The first time two English clubs met in the final of a European competition was the only time it happened before the Premier League era. In 1972, Tottenham Hotspur became the first UEFA Cup winners, when they beat Wolverhampton Wanderers 3-2 on aggregate in a two-legged final.
Since 1992, there have been five European finals contested by Premier League clubs, as we recall below.
Tottenham Hotspur 1-0 Manchester United (UEFA Europa League, 2025)
Spurs ended their 17-year wait for silverware with a narrow victory over Manchester United in Bilbao, thanks to winger Brennan Johnson's 42nd-minute winner.
Ange Postecoglou's side were 17th in the Premier League table and in desperate need of a lift and their opponents, a Man Utd team under the stewardship of Ruben Amorim, were in a similar situation in 15th place.
However, Postecoglou's declaration that "I always win things in my second year" — uttered after a 1-0 derby defeat to Arsenal in September 2024 — came true eight months later.
A cagey affair decided by a close-range finish brought about a euphoric night for Spurs who claimed their first European trophy since 1984.
However, just two weeks after writing himself into the Spurs history books, Postecoglou was relieved of his duties. Amorim remained in charge at Man Utd until the following January.
Manchester City 0-1 Chelsea (UEFA Champions League, 2021)
After years of trying, following the 2008 takeover that financed their climb into the Premier League’s elite, Manchester City reached their first UEFA Champions League final in 2021.
Their opponents in Porto were Chelsea, who had been on a similar journey after Roman Abramovich’s 2003 purchase of the club.
Following defeat in the 2008 final against Man Utd, Chelsea achieved their holy grail and won the Champions League by beating Bayern Munich in 2012.
Just like on those two previous occasions, Chelsea reached the final after making a mid-season managerial change.
In 2020/21 Thomas Tuchel succeeded Frank Lampard and steered Chelsea to European glory, getting the better of Pep Guardiola in the final as they edged out Man City 1-0.
The game’s decisive moment came in the first half when Kai Havertz rounded Ederson to score the goal which sealed a second competition triumph for Chelsea and left Man City waiting for their first.
Spurs 0-2 Liverpool (UEFA Champions League, 2019)
A year after a painful 3-1 defeat to Real Madrid, Liverpool were back in the Champions League final where they faced Premier League rivals Spurs.
The two clubs had contrasting experience in the competition. This was Liverpool’s ninth final, five of which they had won, but the first for Spurs.
Spurs’ run to the final under Mauricio Pochettino included unforgettable and dramatic victories against Man City in the quarter-finals and Ajax in the semi-finals.
However, their hopes of capping that incredible journey by winning the competition were quickly dented by a second-minute Mohamed Salah penalty for Jurgen Klopp’s side, a far happier memory for the Egyptian after he was forced out of the 2018 final early, and in tears, due to injury.
Cult hero Divock Origi then sealed Liverpool’s sixth competition win in Madrid with a second Liverpool goal in the 87th minute.
Chelsea 4-1 Arsenal (UEFA Europa League, 2019)
The competition’s first final between two clubs from the same city saw Chelsea face fellow Londoners Arsenal in Baku, Azerbaijan.
Chelsea won the Europa League previously in 2013. Arsenal had lost their only other final in the competition in 2000 against Galatasaray but the man in their dugout, Unai Emery, had far happier memories. He had won the trophy three times before with Sevilla.
After a goalless first half, five goals followed in the second as Chelsea cruised to a 4-1 win.
Olivier Giroud opened the scoring against his old club to kickstart an impressive second-half display. Pedro’s finish and Eden Hazard’s penalty then all but secured victory for Chelsea.
Alex Iwobi pulled a goal back for Arsenal but Hazard scored his second goal to clinch victory for Chelsea in what proved to be his final game for the Blues before joining Real Madrid.
The final was also a farewell match for Maurizio Sarri who left to join Juventus after winning his first piece of silverware as a manager.
As winners of their respective European competitions, Chelsea and Liverpool met in the 2019 UEFA Super Cup final, with the latter club winning the trophy on penalties after a 2-2 draw in Istanbul.
Man Utd 1-1 Chelsea (UEFA Champions League, 2008)
In Europe's first all-English final of the Premier League era, Man Utd defeated Chelsea 6-5 on penalties to win the Champions League.
Man Utd were aiming to be crowned kings of Europe for the third time, following their previous triumphs in 1968 and 1999.
Meanwhile, this first competition final between two teams from England was also the first time Chelsea had reached this stage.
The final in Moscow had to be settled on penalties after Man Utd's Cristiano Ronaldo and Chelsea’s Frank Lampard traded first-half goals and the two teams could not be separated despite Didier Drogba’s extra-time red card.
Ronaldo was first to miss in the shootout, giving Chelsea the advantage and eventually presenting John Terry with the chance to win the final.
It would have been a fairytale moment for homegrown captain Terry - and Russian owner Abramovich too in his homeland - had he scored.
But, instead, he slipped on the rain-soaked surface and hit a post, opening the door for Man Utd to win the shootout instead, with Edwin van der Sar saving Nicolas Anelka’s penalty.