This time last year, Manchester City and Inter Milan made it through to the final to face off against each other for the Champions League trophy.
In the end, it was Manchester City who landed the victory thanks to Rodri's second half strike clinching the Citizens a 1-0 success and their first Champions League victory in the club’s history.
In doing so, the club also completed an incredible treble of Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League victories in a single season. Matching the exploits of the famous Manchester United team of 1999.
Premier League interest in this year's competition faltered at the quarter-final stage when both Arsenal and Manchester City were eliminated from the tournament.
In the end, it was Borussia Dortmund and Real Madrid who have made it through their respective semi-final ties to clinch a place in the Champions League final at Wembley at the start of June.
The final sees 14-times Champions Real Madrid against Dortmund whose sole triumph in this competition came back in the 1996/97 season.
In our special preview of the game, we will look at both sides competing in the showpiece event, plus their squads and all the latest betting odds and tips as we head closer to the game.
And if there’s a special offer from bet365 Sport for the final itself, stay tuned as we’ll update this page nearer the time with more information!
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Borussia Dortmund will take on Real Madrid in the 2024 Champions League final at Wembley Stadium in London on June 1st (Kick off 8pm).
The original Wembley was first host to the showpiece final in 1963, when Milan defeated Benfica 2-1 to win their first Champions League trophy.
It also hosted the 1968 final, when Manchester United defeated Benfica 4-1 after extra time and then the 1971 final when Ajax beat Panathinaikos 2-0. Then the stadium was host as Liverpool won their second Champions League Final with a 1-0 win over Club Brugge in 1978.
There was then a relatively long wait until 1992 until the next Wembley Champions League final, when Ronald Koeman's free kick gave Barcelona a 1-0 win over Sampdoria in what was the final game at the old Wembley Stadium.
Barcelona were also the first winners of the Champions League final in the new Wembley Stadium when they beat Manchester United 3-1 in 2011. A couple of years later, and in the last time the Champions League final was played in London, Wembley hosted an all-German final as Bayern Munich defeated Borussia Dortmund 2-1 thanks to Arjen Robben's late strike.
The Champions League final kicks off at 8pm UK time on Saturday 1st June 2024 and UEFA have announced that Slovenian referee Slavko Vincic will officiate the final.
During the draw for the quarter-finals, the home and away team for draw purposes was decided and Borussia Dortmund are the designated home team, with Real Madrid designated the away team for the fixture.
Let’s now take a look at how both teams reached the Champions League final, their squads and any latest betting odds that will appeal to punters seeking to get best value on their bets.
Champions League 2023/24 Results
Group Stage Table – Group C
Knockout Phase
Champions League Stats 2023/24
Champions League 2023/24 Results
Group Stage Table – Group F
Knockout Phase
Champions League Stats 2023/24
All matches between the two teams have been in the Champions League although they have never met in the Champions League final. There has been one two-legged quarter-final and two two-legged semi-finals between the two as well eight games in the Group Stages of the tournament.
The first meeting came back in the 1997/98 semi-finals, when the then Champions Dortmund were eliminated by Real Madrid, losing the first leg 2-0 at the Bernebeu before a 0-0 draw in Germany in the second leg.
In the 2002/03 tournament, they mey in Group C with Real Madrid winning 2-1 in the home tie and the game in Germany finishing in a 1-1 draw. Dortmund achieved their first win over Dortmund in the 2012/13 season.
The teams met four times in the tournament that year, twice in the group stage, which saw Dortmund win 2-1 at home and then draw 2-2 in Spain and then again in the semi-finals with Dortmund winning 4-1 at home before losing 2-0 away for a 4-3 aggregate win for the German side.
A year later the teams met at the quarterfinals and the Spaniards exacted revenge with a 3-0 win over Dortmund in the first leg before losing 2-0 in Germany for a 3-2 win for Madrid.
Their four most recent matches have come in the group stages of the competition. In 2016/17, the teams shared the points with two 2-2 draws but the following season, Real Madrid won 3-1 in Dortmund and 3-2 at the Bernabeu to do the double over the German side in the group stages.
Real Madrid are the most successful team in Champions League history, winning the tournament a record 14 times in total.
Madrid won the first five finals from 1956 through to 1960 and also landed victories in 1966, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2021. They have also been runner up in the tournament on three occasions in 1962, 1964 and 1981.
This will be their 18th Champions League final appearance, which is also a record.
For Borussia Dortmund, this will be their third Champions League Final appearance.
Dortmund were winners in the 1996/97 season when they beat Juventus 3-1 in the final. But in their second final appearance, Jurgen Klopp's team went down to a 2-1 defeat to Bayern Munich in the 2012/13 Champions League final.
This will be the first final between the two teams.
Manager – Carlo Ancelotti
Goalkeepers – Thibaut Courtois, Andriy Lunin, Kepa Arrizabalaga, Diego Pinero
Defenders – David Alaba, Dani Carvajal, Eder Militao, Nacho Fernandez, Ferland Mendy, Lucas Vazquez, Fran Garcia, Antonio Rudiger, Alvaro Carillo
Midfielders – Luka Modric, Eduardo Camavinga, Toni Kroos, Federico Valverde, Dani Ceballos, Jude Bellingham, Aurielen Tchouameni, Arda Guler, Theo Zidane
Attackers – Rodrygo, Vinicius Jr., Joselu, Brahim Diaz, Alvaro Rodriguez
Manager – Eden Terzic
Goalkeepers – Gregor Kobel, Alexander Meyer, Marcel Lotka
Defenders – Mateu Morey, Nico Schlotterbeck, Ramy Bensebaini, Mats Hummels, Ian Maatsen, Niklas Sule, Julian Ryerson, Antonios Papadopoulos
Midfielders – Salih Ozcan, Felix Nmecha, Marius Wolf, Julian Brandt, Marcel Sabitzer, Emre Can, Ole Pohlmann, Abdoulaye Kamara
Attackers – Sebastian Haller, Jadon Sancho, Marco Reus, Niclas Fullkrug, Julien Duranville, Youssoufa Moukoko, Donyell Malen, Karim Adeyemi, Jamie Bynoe-Gittens
At present, there is no specific offer for the Champions League Final available at bet365 Sport. However, the company has run offers for the game in the past.
Therefore, it is sensible to check your bet365 Sport account in the days leading up to the game for any new offers that may become available after this article is published.
Bet365 Sport have priced up Real Madrid as the odds on 1.61 favourites to win the Champions League Final in the Full Time Result market. Dortmund are 4.75 with the draw 4.33.
The Spanish side are 1.30 to win the tournament outright, with Dortmund the 3.50 outside bet.
Since reaching the Champions League Final, Borussia Dortmund have finished the season in fifth-place in the Bundesliga, earning themselves a spot in the new-look Champions League next season regardless of the result of the final.
Manager Eden Terzic has no players suspended for the game and just a couple of omissions due to injury.
Youngsters Abdoulaye Kamara and Julien Duranville are not likely to be fit for the game, but there is better news for left back Ramy Bensebaini who has been pencilled in as being fit for the final. Right back Mateu Morey should also be fit after a cold ruled him out of the final two games of Dortmund's season.
Terzic's main selection dilemma comes in attack where the German side are blessed with a number of exciting attacking options with the likes of Niclas Fullkrug, Sebastian Haller and Karim Adeyemi possibly all vying for one spot in the team. It will also be interesting to see who gets the nod in wider areas between Jadon Sancho, Julian Brandt and Donyell Malen.
Even with the players injured, Dortmund should be at full-strength for the Champions League final.
Real Madrid have completed their 36th La Liga title-winning season since reaching the Champions League Final, beating Barcelona and Girona with a 12-point gap to second.
Carlo Ancelotti’s has two injury concerns. Austrian defender David Alaba is ruled out with a cruciate knee ligament injury and won't play until next season. Midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni has missed the last few games with a foot injury and it is touch-and-go as to whether he will be fit enough to play.
German midfielder Toni Kroos has announced that he will retire from football after the Champions League final and Euro 2024, bringing to an end a hugely successful career at the club. It could also be a final game for midfielder Luka Modric in a Real Madrid shirt with the Croatian legend's future at the club still not decided.
It will be interesting to see who gets the nod in goal for Real with Andriy Lunin having done a good job for the team this season, but with Thibaut Courtois back from injury, the Belgian could come into contention for selection. Especially after Lunin shipped four goals against Villarreal recently.
The Brazilian winger gave Joshua Kimmich a torrid time in both legs of the semi-final with Bayern and it was his goals in the first leg that were the key to Real's eventual success. Up against an inexperienced right back in Ryerson (assuming he is selected over Mateu Morey) Vinicius will expect to wield a big influence on the game for the Spanish side.
Two German midfielders both of whom have a big impact on how their team performs. Toni Kroos is the ticking heartbeat of the Real Madrid team, dictating play from a deeper-lying role and providing the ammunition for the forward players. Can's task will be to negate Kroos' influence while still having a positive impact on the game for Dortmund going forward.
If Real Madrid have a weak area of the team, it is their back four. They lack pace, they have been exposed several times in this competition and do concede goals. Dortmund's real threat comes from wider areas with wingers like Jadon Sancho, Donyell Malen and Karim Adeyemi giving the German side real pace, skill and creativity, not to mention goal-threat, from wide.
Up against the veteran Carvajal on the right side of defence and Ferland Mendy on the left, Dortmund's main attacking thrust is likely to come from the wide duo, with Julian Brandy also able to move out to the flank if required.
Dortmund's chances of an upset win may rely on how well their two wide men can perform against Real's full backs.
The bookmakers have Real as the huge favourites to win the final, and form suggests that they are the sensible team to back here.
Dortmund have been very inconsistent at times, winning some games by big margins, but also losing some games by big margins too. They can win this one, but the odds are against it.
So, the team to back here is Real Madrid in the full time market and I think Vinicius Jr. is an outstanding option for any anytime goalscorer bet too.
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