Paris Saint-Germain wins Champions League final against Arsenal on penalties
Paris Saint-Germain won the Champions League, defeating Arsenal on penalties after a 1–1 draw over 120 minutes at the Puskás Aréna in Budapest.
Hungary hosted the Champions League final for the first time, marking a significant development in its status as a centre for European football events.
“We fought hard and gave everything, but it wasn’t meant to be,” stated Arsenal’s Declan Rice after the intense penalty shootout.
Paris Saint-Germain wins the Champions League after penalty shootout victory against Arsenal
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Paris Saint‑Germain retained the Champions League title in Budapest, defeating Arsenal on penalties after a 1–1 draw over 120 minutes at the Puskás Aréna.
Kai Havertz put Arsenal in front inside the opening minutes, but Ousmane Dembélé equalised from the spot midway through the second half after Khvicha Kvaratskhelia was fouled in the box.
With neither side able to find a winner in extra time, the final went to a shootout, where PSG held their nerve to clinch a second successive European crown and deny Arsenal a first Champions League trophy despite their domestic title‑winning season.
Defending champions Paris Saint-Germain and Arsenal faced off in front of a sold-out crowd at Budapest’s Puskás Arena. It was the French club’s third appearance and the English club’s second in the final of Europe’s most prestigious club competition.
PSG lost to Bayern Munich in 2020 (0–1), but in 2025, they won the Champions League trophy with a dominant 5-0 victory over Italy’s Inter Milan.
Arsenal last reached the final twenty years ago, where they suffered a 1-2 defeat to Spain’s FC Barcelona.
The match
The match began with a quick goal. After a botched Parisian clearance, the ball bounced off Trossard to Arsenal’s German forward, Kai Havertz, who broke down the left flank, then, drifting slightly wide, blasted the ball into Szafonov’s net from about 4 meters out (0-1).
From that point on, the English team dropped deep in front of their goal to deny PSG’s lightning-fast attackers enough space to play their combination game. Arsenal achieved their goal, as the Parisians were unable to create a single serious scoring opportunity in the first half.
In stoppage time of the first half, a sliding tackle by Marquinhos prevented Havertz from scoring a second goal.
PSG’s dominance on the field paid off with a goal in the second half. Dembélé equalised from a legitimate penalty after Kvaratskhelia was fouled (1-1).
Arsenal played a bit more openly after that, but PSG remained the more dangerous side. With about fifteen minutes left in regulation time, Kvaratskhelia hit the crossbar with a shot that took a slight deflection off a London defender.
The Parisians remained the more active side. Vitinha came closest to scoring; the midfielder’s shot went just over the crossbar, and the score remained unchanged until the end of regulation time.
The last time there was extra time in the Champions League final was in 2016, when Real Madrid was drawing 1-1 with Atletico Madrid. Real Madrid went on to win on penalties.
No goals have been scored in the first and second 15 minutes of extra time.
Boos from Arsenal fans rang around the stadium after the referee turned down a penalty appeal by Noni Madueke following a challenge by Willian Pacho.
Arsenal’s Declan Rice was livid that a spot kick wasn’t given and took his disgruntlement too far, getting a yellow card from the referee.
At the end of the extra time, the final went to penalties. It’s the eighth time a shootout has been needed to settle the title match since the European Cup was rebranded as the Champions League in 1992.
The last one was in 2016, when Cristiano Ronaldo converted the decisive kick for Real Madrid and flexed his muscles after removing his jersey.
This has been the first time Hungary has hosted European club football’s showpiece game.