Arsenal cannot keep the Champions League trophy permanently even if they beat PSG

Arsenal will not be permitted to permanently keep the Champions League trophy if they defeat Paris Saint-Germain in the May 30 final in Budapest, due to a UEFA regulation introduced in 2009.

Under that rule, the original trophy is returned to UEFA’s headquarters in Switzerland after the winning club lifts it on the night. In its place, the victorious club receives a full-size engraved replica to display in their museum. Any additional replicas the club commissions must be marked as such and cannot exceed 80% of the original trophy’s dimensions.

The regulation ended a long-standing tradition that allowed clubs to keep the cup outright if they won it five times in total or three consecutive times. Real Madrid were the first beneficiaries, awarded the original trophy after winning the first five editions of the European Cup from 1956 to 1960. Ajax followed by winning three in a row between 1970 and 1973, and Bayern Munich matched that feat from 1974 to 1976.

AC Milan qualified for permanent ownership by claiming a fifth title in 1994, before Liverpool became the last club to keep the trophy forever after their famous comeback victory over Milan in Istanbul in 2005. Barcelona’s 2015 final win over Juventus was the first major triumph to fall entirely under the new framework, with the Spanish club obliged to return the silverware to UEFA.

For Arsenal, the final represents a chance to become the seventh English club to win the competition. Manager Mikel Arteta described the occasion as a significant moment for the club ahead of the match.

“It’s huge. It’s a massive privilege,” Arteta said. “You see the impact immediately when you reach the final, how people react, to be there, to be present, to have travelled there, and the demands that you have from all of that. It’s the most special competition in the world at club level. There’s no question about that. And I really want to enjoy the day, and obviously win it.”