Other European finals
The final in Paris will be the fifth time Barca has played in the final of the European Cup or Champions League. However, the Club has played in 16 other continental or intercontinental finals.
FC Barcelona played in 6 Cup Winners Cup finals and won 4 of them. In the Fairs Cup, later renamed the UEFA Cup, the Club played 4 finals, winning 3 of them. Of the 5 European Super Cup finals, Barca has won twice. Finally, FC Barcelona has also played in one Intercontinental Cup final, losing 1-2 against Brazilian side Sao Paulo in Tokyo in 1992.
The fifth final
On the 17th May in the Saint Denis stadium in Paris, FC Barcelona will take part in its fifth final of European club football's premier competition.
FC Barcelona will celebrate its 50 consecutive years of European football with a fifth appearance in the European Cup/Champions League final. During a unique half century of European competition, Barca has played four previous finals and in the fifth, in three week's time, the Club will be looking to repeat its success at Wembley and bring back European football's greatest prize to Barcelona for a second time.
Wembley the reference point
The Wembley final was a landmark for all Barca fans as it was the first time that the Club had won the European Cup. On 20th May, the 'dream team' played Italian Serie A champion Sampdoria. After the 90 minutes it was 0-0 but in the 11th minute of extra time, Ronald Koeman fired a magnificent free kick past a helpless Pagliuca in the Sampdoria goal, giving Barca its first and only European Cup.
Two unlucky finals
Barca played its first European Cup final against Benfica in Berne on 31st May 1961. The match ended 2-3 in Benfica's favour but only after Barca had hit the woodwork on no less than four occasions. Despite dominating the match, thanks to players such as Ramallets, Koala and Suárez, the Cup went back to Lisbon.
If the Berne final is remember for the woodwork, the Seville final in the 1985-86 season is remembered for the penalty shootout. The team coached by Terry Venables was unable to score against Steaua Bucharest, even in the penalty shootout, which Steaua won 2-0. The 50,000 plus Barca fans in Seville saw the trophy slip through their fingers for a second time.
Athens, the last experience
The last time FC Barcelona played in the final of the top European competition was against AC Milan in Athens in the 1993-94 season. The same team that just two years earlier had won the trophy in England was soundly beaten by the team coached by Fabio Capello.
