A first version of this article was published at the end of July.
Just over a year has passed since Paris Saint-Germain dismantled Inter Milan 5-0 at Munich's Allianz Arena to win the Champions League for the first time. In less than two years, the final of Europe's premier club competition will return to Munich, UEFA announced on Tuesday.
"That is great news for us," said Jan-Christian Dreesen, chief executive of Bayern Munich. "The Allianz Arena, Bayern Munich and Munich stand for international appeal, genuine hospitality and the highest organisational quality. UEFA know that, and sports fans from all over the world experience it."
Munich will stage the final for the sixth time in 2028. It was held three times at the Olympic Stadium. The Allianz Arena then hosted the legendary Finale dahoam in 2012, when Bayern Munich lost to Chelsea in a penalty shootout, and the 2025 edition. So why is Munich getting it again so soon?
Right now, only a handful of stadiums in Europe offer ideal conditions for Champions League finals. That is why the Allianz Arena, the only official bidder to host in 2028, has become something of UEFA's living room. The 2027 final will be played at Madrid's Metropolitano, which also staged the match in 2019. London's Wembley has had it three times in the past 15 years.
Barcelona get the 2029 final
The basic requirements for hosting a Champions League final are natural grass, pitch dimensions of 105 by 68 metres and a capacity of 70,000. However, UEFA allow a tolerance margin of ten per cent on capacity, so 63,000 seats is the absolute minimum. That currently applies to 22 football stadiums in Europe. Because of the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, hosting it in St Petersburg, Moscow or Kyiv is out of the question. That leaves 19.
Europe's biggest stadium is Camp Nou in Barcelona. Lengthy redevelopment work, delays and the uncertainty that comes with them meant it played no role in recent considerations. But the new Camp Nou is now close to completion and was immediately awarded the 2029 final.
Real Madrid's Bernabeu is probably Europe's most famous stadium and, since the rebuild, also its most modern. The fact it has not been used as a final venue since 2010 is also likely to have something to do with the long-running feud between Real president Florentino Perez and UEFA. Keyword: Super League. There is also an alternative in the same city in the shape of the Metropolitano, which UEFA apparently prefer.
Getty ImagesDortmund are apparently considering a bid after 2029
Milan's San Siro is considered outdated and is due to be replaced by a new-build stadium before long. Although they have also occasionally served as venues in the recent past, the venerable Olympic stadiums in Rome, Athens and Istanbul, with their running tracks and lack of amenities, are really no longer up to date.
Other important criteria, though not precisely defined, are the city's infrastructure, proximity to a major airport, the number of hotel beds in the city, especially in the luxury segment, and the number of boxes in the stadium. That is why Manchester's Old Trafford, Cardiff's Millennium Stadium, Marseille's Velodrome, Baku's National Stadium, Seville's La Cartuja and Dortmund's Signal Iduna Park are considered less than ideal. Regardless of that, according to a report by Sport Bild, Dortmund were seeking to host a Champions League final for the first time after 2029.
Ultimately, besides the Allianz Arena, Wembley, the Metropolitano and Budapest's Puskas Arena (venue in 2026), the only venues with ideal conditions remaining are the Stade de France (last hosted in 2022), Lisbon's Estadio da Luz (2020) and Berlin's Olympic Stadium (2015).