In the heart of the 1950s the idea of a competition that would bring together the champions of Europe’s top leagues took shape in the mind of Gabriel Hanot and Jacques Ferran, two editors at the French newspaper L’Equipe. The Champions League was born, a tournament that continues to provide an annual showcase for the best clubs in Europe and a venue for unforgettable matches, epic comebacks and finals that have shaped generations of football fans.

In its first incarnation, Real Madrid dominated, winning the title five times in its inaugural run between 1955 and 1968. In 1992, the tournament underwent a revamp and grew into one of the most lucrative media sport commodities in the world with the revenue involved now surpassing 3 billion euros.

Since that time, the competition has expanded and currently sees 36 teams qualify for the group stage with the winners of each of the major European club tournaments — Premier League, La Liga, Serie A and Bundesliga – earning automatic entry into the tournament along with the leading clubs from France and Portugal. The four fourth-placed teams from each league then have a path to qualifying for the knockout phase via qualification rounds based on their association coefficient ranking.

For the viewer, Champions League offers a unique opportunity to immerse themselves in the drama and celebrate pure footballing brilliance, as well as a rare sense of freedom — if your team loses, you can simply move on and watch another team take its place, keeping the excitement going all season long.