Paris Saint-Germain is in the Champions League final against Arsenal – the kick-off is brought forward, ticket prices remain stable and both teams and the stadium have a lot of history.
When and where does the game take place?
The final is scheduled for May 30th in Budapest at the Puskás Aréna. Starting this year, the kick-off will take place at 6 p.m. and not at 9 p.m. as was previously the case. UEFA announced that this change “a better experience for fans, teams and host cities” should bring.
Pros: Kickoff time allows families and children to watch the game. Departure from the stadium by public transport no longer takes place at night, and some fans may also be able to forego an expensive overnight stay in a hotel as part of a day trip.
The Puskas Arena in Budapest
How much do the tickets cost?
Aside from the VIP areas, there are four prize categories in the three UEFA finals:
| tournament | Cat. 4 | Cat. 3 | Cat. 2 | Cat. 1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
CL | 70 | 180 | 650 | 950 |
EL | 40 | 65 | 160 | 240 |
ECL | 25 | 45 | 140 | 190 |
This means that the prices in the Champions League final remain stable compared to 2025, but compared to 2024 there was a significant increase in the top two categories – which some fans resort to if they came away empty-handed when awarding the cheaper categories. UEFA said: “More than 40 percent of the stadium capacity will be offered to supporters of the finalists in the two cheapest categories.”
The Champions League final was often a point of contention when it came to card distribution. Demand from fans is particularly high here, but also from partners, sponsors, media and officials. The result: Fans can only buy 39,000 of the just over 61,000 tickets.
According to UEFA, PSG and Arsenal each receive around 17,000 of the 39,000 available tickets, which they give out directly to their fans and members. That left fewer than 5,000 tickets for general sales, which ran between March 16 and 19. It is already clear: Arsenal fans will get the north curve of the stadium, PSG fans will get the south curve.
How many times have the two teams been in the final?
Paris Saint-Germain goes into the final as defending champions. In 2025, PSG won the final 5-0 against Inter Milan in Munich. In 2020, PSG lost the Champions League final against Bayern 0-1 in Lisbon. The game in Budapest is the third Champions League final for Paris.
Achraf Hakimi and Ousmane Dembélé in Munich 2025
Long before the many millions came from Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund, the club had already won a European competition. In 1996, PSG won the European Cup Winners’ Cup with a 1-0 win against Rapid Vienna in Brussels.
Patrice Loko from Paris Saint-Germain in the final against Rapid Vienna in 1996
Arsenal are playing in a Champions League final for the second time. In 2006, Arsenal lost 2-1 to FC Barcelona in Paris.
Jens Lehmann fouls Samuel Eto’o during the 2006 Champions League final.
The then German national goalkeeper Jens Lehmann played the final for Arsenal immediately before the World Cup in Germany and was shown a red card in the 18th minute for an emergency stop on Samuel Eto’o. Arsenal still took the lead, but still lost. Lehmann said: “I’ll take this game to my grave.” Arsenal’s last success to date remains winning the European Cup Winners’ Cup in 1994. Arsenal also won the Trade Fair Cup in 1970, which is the predecessor of the UEFA Cup, which is now called the Europa League.
Arsenal FC players celebrate winning the European Cup Winners’ Cup in 1994
What is the history of the stadium?
The Puskás Aréna opened in 2019. It was built on the spot where the Nepstadion previously stood. Hungary’s national team played there 192 times. The new building is named after the Hungarian striker Ferenc Puskás, who lost the 1954 World Cup final against Germany in Bern with the national team.
The Népstadion in Budapest in 1998
The new stadium was a kind of refuge for UEFA during the coronavirus pandemic. At that time, several games in many European countries were not allowed to be played as planned – Hungary, on the other hand, allowed leeway in the Corona rules. Borussia Mönchengladbach, for example, played against Manchester City here, RB Leipzig met FC Liverpool in the Puskás Aréna. Hungary secured UEFA’s schedule at the time and was an important factor for the business of professional football.
Gladbach’s Rami Bensebaini and Manchester City’s Kyle Walker during a 2021 Champions League match in Budapest
UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin described the stadium as “the jewel in the crown of Hungarian football”. Bayern have also been here: in 2020 they won the UEFA Super Cup against FC Sevilla at the Puskás Aréna. Several European Championship games took place there in 2021, and in 2023 FC Sevilla won the Europa League in the final against AS Roma in Budapest.
