Paris St-Germain beat Arsenal on penalties to retain Champions League title

Paris Saint-Germain turned Budapest into the latest checkpoint of a growing European dynasty, beating Arsenal 4-3 on penalties after a 1-1 draw and extra time at the Puskás Aréna. The result made PSG only the second club in the Champions League era to win back-to-back titles, matching Real Madrid and underlining how firmly Luis Enrique’s side has taken control of the continent’s biggest stage.

The final tilted toward penalties after neither side could find a decisive breakthrough in extra time. When the shootout arrived, PSG kept its composure and Arsenal again came up short at the final hurdle, a familiar and painful outcome for a club that had returned to the Champions League final for the first time since 2006. For Arsenal, the chance to end a two-decade wait for another European crown slipped away in the smallest of margins.

Luis Enrique’s place in the competition’s history sharpened with the win. UEFA said he became only the fifth coach to lift the European Cup or Champions League three times. Vitinha was named player of the match, a recognition that reflected PSG’s control of key moments as the game moved from tension to endurance and then to the shootout that settled it.

Arsenal had its own landmark on the night. Kai Havertz scored in the final, and UEFA said the goal made him only the ninth player to score in multiple Champions League finals and the fourth to do so for two different clubs, after also striking the winner for Chelsea in 2021. His goal kept Arsenal alive, but it was not enough to force the ending the London club needed.

Arsenal’s post-match reaction captured the scale of the disappointment without masking the broader progress under Mikel Arteta. Martin Ødegaard called it a “painful moment” and also described the campaign as an incredible season. That balance summed up Arsenal’s night in Budapest: a team close enough to smell history, yet still shut out by the ruthless demands of the final stage. For English clubs chasing continental supremacy, PSG’s repeat was another reminder that Europe’s standard has become even harder to reach, let alone to hold.