PSG have successfully become the second team to win back-to-back Champions League titles after edging Arsenal 4-3 on penalties in Budapest on Saturday evening.

The French champions sealed off another dominant campaign with a historic win, having won their first-ever title in the competition 12 months ago and repeating it similarly - winning after finishing outside the top eight.

Their remarkable performance saw them conquer some of the former champions of the competition but they had to dig deep to better an Arsenal side looking for a first-ever climax ending to a Champions League campaign.

At the end of a penalty shootout that followed 120 minutes of football action, it was the Parisiens who came out on top after three misses out of ten attempts.

How PSG defended UCL crown in Arsenal win

Arsenal took an early lead against the run of play in the Puskas Arena after a clearance came off Leandro Trossard, sending Kai Havertz bearing down on goal with only Matvey Safonov to beat.

The German international made his way into the box, and calmly fired into the roof of the net to put Arsenal in front. It was his second Champions League final goal have scored Chelsea's lone winner over Manchester City in 2021.

However, PSG came asking all the questions but couldn't find a way through a resolute Arsenal defence, and almost fell two behind later in the half, but for a sliding block from Marquinhos to deny a goal-bound Kai Havertz's shot.

Luis Enrique's team was presented a way back into the game just after the hour mark, after Cristhian Mosquera clumsily brought down Khvicha Kvaratskhelia in the box while trying to deny him from taking a shot on goal.

Ballon d'Or holder Ousmane Dembele converted, sending David Raya the wrong way, to draw PSG back on level terms, making it the first Champions League final where both teams have scored since 2018.

Neither of the teams could fashion a late winner and it went into extra time, where Noni Madueke's penalty claim after a challenge from Nuno Mendes was waved away, while Declan Rice and Mikel Arteta earned bookings for protests.

Dramatic penalty shootout 

Both PSG and Arsenal have already withdrawn many of their regular players having failed to make telling impacts during the match, and unfamiliar faces lined up for the shootout.

Eberechi Eze missed Arsenal's second attempt, sending the ball wide despite beating Safonov, but David Raya denied Nuno Mendes to bring the Premier League champions back in it in the following set of penalties.

However, Gabriel Magalhaes missed the decisive fifth to keep the Premier League champions in it, meaning Lucas Beraldo's kick before that wins a second consecutive Champions League title for PSG, who became the second team to defend the crown after Real Madrid's three-peat in 2016 to 2018.

History books after the 2026 UCL Final

Luis Enrique, having claimed his third Champions League title as manager, is now only second to Carlo Ancelotti with five, as the most successful managers in the competition's history.

For Arsenal, they remain the team with the most games played in Champions League history without ever winning the title, taking their appearance total to 226.

Paris Saint-Germain also became the third side ever to win both their league title and the European Cup/UEFA Champions League in back-to-back seasons, after Real Madrid (1956-57/1957-58) and Ajax (1971-72/1972-73).

Champions League Team of the Season

David Raya of Arsenal, Marcos Llorente of Atlético Madrid, Marquinhos of PSG, Gabriel of Arsenal, Nuno Mendes of PSG, Vitinha of PSG, Declan Rice of Arsenal, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia of PSG, Ousmane Dembele of PSG, Harry Kane of Bayern Munich, and Michael Olise of Bayern Munich.

Individual Award Winners

Kylian Mbappé won the top scorer award with 15 goals, one more than Harry Kane, while his Real Madrid teammate, Arda Guler was named Young Player of the Season.

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia is the man of the tournament and succeeds Ousmane Dembele as the Player of the Season, while David Raya, who makes the team of the season, is the best goalkeeper with record-equaling nine clean sheets.

Conclusion 

PSG have once again repeated their astonishing journey to the Champions League title after finishing out of the top eight in the league phase, and have won both editions of the new format.

Luis Enrique's team, having beaten Monaco, Chelsea, Liverpool, and Bayern Munich, in the knockouts, started the final with all ten outfield players from the last final against Inter, and were able to get the job done.

Les Parisiens now have history in sight as winning the competition next season will see them equal Real Madrid's three-peat record, and with such a young and competitive group, this could be more than just a dream.

Meanwhile, in their third season back in the competition, Arsenal have finished in the quarter-finals and semi-finals before becoming the losing finalists, and will be eager to be back for more next season.

Mikel Arteta will take positives from their journey to the final and winning their first Premier League title in 22 years in a season where they played 63 games, but the summer transfer window will also be an avenue to take their team to the next level.

The opportunity to dominate the league is there, especially with Pep Guardiola's City departure and other top teams still sorting out coaches after a season of disappointment, and a consistent Arsenal side just needs to continue what they do to keep standing out.

Paris Saint-Germain are champions of Europe once again but Arsenal are not just their victim, but a team ready to take their share of European glory that has been denied since their foundation, and they will continue to knock until it eventually happens their way.