“Championes! Championes! Ole, ole, ole!”
It is the night of 23 May 2001 at the San Siro, Milan, and the UEFA Champions League final between Bayern Munich and Spanish side Valencia has gone to penalties, finishing 1–1 after extra time (both goals being penalties themselves). After both teams miss two of their opening five spot-kicks, they each score Nos. 5 and 6 — and there’s still nothing to separate them. Bayern’s central defender Thomas Linke steps up, wrong-footing goalkeeper Cañizares, and places the seventh into the back of the net.
Advantage Bayern.
Valencia send forth a centre-back of their own, Mauricio Pellegrino, who has to score to continue the shoot-out. He runs up, places it to his left, but Oliver Kahn (Der Titan) has guessed correctly and saves. The referee blows his whistle, and Bayern Munich are champions of Europe again.
Twenty-four years and five days later, Real Betis will face Chelsea in the final of the UEFA Conference League, hoping to continue one of the most incredible (and unbelievable) runs in sporting history: since that night in 2001, a Spanish team has not lost a single major European final against a non-Spanish opponent.
27 finals across 23 years — and a Spanish team has won every single one.
The 27 Wins for Spanish sides
| Year | Competition | Winner | Score | Runner-Up |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Champions League | Real Madrid | 2–1 | Bayer Leverkusen |
| 2004 | UEFA Cup | Valencia | 2–0 | Marseille |
| 2006 | UEFA Cup | Sevilla | 4–0 | Middlesbrough |
| 2006 | Champions League | Barcelona | 2–1 | Arsenal |
| 2007 | UEFA Cup | Sevilla (p) | 2–2 | Espanyol |
| 2008 | EURO | Spain | 1–0 | Germany |
| 2009 | Champions League | Barcelona | 2–0 | Manchester United |
| 2010 | Europa League | Atlético Madrid (ET) | 2–1 | Fulham |
| 2010 | World Cup | Spain (ET) | 1–0 | Netherlands |
| 2011 | Champions League | Barcelona | 3–1 | Manchester United |
| 2012 | Europa League | Atlético Madrid | 3–0 | Athletic Club |
| 2012 | EURO | Spain | 4–0 | Italy |
| 2014 | Europa League | Sevilla (p) | 0–0 | Benfica |
| 2014 | Champions League | Real Madrid (ET) | 4–1 | Atlético Madrid |
| 2015 | Europa League | Sevilla | 3–2 | Dnipro |
| 2015 | Champions League | Barcelona | 3–1 | Juventus |
| 2016 | Europa League | Sevilla | 3–1 | Liverpool |
| 2016 | Champions League | Real Madrid (p) | 1–1 | Atlético Madrid |
| 2017 | Champions League | Real Madrid | 4–1 | Juventus |
| 2018 | Europa League | Atlético Madrid | 3–0 | Marseille |
| 2018 | Champions League | Real Madrid | 3–1 | Liverpool |
| 2020 | Europa League | Sevilla | 3–2 | Inter |
| 2021 | Europa League | Villarreal (p) | 1–1 | Manchester United |
| 2022 | Champions League | Real Madrid | 1–0 | Liverpool |
| 2023 | Europa League | Sevilla (p) | 1–1 | Roma |
| 2024 | Champions League | Real Madrid | 2–0 | Borussia Dortmund |
| 2024 | EURO | Spain | 2–1 | England |
It Seems Impossible… Because It Is
It seems illogical that this length of run has occurred — and that’s because it is (unless we’re talking about a witch’s curse or a glitch in the Matrix). There’s no common denominator, no tactical consistency; absolutely no reason why this should have happened.
But, for argument’s sake, let’s try and find something…
The Spanish Giants
It helps that the two largest teams in Spain are Real Madrid and Barcelona — both of which have had significant periods of domination over the past 20 years.
Barca had the emergence of Pep Guardiola and tiki-taka, with their legendary academy ‘La Masia’ producing the midfield trio Sergio Busquets, Andrés Iniesta, and Xavi — and, of course, ahem, Leo Messi. This team won Champions Leagues in ’09 and ’11, before the destructive ‘MSN’ frontline (Messi, Suárez, Neymar) claimed the trophy again in ’15.
Real Madrid went even harder, winning four Champions Leagues in five seasons (’14, ’16, ’17, ’18), with a side led by Cristiano Ronaldo in his prime.
So far, it makes sense that these two sides would win basically any final they were involved in.
The Bridesmaid (That Sometimes Marries the Groom)
During this period, Atlético Madrid lost two Champions League finals — both against their greatest rivals and neighbours, Real Madrid — proving that the only team that can beat a Spanish side in a final is another Spanish side. Despite those heartbreaks, they did have success in the UEFA Cup/Europa League, winning in ’10, ’12, and ’18. They also managed to win two La Liga titles, breaking the Real-Barça duopoly.
The God Among Insects
It may not surprise you to learn that Real Madrid are the most successful Spanish team during this period. What may surprise you is that the second-most successful is Sevilla, who appeared in seven UEFA Cup/Europa League finals — and won all seven, including three in a row (’14, ’15, ’16).
Often referred to as “the 4th team in Spain,” Sevilla frequently qualified for the Champions League but were usually eliminated before the knockouts. At the time, finishing third in the group meant dropping into the Europa League — and Sevilla would win it multiple times from that position. Not quite good enough for the elite, but dominant in the second tier.
The Remaining Clubs
It may seem fanciful now, but Valencia were a dominant force at the turn of the millennium, winning La Liga in ’02 and ’04, and reaching two European finals — losing to Bayern in 2001, but beating Marseille in 2004.
The other team? Villarreal — who won their only major European trophy in 2021, after a mammoth 11–10 victory on penalties vs Manchester United. Why? Well, their manager at the time was Unai Emery — who also led Sevilla during their three-peat. He has four Europa Leagues now. One more and they might let him keep the trophy…
The Spanish Empire
Let’s not forget the international side’s golden run: winning EURO 2008, World Cup 2010, and EURO 2012 — the first European nation to win three major trophies in a row. The squad was mostly made up of Real Madrid and Barcelona players — Busquets, Xavi, Iniesta, etc. — and they capped it all off by winning EURO 2024, beating England in the final.
Since 2008, Spain has won four international tournaments. No other European nation has won more than one.
Patterns in the (S)pain
Okay, so far, all we’ve said to explain this phenomenon is: “they were good,” “they had a certain manager,” or “they had Messi/Ronaldo.”
Not so helpful. But what about the losers?
| Losing Club Nationality | Number of Finals Lost |
|---|---|
| England | 9 |
| Italy | 6 |
| Spain | 4 |
| Germany, France | 2 each |
| Portugal, Netherlands, Croatia | 1 each |
Ah-ha! Spanish sides are the kryptonite of English clubs, with Manchester United and Liverpool each losing three finals. No other clubs have lost more European finals since 2001.
It’s Not Even Close
| Winning Club Nationality | No. of Wins |
|---|---|
| Spain | 23 |
| England | 10 |
| Italy | 5 |
| Germany, Portugal | 3 each |
| Russia | 2 |
| Netherlands, Ukraine, Greece | 1 each |
The Super Cup Litmus Test
In 23 years, there have only been five UEFA Super Cups that didn’t feature a Spanish side — which means that in just five seasons, a Spanish club failed to win either the Champions League or Europa League. Coincidentally, there have also been five all-Spanish Super Cups.
Number 28?
On 28 May, Real Betis take on Chelsea in the UEFA Conference League final — trying to make it 28 wins in a row for Spanish clubs in European finals.
Some may scoff at including the Conference League — the third-tier European tournament — but try telling that to Roma, West Ham United, or Olympiacos, who celebrated winning it like it was the Champions League.
Chelsea are big favourites. Their squad is valued at €922 million — the most in the tournament by far. Fiorentina were the next closest… at €281.8 million. Chelsea’s wage bill is more than three times that of Real Betis, who spend about the same as Brentford.
Surely, this is the moment the streak ends. Chelsea are European giants among pretenders.
But if they don’t win?
Well, maybe the curse is real after all…
