta (18:55 CET), Dinamo Zagreb v Manchester City (18:55 CET)
Group D: Atlético v Lokomotiv Moskva, Leverkusen v Juventus
Knockout stage
Round of 16
Draw: 16 December
First legs: 18/19 & 25/26 February
Second legs: 10/11 & 17/18 March
Quarter-finals
Draw: 20 March
First legs: 7/8 April
Second legs: 14/15 April
Semi-finals
Draw: 20 March
First legs: 28/29 April
Second legs: 5/6 May
Final (Atatürk Olimpiyat Stadı, Istanbul): 30 May
#11 The UEFA Champions League on Social Media
You can find a lot of amazing content to the UEFA Champions League on Social Media.
With nearly 25 million followers on twitter, UEFA`s multi-platofrm social media presence is growing exponentially. The fan following is increasing at a very fast rate and provides excellent content for the matchdays.
Here are the official channels:
- Twitter: @ChampionsLeague and the hashtag #UCL
- Facebook: UEFA
- Instagram: uefa_official
- UEFA TV Champions League
I hope you liked the 11 things you need to know about the Champions League! Please leave your comment and feedback in the comment section below or write us in the 11Heroes Discord Channel.
Enjoy Fantasy Football!
Hi, most assist is missing it showing most goals second time…
Also when going to be update on set peace taker for 19/20 season?
Hey,
the draft for the set piece takers is already available in our discord community! I will research some smaller teams this weekend and update the post `Set-Piece Takers Champions League` tomorrow.
Thank you for the hint regarding the assists. I inserted the wrong table. Error is corrected!
I greatly appreciate your feedback, so keep it coming!