Paris Saint-Germain are champions of Europe — again. After a 1-1 draw across 120 minutes at Budapest's Puskás Aréna, PSG beat Arsenal 4-3 on penalties to seal back-to-back Champions League titles, twelve months on from the 5-0 dismantling of Inter Milan that delivered their first. Kai Havertz had given Arsenal a dream start in the fifth minute, only for Ousmane Dembélé to equalise from the spot just past the hour. Then came the shootout — and two missed Arsenal kicks decided one of the most agonising finals of the new era.
Havertz strikes first
Arsenal could not have started any better. Inside five minutes Kai Havertz finished off a crisp move to put the Gunners 1-0 up, and for the opening stretch it looked like the script Arteta's side had drawn up. They were compact, disciplined, brave on the press, and PSG — for all their possession — could not find a way to bend Arsenal's shape. Donnarumma had little to do at one end while the Arsenal defence stood tall at the other.
Dembélé from the spot
The equaliser, when it came, was a moment of cool finishing rather than open-play brilliance. PSG won a penalty in the 64th minute and Ousmane Dembélé stepped up to convert it without fuss — 1-1, and the whole complexion of the final changed. PSG, who had been long on the ball but short on cutting edge, now had the belief their possession deserved. The last half-hour was tense, end-to-end and tactical, but neither side could find the second goal.
Extra time, and then the shootout
Thirty minutes of extra football couldn't separate them. Legs heavy, both sets of fans on edge, the final reached penalties — the cruellest way to decide a continent's biggest match.
PSG kicked first. Gonçalo Ramos slotted in to open it, Viktor Gyökeres matched him for Arsenal. Désiré Doué pushed PSG ahead — and then came the first decisive moment, Eberechi Eze missing for Arsenal. The Gunners immediately had a lifeline when Nuno Mendes was denied for PSG and Declan Rice converted to level the shootout at 2-2. Achraf Hakimi nudged PSG back ahead. Gabriel Martinelli answered to make it 3-3. And then Lucas Beraldo stepped up, scored, and put the trophy on the line: Gabriel Magalhães needed to convert to keep Arsenal alive. He didn't. Beraldo's kick, in the end, was the one that won the European Cup.
What this means for PSG
Back-to-back. Twelve months after the 5-0 win over Inter Milan that finally delivered PSG's first ever Champions League, they have now defended it — and become only the second club of the post-1992 Champions League era to win the competition in consecutive seasons, after Real Madrid's three-in-a-row from 2016 to 2018. There will be a lot said in the coming days about who delivered the moment that mattered: the composure of Ramos, Doué, Hakimi and Beraldo from twelve yards; Dembélé's measured finish to drag the final back; the goalkeeping that swung the shootout. Collectively, this is a side that's no longer just a one-off champion — it's a Champions League dynasty in the making.
Arsenal's heartbreak
For Arsenal, the manner of the loss will hurt more than the loss itself. They led at the Champions League final inside five minutes. They were one missed PSG penalty from a shootout advantage. They had their fifth kick to take with the trophy still in reach. It wasn't to be. Mikel Arteta's project — the rebuild that lifted the Premier League this season — has now also reached Europe's biggest stage. The next step is to come back and win one. The signs are that they will get more chances.
How the match unfolded — the quick version
- 5' — Kai Havertz scores. Arsenal 1-0 PSG.
- 64' — Ousmane Dembélé converts a penalty. 1-1.
- FT / AET — Score stays level after extra time.
- Penalties — PSG win 4-3 (Eze and Magalhães miss for Arsenal; Nuno Mendes misses for PSG).
FAQ
Who won the 2026 Champions League final? PSG, beating Arsenal 4-3 on penalties after a 1-1 draw.
What was the score in 90 minutes? 1-1. Havertz for Arsenal in the 5th minute; Dembélé from the penalty spot in the 64th.
Who missed for Arsenal in the shootout? Eberechi Eze and Gabriel Magalhães.
Where was the final played? The Puskás Aréna in Budapest, Hungary.
How many Champions Leagues has PSG won? Two. Their first came last season, a 5-0 win over Inter Milan in the 2025 final. The 2026 win over Arsenal makes it back-to-back titles.
Are PSG the first to win back-to-back UCLs? No — they're the second club of the post-1992 Champions League era to do it, after Real Madrid's three consecutive wins in 2016, 2017 and 2018.
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