2021 UEFA Champions League final preview: Manchester City vs. Chelsea
The 2021 UEFA Champions League Final will be the final match of the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League, the 66th season of Europe's premier club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 29th season since it was renamed from the European Champion Clubs' Cup to the UEFA Champions League. It is scheduled to be played at the Estádio do Dragão in Porto, Portugal on 29 May 2021, between English clubs Manchester City, in their first UEFA Champions League final, and three-time finalists Chelsea.
The final was originally scheduled to be played at the Krestovsky Stadium in Saint Petersburg, Russia. However, due to the postponement and relocation of the 2020 final to Lisbon as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe, the final hosts were shifted back a year, with the Atatürk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul, Turkey instead planning to host the 2021 final. However, on 13 May 2021 UEFA announced that the final would be relocated to Porto in order to allow fans to attend the match.
The winners will earn the right to play against the winners of the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League, Villarreal, in the 2021 UEFA Super Cup, and qualify for the 2021 FIFA Club World Cup in Japan. They will also qualify to enter the group stage of the 2021–22 UEFA Champions League, and if they have already qualified through their league performance, the berth reserved will be given to the champions of the 11th-ranked association according to next season's access list.
- Background
2020-21 Premier League champions Manchester City will play in their first European Cup/UEFA Champions League final. They previously played in one European final, the 1970 European Cup Winners' Cup Final, and won. They became the ninth distinct English side to play in a European Cup/UEFA Champions League final. This will be the third UEFA Champions League final for manager Pep Guardiola, and his first since the two wins with Barcelona in 2009 and 2011.
Chelsea will play in their third European Cup/UEFA Champions League final, and the first since 2012. In addition, they have previously played in the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup and UEFA Europa League finals twice each – winning all. In addition, it became the first club ever to see its men's and women's teams reach the Champions League final in the same season, having qualified for the 2021 UEFA Women's Champions League Final as well. Head coach Thomas Tuchel becomes the first coach/manager to reach the European Cup/UEFA Champions League final in successive seasons with different clubs, having lost the 2020 final when coaching Paris Saint-Germain.
This will be the third all-English final in the history of the competition, after 2008 (Manchester United vs. Chelsea) – which also involved Chelsea – and 2019's Liverpool vs. Tottenham Hotspur.
This will be the third meeting between the teams in Europe, having previously met in the semi-finals of the 1970–71 European Cup Winners' Cup, where Chelsea won both legs 1–0 en route to their first European trophy. It will also be the second major cup final between them, after the 2019 EFL Cup Final, which City won on a penalty shoot-out following a goalless draw after extra time. The teams met twice during the season's Premier League, with each side winning away: City won the first match 3–1, while Chelsea won the second 2–1 three weeks prior to the final. In between, Chelsea beat City 1–0 in the 2021 FA Cup semi-finals, denying City the chance of winning an unprecedented quadruple.
For match updates, visit UEFAChampionsLeague.com
