The Champions League title is the pinnacle of each European season, with heavyweight teams and managers fighting it out for the famous trophy.
Real Madrid have dominated the competition throughout its history, as its predecessor as the European Cup, and also since the competition's format change to the Champions League in 1992.
Seven managers have won a European Cup or Champions League title with Los Blancos, as part of the club's historical dominance of the competition.
The list of title-winning managers includes some of most iconic coaches in football, such as Carlo Ancelotti, Sir Alex Ferguson, Pep Guardiola, Bob Paisley and Zinedine Zidane.
Ancelotti got another chance to win it in 2024 and his Real Madrid players came through some first-half struggles to beat Borussia Dortmund 2-0 at Wembley.
The Sporting News looks down the record books here.
Manager with the most Champions League trophies
Carlo Ancelotti extended his record as the most successful coach in the history of the competition thanks to Madrid's hard-fought win over Dortmund in London.
Real's win over Liverpool in Paris in 2022 secured Ancelotti his fourth Champions League title as a manager, and a second with Real Madrid. Those numbers are now five and three — no other coach has won more than three in their entire career.
The veteran Italian won his first title in 2003, at AC Milan, before securing revenge over Liverpool in the 2007 final, after losing out in the 'Miracle of Istanbul' in 2005.
Ancelotti's predecessor in Madrid, Zinedine Zidane, is currently the joint most successful Champions League coach with one team, with three wins, alongside Don Carlo and former Liverpool boss Bob Paisley.
Pep Guardiola moved on to three overall by taking Manchester City to the trophy in 2023. His team defeated Inter Milan 1-0 in the 2023 final in Istanbul.
| Managers | No. of title wins | Clubs | Years won |
| Carlo Ancelotti | 5 | AC Milan, Real Madrid | 2003, 2007, 2014, 2022, 2024 |
| Pep Guardiola | 3 | Barcelona, Manchester City | 2009, 2011, 2023 |
| Bob Paisley | 3 | Liverpool | 1977, 1978, 1981 |
| Zinedine Zidane | 3 | Real Madrid | 2016, 2017, 2018 |
| Jose Villalonga | 2 | Real Madrid | 1956, 1957 |
| Luis Carniglia | 2 | Real Madrid | 1958, 1959 |
| Bella Guttmann | 2 | Benfica | 1961, 1962 |
| Helenio Herrera | 2 | Inter Milan | 1964, 1965 |
| Miguel Munoz | 2 | Real Madrid | 1960, 1966 |
| Nereo Rocco | 2 | AC Milan | 1963, 1969 |
| Stefan Kovacs | 2 | Ajax | 1972, 1973 |
| Dettmar Cramer | 2 | Bayern Munich | 1975, 1976 |
| Brian Clough | 2 | Nottingham Forest | 1979, 1980 |
| Ernst Happel | 2 | Feyenoord, Hamburg | 1970, 1983 |
| Arrigo Sacchi | 2 | AC Milan | 1989, 1990 |
| Ottmar Hitzfeld | 2 | Borussia Dortmund, Bayern Munich | 1997, 2001 |
| Vicente del Bosque | 2 | Real Madrid | 2000. 2002 |
| Sir Alex Ferguson | 2 | Manchester United | 1999, 2008 |
| Jose Mourinho | 2 | Porto, Inter Milan | 2004, 2010 |
| Jupp Heynckes | 2 | Real Madrid, Bayern Munich | 1998, 2013 |
Manager with the most Champions League match wins
Ancelotti also leads the list of managers with the most Champions League match wins, with his return to Madrid in 2021 taking him over the 100-win mark. Again, Ferguson and Guardiola are close behind — indeed, they are the only three to have won more than 100 matches.
| Manager | Club(s) | Champions League wins |
| Carlo Ancelotti | Parma, Juventus, AC Milan, Chelsea, PSG, Bayern Munich, Napoli | 116 |
| Pep Guardiola | Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Manchester City | 109 |
| Sir Alex Ferguson | Manchester United | 102 |
| Arsene Wenger | Arsenal | 82 |
| Jose Mourinho | Porto, Chelsea, Real Madrid, Manchester United, Tottenham | 77 |
| Louis van Gaal | Ajax, Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Manchester United | 57 |
| Jurgen Klopp | Borussia Dortmund, Liverpool | 56 |
| Rafa Benitez | Valencia, Liverpool, Inter Milan, Chelsea, Napoli, Real Madrid | 53 |
| Diego Simeone | Atletico Madrid | 50 |