What are the actual lyrics to the Champions League theme tune as final takes place

No match is truly complete without the stirring performance of the competition's anthem, and this year's final will be no exception. From the original 36 teams that embarked on this tournament, .

This season marked the introduction of a new league phase system. Instead of the conventional four-team groups, each team faced off against eight different rivals. Following the completion of this stage, Liverpool, under the guidance of Arne Slot, topped the table, suffering just one defeat. Arsenal, led by Mikel Arteta, advanced to the round of 16 in third place, while Aston Villa secured their spot in eighth. Manchester City, however, struggled and required an additional play-off tie to join the top eight, falling short against . Paris Saint-Germain then eliminated Liverpool before defeating Unai Emery's side in the quarter-finals. Arsenal, having ousted Los Blancos, also fell prey to PSG's formidable forward line in the semi-finals.

With PSG securing their place in the final, Inter Milan emerged victorious from the other side of the bracket, overcoming Feyenoord, Bayern Munich and Barcelona. These two footballing titans will soon clash, with the competition's anthem resonating throughout the Allianz Arena just before the match begins at 8pm UK time on Saturday evening.

The anthem's lyrics are a multi-lingual ode to footballing excellence, belted out in UEFA's three official tongues: English, French and German. It begins: "Ce sont les meilleures equipes [They are the best teams]. Es sind die allerbesten Mannschaften [They are the best teams]. The main event. Die Meister [The masters]. Die Besten [The best]. Les grandes equipes [The great teams]. The champions!

"Une grande reunion [A big meeting]. Eine grosse sportliche Veranstaltung [A great sporting event]. The main event. Die Meister. Die Besten. Les grandes equipes. The champions!

"Ils sont les meilleurs [They are the best]. Sie sind die Besten [They are the best]. These are the champions. Die Meister. Die Besten. Les grandes equipes. The champions!"

Tony Britten, an alumnus of the Royal College of Music, composed the famed tune in 1991, channelling the spirit of 18th-century composer George Frederic Handel and his 'Zadok the Priest'. It was then magnificently brought to life in 1992 by London's Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and performed by the Choir of the Academy of Saint Martin in the Fields Chorus.

The full-length Champions League anthem runs for approximately three minutes, yet it's the orchestral rendition that sets the stage before matches, becoming a hallmark of thrilling European football nights. The anthem was created as part of a rebranding effort to revitalise the then-newly established Champions League.

Britten told in 2020: "It was a long time ago, and to be honest, it was just another job. The old European Cup had become a very tired competition, and to UEFA's credit, they wanted to elevate the sport around the time when there was a lot of hooliganism right across Europe. UEFA wanted this competition to be about the best of football rather than the worst, and said they must have an anthem.

"I remember asking, 'Where are the words?' And they said they didn't know, but that they wanted something in UEFA's three official languages. So, I came up with a set of superlatives. 'The greatest', 'the best', 'the masters', 'the main event', 'the champions' and translated between those languages. It all came together in a matter of weeks, and the actual composing process was just a matter of days. Although it was designed to be an important competition, there were only eight teams and no one thought it was going to be the mega competition that it has become now."