The UEFA Champions League anthem is one of the most recognizable tunes in sports.
Its lyrics and tones can conjure both football nostalgia of memorable moments gone by and the promise for future drama to come.
Simply titled "Champions League," the song is written with lyrics from multiple languages across Europe and played in the stadium before the start of each UEFA Champions League match.
"The official anthem is now almost as iconic as the trophy," states the official website of Champions League organizers and European body UEFA.
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Who wrote the Champions League song? When did it start?
The UEFA Champions League official anthem was written in 1992 by English composer Tony Britten.
According to UEFA, the European confederation commissioned Britten to compose an anthem based on a 1727 song by George Frideric Handel called Zadok the Priest, which was originally written for the coronation of King George II. Zadok the Priest has been performed prior to the anointing at the coronation of every British monarch since its composition and has become a British patriotic symbol.
"There's a rising string phase which I pinched from Handel and then I wrote my own tune," said Britten in 2018 during an interview with a local publication in his hometown of Croydon. "It has a kind of Handelian feel to it, but I like to think it's not a total rip-off."
UEFA explains that the song was meant to piggyback off the popularity of The Three Tenors after their performance prior to the 1990 FIFA World Cup final in Rome, Italy. A recording of the performance, watched by approximately 800 million people, became the best-selling classical album of all time.
The Champions League song recording known today was performed by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and sung by the Academy of Saint Martin in the Fields Chorus.
What language is the Champions League anthem?
The lyrics to the Champions League anthem are comprised of mixed phrases from the three official UEFA languages: English, French, and German.
Each verse has one line in each language, with the lyrics highlighting the "best teams," clearly the tournament's main point of separation. It's a nod to the yearly qualification process that sees only the top clubs from the various leagues partake in the Champions League.
As languages like Italian, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish are not technically official languages of the governing body, they are not featured.
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Champions League song lyrics
Ce sont les meilleures équipes (These are the best teams)
Es sind die allerbesten Mannschaften (They are the best teams)
The main event
Die Meister (The master)
Die Besten (The best)
Les grandes équipes (The greatest teams)
The champions
Une grande réunion (A big meeting)
Eine grosse sportliche Veranstaltung (A big sporting event)
The main event
Die Meister (The master)
Die Besten (The best)
Les grandes équipes (The greatest teams)
The champions
Ils sont les meilleurs (They are the best)
Sie sind die Besten (They are the best)
These are the champions
Die Meister (The master)
Die Besten (The best)
Les grandes équipes (The greatest teams)
The champions
UEFA Champions League song download availability
UEFA's official website explains that the song "cannot be bought or legally downloaded from any website." Despite this, it is available to purchase and download on iTunes store for $0.99.
The song is available on both Apple Music and Spotify with a subscription, and it boasts over 25 million plays on Spotify.
Why do fans whistle at the Champions League anthem?
While many fans relish the occasion to take in the Champions League anthem, some sets of supporters instead take the opportunity to voice their dissatisfaction with the competition, the organizers, or other various related issues.
Why Man City fans boo the Champions League anthem
Man City fans famously boo the Champions League anthem in every match the club plays in. Supporters take issue with a situation from 2011 when Man City striker Mario Balotelli was racially abused by Porto fans.
Not only was UEFA's disciplinary action of a €20,000 fine to Porto deemed far too lenient, but just a month later City was fined €30,000 for arriving 30 seconds late back onto the pitch for the second half of a Champions League game against Sporting Lisbon.
Unsatisfied City supporters, left aghast by the disparity between the two punishments, have expressed their frustration during the Champions League anthem ever since.
City supporters were further enraged when, in 2014, UEFA punished CSKA Moscow for racial abuse. The punishment, handed down just three weeks before City were scheduled to play an away match against the Russian club, included a closed stadium. That left numerous City supporters with tickets, flights, and hotels already booked.
Man City fans showed up anyways, hoping to get in, and were turned away, despite the fact some CSKA Moscow fans were able to enter the stadium wearing different colors. UEFA did not punish CSKA Moscow further for the circumvention of the punishment.
"I'm not just disappointed, I'm furious," said Man City midfielder Yaya Toure at the time.
It got even worse for City fans when the exact opposite happened two years later. In December, 2016, Man City were scheduled to play Dynamo Kyiv in Champions League play. Dynamo Kyiv were serving a stadium ban for the match, but three weeks prior to the scheduled game, UEFA overturned the ban, leaving many Man City fans with too little time to book a trip.
Man City boss Pep Guardiola said back in 2019 that he understands why Man City fans boo the anthem, but hopes the supporters have begun to enjoy the competition more of late.
Why Barcelona fans boo the Champions League anthem
Like Man City supporters, 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 last two decades. In 2016, the club looked to support this movement by handing out 30,000 Estelada flags to fans entering the match.
Political displays during matches are banned by UEFA, and since the governing body sees the push for Catalan independence as a "separatist movement," the club was fined €25,000.
When it happened again later that year during a match against Bayer Leverkusen, UEFA fined the club again, this time for an increased total of €33,000.
Liverpool fans boo Champions League anthem at 2022 final
The Liverpool fanbase was frustrated by the disorganization surrounding the pre-match logistical setup around Stade de France for the 2022 Champions League final between Real Madrid and Liverpool.
There were reports of significant crowd trouble caused by the organizational failure, with the match kickoff 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.
With the match finally kicking off 37 minutes late, the anthem was played as the players exited the tunnel, and Liverpool fans resoundly booed the tune to express their frustration.
The Champions League anthem being jeered by some of the #LFC fans. You can see why on this occasion.
— Ian Doyle (@IanDoyleSport) May 28, 2022