The UEFA Champions League anthem is one of the most recognisable tunes in sport.
Its lyrics and tones can evoke both football nostalgia, memorable moments from the past and the promise of future drama to come.
Simply titled ‘Champions League’, the song is written with lyrics in multiple languages across Europe and played in the stadium before the start of every UEFA Champions League match.
“The official anthem is now almost as iconic as the trophy,” indicates the official website the organisers of the Champions League and the European body, UEFA.
Who wrote the Champions League song? When did it start?
The official UEFA Champions League anthem was written in 1992 by English composer Tony Britten.
According to UEFAThe Confederation of Europe commissioned Britten to compose an anthem based on a 1727 song by George Frideric Handel entitled Zadok the Priest, which had originally been written for the coronation of King George II. Zadok the Priest has been performed before the anointing at the coronation of every British monarch since its composition and has become a British patriotic symbol.
“There is a rising string phase that I copied from Handel and then I wrote my own melody,” Britten said in 2018 during an interview with a local publication in his hometown of Croydon. “It has a Handel touch to it, but I like to think it’s not a total rip-off.”
UEFA explains that the song was meant to capitalize on the popularity of the Three Tenors following their performance before the 1990 FIFA World Cup final in Rome, Italy. A recording of the performance, watched by an estimated 800 million people, became the best selling classical album of all time.
The recording of the Champions League song known today was performed by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and sung by the choir of the Academy of Saint Martin in the Fields.
What language is the Champions League anthem played in?
The lyrics of the Champions League anthem are composed of mixed phrases from UEFA’s three official languages: English, French and German.
Each verse contains a line in each language, with the lyrics highlighting the “best teams”, which are clearly the main point of distinction of the tournament. It’s a nod to the annual qualification process that sees only the best clubs from the different leagues participate in the Champions League.
Since languages like Italian, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish are not technically official languages of the governing body, they are not featured.
Champions League Song Lyrics
These are the best teams
They are the best teams
The main event
The Master
The best
The big teams
The champions
A big meeting
Eine gros sportliche Veranstaltung (A great sporting event)
The main event
The Master
The best
The big teams
The champions
They are the best
Sie sind die Besten (They are the best)
These are the champions
The Master
The best
The big teams
The champions
UEFA Champions League Songs Download
UEFA official website explains that the song “cannot be legally purchased or downloaded from any website.” Despite this, it is available for purchase and download on iTunes Store for $0.99.
The song is available on both Apple Music And Spotify with a subscription, and it has over 25 million streams on Spotify.
Why do fans whistle the Champions League anthem?
While many fans are looking forward to hearing the Champions League anthem, some groups of supporters are instead using the opportunity to express their dissatisfaction with the competition, the organisers or other related issues.
Why Manchester City fans boo the Champions League anthem
Manchester City fans are known for booing the Champions League anthem at every game the club plays. The supporters are taking issue with a situation from 2011, when Manchester City striker Mario Balotelli was racially abused by Porto fans.
Not only was UEFA’s disciplinary sanction, which fined Porto €20,000, deemed far too lenient, but a month later City were fined €30,000 for arriving on the pitch 30 seconds late for the second half of a Champions League match against Sporting Lisbon.
City fans, unhappy with the disparity between the two penalties, have expressed their frustration during the Champions League anthem since then.
City fans were further angered when UEFA sanctioned CSKA Moscow for racist abuse in 2014. The sanction, handed down just three weeks before City were due to play an away game against the Russian club, included a closed stadium, meaning many City fans had already booked their tickets, flights and hotels.
Manchester City fans still showed up at the stadium, hoping to get in, but were turned away, despite some CSKA Moscow fans being allowed to enter the stadium wearing different colours. UEFA did not impose any further sanctions on CSKA Moscow for circumventing the sanction.
“I’m not just disappointed, I’m furious,” said the Manchester City midfielder. Yaya Toure at the time.
The situation got even worse for City fans when the exact opposite happened two years later. In December 2016, Manchester City were due to play Dynamo kyiv in the Champions League. Dynamo kyiv were banned from the stadium for the match, but three weeks before the scheduled game, UEFA overturned the ban, leaving many Manchester City fans with little time to book a trip.
Pep Guardiola, Manchester City boss said in 2019 He understands why Manchester City fans boo the anthem, but hopes supporters have started to appreciate the competition more in recent times.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNyK4SvmBJY
Why Barcelona Fans Boo the Champions League Anthem
Just like Manchester City fans, Barcelona fans also boo the Champions League anthem on occasion.
Barcelona is located in the Spanish autonomous community of Catalonia, which has seen growing support for independence over the past two decades. In 2016, the club sought to support this movement by distributing 30,000 Estelada flags to fans entering the stadium.
Political demonstrations during matches are banned by UEFA, and because the governing body considers the campaign for Catalan independence to be a “separatist movement”, the club was fined €25,000.
When it happened again later in the year in a match against Bayer Leverkusen, UEFA fined the club again, this time an increased total of €33,000.
Liverpool fans boo 2022 Champions League final anthem
Liverpool fans have been left frustrated by the disorganisation surrounding the pre-match logistical set-up around the Stade de France for the 2022 Champions League final between Real Madrid and Liverpool.
Significant crowd unrest was reported as a result of the organisational failure, with kick-off being delayed twice due to “security concerns” and “late arrival of fans”, according to UEFA.
Videos and images shared on social media showed fans struggling to enter the stadium, forced to navigate dangerous lines, closed gates and even tear gas in some circumstances.
The match eventually kicked off 37 minutes late and the anthem was played as the players came out of the tunnel, with Liverpool fans booing the air to express their frustration.
Champions League anthem booed by some #LFC fans. You can see why on this occasion.
— Ian Doyle (@IanDoyleSport) May 28, 2022
