Borussia Dortmund Join the Long List of Shock UEFA Champions League Finalists

In a storyline that reads like a fairy tale, Borussia Dortmund etched their name into the annals of football history by securing a spot in the 2024 UEFA Champions League final. The German outfit may not even feature in the tournament next year if they do not walkway from Wembley Stadium on June 1st with the trophy, as they are currently way down in 5th place in the Bundesliga table. However, they didn’t let their poor domestic form stand in their way as they beat French champions Paris Saint-Germain home and away in the semifinals.

Dortmund Reach UEFA Champions League Final

For the Parisians, they were hoping to end the Kylian Mbappe era on a high, and after knocking off Barcelona in the quarterfinals it looked as though they already had one foot in the final. Unfortunately for the talismanic 25-year-old however, his stint in the French capital will end without European silverware. And if his side were overlooking their German counterparts, then they surely paid the price.

In front of the iconic Yellow Wall in the first leg, Niclas Füllkrug’s first-half strike gave the hosts a slender one-goal lead to defend at the Parc Des Princes. And defend it they did, in resolute fashion. The runaway Ligue 1 leaders were unable to find their way through the Yellow Wall that was Dortmund’s defense, allowing the visitors to secure a two-goal lead in the tie through Mats Hummels. That was enough to seal a return to Wembley for De Schwarzgelben, 12 years on from their defeat to rivals Bayern Munch at the home of football.

Before the tournament got underway, popular websites offering online sports betting from USA hadn’t given Edin Terzic hope of winning the tournament. They were priced at +2500 as recently as the quarterfinals, where they defeated Atletico Madrid. Now, they are +250 contenders, and one victory away from immortality.

But the Germans aren’t the first underdog to make it to the showpiece fixture. Since UEFA did away with the two-group-stage format back in 2003, a whole host of outsiders have made it to the final.

The Early Years

Porto’s 2004 triumph under José Mourinho is perhaps the most fabled of these underdog tales. The Portuguese side, like Dortmund this year, was not widely considered a contender at the outset. However, the Special One displayed a blend of tactical acumen and installed an unshakeable team spirit in his squad built on the back of Portuguese icons such as Deco, Ricardo Carvalho, Maniiche, and Costinha. And they wouldn’t only reach the final, they would win it all against fellow underdogs in Monaco.

The following year an outsider reigned supreme again. Liverpool’s fairytale run to the 2005 final was also similar to Dortmund’s this year, primarily because they too finished their domestic campaign down in 5th and wouldn’t;t have qualified for the following year’s tournament had they not won it all. This Reds team wasn’t the powerhouse that we have come to know in modern times and featured the likes of Djimi Traore and Jerzy Dudek.

On the continental stage, however, they came alive thanks to the brilliance of their captain Steven Gerrard. His heroic displays helped his team defeat Italian champions Juventus and would-be English champions Chelsea to reach the final. Once there, he bagged the first of three goals in seven chaotic minutes that saw the Merseysiders come from 3-0 down to defeat arguably the greatest AC Milan side ever constructed via a penalty shootout in Istanbul. ,

In 2006, an Arsenal side that scraped into the top four on the final day of the Premier League season ahead of rivals Tottenham also made it to the Champions League final. The Gunners had just parted ways with long-time captain Patrick Vieira and were in a rebuilding stage that was necessary to finance the building of the Emirates Stadium. They still had their talisman in the form of Thierry Henry, however, and he scored some important goals to propel his side to the Paris-hosted final, where they were ultimately beaten by favorites Barcelona.

The Last Decade

For the next six years, favorites would flex their muscles however, Chelsea bucked the trend. Four years prior the Blues had reached the final in Moscow however, then they were genuine contenders in their prime. In 2012, their stars had grown old and weren’t expected to pull up any trees, but defensive heroics saw them find a way past Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona in the semifinals and a Bayern Munich side contesting the final on home turf at the Allianz Arena.

Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid reached the final twice in three seasons, losing heartbreakingly on both occasions to cross-city rivals Real Madrid. Their journeys were emblematic of a gritty, determined approach instilled in them by their enigmatic manager. They couldn’t add the Champions League to the La Liga crown they won in 2014, ultimately losing 4-1 after extra time. Two years later they would lose to Los Blancos on penalties.

Juventus’s 2015 appearance in the final marked a return to the top for the Italian giants after years of rebuilding. They were expected to be handily defeated by the reigning champion Real in the semifinals however, a goal from former Madridsta Alvaro Morata punched the Bianconeri’s ticket to the final. Unfortunately for them, that was one step too far and they were beaten by Barcelona in Berlin.

The most recent rank outsider to reach the final came last year. This time it was the turn of Inter Milan. They took advantage of a favorable knockout round draw to beat Benfica, Porto, and rivals AC Milan to reach the final, where they were ultimately beaten by odds-on favorites Manchester City.