 Match programme cover | |||||||
| Event | 2011–12 UEFA Champions League | ||||||
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| Afterextra time Chelsea won 4–3 onpenalties | |||||||
| Date | 19 May 2012 (2012-05-19) | ||||||
| Venue | Allianz Arena,Munich | ||||||
| UEFAMan of the Match | Didier Drogba (Chelsea)[1] | ||||||
| Fans' Man of the Match | Petr Čech (Chelsea)[2] | ||||||
| Referee | Pedro Proença (Portugal)[3] | ||||||
| Attendance | 62,500[4] | ||||||
| Weather | Partly cloudy 20 °C (68 °F) 38%humidity[5] | ||||||
←2011 2013 → | |||||||
The2012 UEFA Champions League final was anassociation football match which took place on Saturday, 19 May 2012 betweenBayern Munich of Germany andChelsea of England at theAllianz Arena inMunich, Germany. The match was to decide the winner of the2011–12 season of theUEFA Champions League, Europe's premier club football tournament. Bayern were making their ninth appearance in the competition's final, having won four and lost four, most recently losing in2010. Chelsea were appearing in their second final, having lost their first in2008.
It was the first Champions League final to be held at the Allianz Arena (known as Fußball Arena München for the final). As tenants of the Arena, this meant Bayern were the first finalists to have home advantage since1984. Both teams progressed to the knockout stages by finishing top of their group. Bayern then beatBasel,Marseille andReal Madrid to reach the final, while Chelsea knocked outNapoli,Benfica and defending championsBarcelona.
Bayern took the lead late in the second half throughThomas Müller,[6] butDidier Drogba equalised for Chelsea five minutes later to take the game to extra time, in whichArjen Robben missed an awarded penalty,Petr Čech saving the low drive. The teams stayed level at 1–1 and the match went to apenalty shoot-out, which Chelsea won 4–3 to clinch their first Champions League title.[7] In doing so, they became the first London club to win the tournament, the fifth English club and 22nd overall.
As winners, Chelsea took part in the2012 UEFA Super Cup, losing 4–1 toAtlético Madrid, the winners of the2011–12 UEFA Europa League. The victory also allowed them to enter thefollowing season's Champions League competition (having failed to qualify for it by their league finishing position) at the expense ofLondon rivalsTottenham Hotspur, who would otherwise have entered the competition having finished fourth in thePremier League. Chelsea also representedUEFA at the2012 FIFA Club World Cup, entering at the semi-final stage; however, they were beaten 1–0 byCorinthians in thefinal.
TheAllianz Arena was announced by UEFA as the venue of the 2012 final on 30 January 2010, although the stadium was referred to as "Fußball Arena München" for the match, as UEFA does not recognise sponsorship by companies that are not among its partner organisations.[8] The stadium, which opened in 2005, was then the home stadium of both Bayern Munich and1860 Munich, and was used for six matches at the2006 FIFA World Cup including the opening match.
The stadium was hosting its first major European final. TheOlympiastadion in Munich, the previous home of Bayern Munich and 1860 Munich, hosted three European Cup finals; in1979,1993 and1997.[9] On each previous occasion, a European Cup final held in Munich had produced a first-time winner of the competition (Nottingham Forest, Olympique Marseille and Borussia Dortmund).[10]
During the match, the stadium was illuminated in green and turquoise to represent the official UEFA emblem of the Munich final, as the outer shell of the Allianz Arena can change colour.[11]
To reach the final, in theknockout phase Bayern defeatedBasel,Marseille, andReal Madrid (3–1 on penalties after a 3–3 aggregate score),[12] while Chelsea overcameNapoli,[13]Benfica,[14] and the defending championsBarcelona (3–2 on aggregate).[15]
Both teams reached the final having already lost out in their domestic leagues (theBundesliga andPremier League respectively), but having also reached the final of their domestic cup competitions (theDFB-Pokal andFA Cup respectively), to be played prior to the Champions League final. Chelsea won the FA Cup by defeating Liverpool 2–1 thus were chasing adouble,[16] while Bayern lost the Final of the DFB-Pokal 5–2 toBorussia Dortmund.[17]
Both clubs had lost their most recent Champions League final – Bayern in2010 toInter Milan 2–0 and Chelsea in2008 in an all-English clash withManchester United on penalties after a 1–1 draw. While that was Chelsea's only Champions League final, Bayern had previously played in eight Champions League/European Cup finals, winning four (1974,1975,1976,2001) and losing four (1982,1987,1999 and 2010). The clubs had only met each other once in Europe before, with Chelsea winning 6–5 on aggregate in the quarter-finals of the2004–05 UEFA Champions League.[18]
The match was the fourth occasion that a team had reached a final of the European Cup which was scheduled to be played at their own home ground, after1957,1965 and1984, and the first occasion since the tournament was rebranded to the UEFA Champions League. For this reason, fans of Bayern Munich called the match "Finale dahoam" (Bavarian for "final at home"). This was the first time since2007 that neither of the participants were current champions of their domestic league. This was the sixth time that an English side and a German side had met in a European Cup/Champions League final; the other occasions were1975,1977,1980,1982 and1999. It was also Bayern's fourth time facing an English side in the European Cup/Champions League final, having won in1975 vs. Leeds United and lost in1982 vs. Aston Villa and1999 to Manchester United.
Note: In all results below, the score of the finalist is given first (H: home; A: away).
 Bayern Munich | Round |  Chelsea | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Opponent | Agg. | 1st leg | 2nd leg | Qualifying phase | Opponent | Agg. | 1st leg | 2nd leg | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Zürich | 3–0 | 2–0 (H) | 1–0 (A) | Play-off round | Bye | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Opponent | Result | Group stage | Opponent | Result | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Villarreal | 2–0 (A) | Matchday 1 | Bayer Leverkusen | 2–0 (H) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Manchester City | 2–0 (H) | Matchday 2 | Valencia | 1–1 (A) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Napoli | 1–1 (A) | Matchday 3 |  Genk | 5–0 (H) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Napoli | 3–2 (H) | Matchday 4 | Genk | 1–1 (A) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Villarreal | 3–1 (H) | Matchday 5 | Bayer Leverkusen | 1–2 (A) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Manchester City | 0–2 (A) | Matchday 6 | Valencia | 3–0 (H) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Group A winners
Source:Soccerway | Final standings | Group E winners
Source:Soccerway | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Opponent | Agg. | 1st leg | 2nd leg | Knockout phase | Opponent | Agg. | 1st leg | 2nd leg | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Basel | 7–1 | 0–1 (A) | 7–0 (H) | Round of 16 | Napoli | 5–4 | 1–3 (A) | 4–1 (a.e.t.) (H) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Marseille | 4–0 | 2–0 (A) | 2–0 (H) | Quarter-finals |  Benfica | 3–1 | 1–0 (A) | 2–1 (H) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Real Madrid | 3–3(3–1p) | 2–1 (H) | 1–2 (a.e.t.) (A) | Semi-finals | Barcelona | 3–2 | 1–0 (H) | 2–2 (A) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The two teams each received 17,500 tickets to distribute to their supporters. A further 7,000 tickets were available for sale to fans worldwide via UEFA.com, with prices between €70 and €370. The remaining tickets were allocated to the local organising committee, UEFA's 53 national football associations, and commercial and broadcast partners.[19]
Former German playerPaul Breitner was named as the ambassador for the final.[20]
In May 2012,Pedro Proença, the Portuguesereferee was selected to oversee the final. Joining him, was fellow Portuguese officials Bertino Miranda and Ricardo Santos asassistant referees,Jorge Sousa andDuarte Gomes asadditional assistant referees, Tiago Trigo asreserve assistant referee, and SpaniardCarlos Velasco Carballo asfourth official.[3]
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Both clubs had players missing due to suspensions; Bayern were missingDavid Alaba,Holger Badstuber andLuiz Gustavo, while Chelsea were withoutBranislav Ivanović,Raul Meireles,Ramires andJohn Terry.[21][22] Terry was suspended after beingsent off in the semi-final, which automatically excludes a player from the final. The other six all receivedyellow cards in the semi-finals, which took them over the limit of a third yellow card of the competition, which triggers an automatic suspension from the next match. Players unionFIFPro appealed to UEFA to allow the players with yellow cards to play, seeing the punishment of "missing the match of your life" as too harsh; UEFA rejected the appeal and stated the rule would not be reviewed for at least three years.[23] Ivanović stated how he "had no idea [he] was one booking away from missing the Champions League final."[24] UEFA confirmed that Chelsea captain Terry would be allowed to lift the trophy should Chelsea win, despite his suspension.[25]Ryan Bertrand also got his initial first-team start as a left winger ahead of his regular left back position.
Only two of the 36 players had previously been in a winning squad in a Champions League final: Chelsea'sPaulo Ferreira andJosé Bosingwa were in thePorto squad in2004. Ten of the Bayern 18 had earlier been in their squad that lost the 2010 final, although only four started both games:Philipp Lahm,Bastian Schweinsteiger,Arjen Robben andThomas Müller. Eight of the Chelsea squad had been in their losing 2008 squad, including four who started both games:Petr Čech,Ashley Cole,Frank Lampard andDidier Drogba.[citation needed]
TheUEFA Champions League Anthem was performed by German tenorJonas Kaufmann and violinistDavid Garrett.[26]
The UEFA Champions Festival was held at Munich'sOlympiapark from 16 to 19 May.[27] An official public screening of the final took place at the Olympiastadion during the match,[28] with capacity for 65,000 fans, including a section for Chelsea supporters.[29] A second public screening was planned on theTheresienwiese, where the famousOktoberfest takes place.[30]
Bayern had control for most of the match, with former Chelsea winger Robben having the best chance, which Čech deflected onto the frame of the goal with his legs. Chelsea, however, also had chances, withSalomon Kalou nearly finishing at the near post. Bayern kept pushing Chelsea to the limit but missed sitters fromMario Gómez, who sent his shot over the bar; and Robben, who was blocked at the last second byGary Cahill. Bayern took the lead in the 83rd minute, whenToni Kroos crossed in to Müller, who headed the ball down into the ground, causing it to bounce over Čech and in off the crossbar.[7] Bayern took Müller off and replaced him withDaniel Van Buyten in an attempt to strengthen the defence. However, on 88 minutes, Chelsea won their first corner kick of the match, and whenJuan Mata swung it in, Drogba got to it first and powered a header pastManuel Neuer at the near post for the equaliser. Chelsea won a free kick just outside the area in the 93rd minute, but Drogba smashed it over.
The game went to extra time, and Bayern had the first good chance of the extra 30 minutes whenIvica Olić inside the box passed to Gómez, but his shot was wide. Later, Drogba fouledFranck Ribéry in the penalty area, injuring him and earning Bayern a penalty; Robben took it, but his shot was saved by Čech.[7] In the second half of extra time, Olić attempted to set up Van Buyten instead of taking a shot and the ball rolled wide of Čech's far post.[citation needed]
For the first time since 2008, when Chelsea had lost to Manchester United, the European Cup would be decided by penalties. Lahm went first and scored to Čech's left, as Čech got his fingertips to the ball but was unable to keep it out. Mata took Chelsea's first penalty, but his weak shot was saved by Neuer. Next was Gómez, who drilled his shot into the bottom-right corner.David Luiz took Chelsea's second penalty and scored with a powerful shot into the top corner after a long run up. Goalkeeper Neuer took Bayern's third penalty, and Čech went the right way again but was unable to keep his opposite number's low shot from creeping past him into the bottom-left corner. Lampard was next and he scored with a hard shot high and down the middle. Olić was next and taking his final competitive kick for Bayern, but Čech saved to his left. Cole then slotted his kick into the bottom-right corner just out of Neuer's reach to level the scores at 3–3 and hastensudden death. Schweinsteiger, who had scored Bayern's decisive fifth penalty against Real Madrid'sIker Casillas in the semi-finals, was their fifth penalty taker again. However, Čech tipped his effort onto the post, having gone the correct direction for every Bayern penalty, to leave Chelsea one kick away from winning the trophy. In 2008, Drogba had missed out on taking Chelsea's fifth penalty against Manchester United, having been sent off in extra time; now in the same position, the Ivorian sent Neuer the wrong way and put his kick into the bottom-left corner to win it for Chelsea. It proved to be his final kick as a Chelsea player until his return in 2014.[7]
The victory marked not only Chelsea's first ever European Cup, but also the first time a London team had won the competition – previously, aside from Chelsea's 2008 defeat to United, which was the last time an English club had won the competition,Arsenal had also lost the 2006 final in Paris against Barcelona.[7]
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UEFA Man of the Match: Assistant referees: | Match rules[31]
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On 9 September 2023, the two clubs played a legends match atStamford Bridge to benefit The Chelsea Foundation and The Royal Marsden Cancer Charity. The match was also in memory of former Chelsea and Italy playerGianluca Vialli, who had died at the Royal Marsden Hospital on 6 January of pancreatic cancer at the age of 58.
Chelsea included most of their team from the 2012 final and also included captain Terry and Ramires, who had both missed the final due to suspension, andMichael Essien, who was an unused substitute in 2012.Gianfranco Zola,Jody Morris andSalomon Kalou were among the players who returned, and Di Matteo also returned to manage the side. Bayern Munich included only Van Buyten from their 2012 team but included a number of their players from their2001 team that had beaten Valencia in Milan, includingOwen Hargreaves,Giovane Elber andThomas Linke. 2001 captainStefan Effenberg also co-managed alongsideRaimond Aumann. Chelsea won 4–0 with goals from Essien, Terry, Cahill andTiago Mendes.[33]
