Borussia Dortmund have perpetually embraced their underdog tag, with the membership’s capacity to thrive when unfavoured permitting them to scale nice heights.
Dortmund have by no means been Germany’s supreme drive. They’re the third-most profitable group in German soccer historical past, however intervals of success have been considerably fleeting.
BVB got here near attaining sustained dominance below Jurgen Klopp in the beginning of the 2010s, however their time on the summit of the German recreation was transient in comparison with the a number of domineering spells Bayern Munich loved, what Borussia Monchengladbach launched into within the 70s, Hamburg thereafter and Schalke pre-World Battle Two.
Their sporadic home successes has seen Dortmund compete at Europe’s prime desk on many events, though common appearances in UEFA’s premier membership competitors is a reasonably fashionable phenomenon. They usually’re very not often there to make up the numbers.
Here is a reminder of Dortmund’s historical past with the Champions League last.
There was as soon as a time when league champions and league champions solely certified for the European Cup/Champions League. Thus, Dortmund reached their maiden Champions League last on simply their fifth look in 1996/97.
They’d beforehand gone so far as the semi-finals in 1963/64 however needed to wait over 30 years for his or her subsequent look in 1995/96.
Dortmund endured a disappointing Bundesliga title defence in 96/97, with their marketing campaign revolving round their continental journey. They progressed alongside Atletico Madrid from Group B and benefitted from a form quarter-final draw with Auxerre, downing the French facet 4-1 on combination.
A Manchester United outfit nonetheless making an attempt to familiarize yourself with the European stage have been overwhelmed 1-0 in each legs of their semi-final earlier than the mighty Juventus awaited within the last. Juve, the holders and competing within the second of three consecutive Champions League finals, have been the clear favourites,
Ottmar Hitzfeld had the uncommon luxurious amid a tumultuous marketing campaign of getting a full complement of gamers out there, though Dortmund’s stars paled compared to the person majesty of the Bianconeri.
Nevertheless, it wasn’t Zinedine Zidane or Alessandro Del Piero, regardless of his tidy flick to get Juve again into the sport, who stole the present. Dortmund’s Karl-Heinz Riedle scored a first-half brace to place BVB within the ascendancy earlier than substitute Lars Ricken, simply 16 seconds after getting into the fray, sealed Dortmund’s victory with an iconic sequence of audacity which caught goalkeeper Angelo Peruzzi in no-man’s-land.
Their 3-1 win in Munich meant Dortmund turned the third German European champion after Bayern and Hamburg.
Monetary woe within the wake of early Twenty first-century success meant they’d have to attend till a sure Jurgen Klopp arrived on the scene to regenerate a membership which had pale into obscurity. Klopp’s affect was quick, with the German’s heavy-metal soccer changing BVB right into a juggernaut as soon as extra.
They captured back-to-back Bundesliga titles and competed within the first all-German Champions League last in 2013. Following years of Spanish domination, German urgent reigned supreme on the summit of the European recreation with Dortmund and Bayern battering Actual Madrid and Barcelona respectively on their solution to the Wembley last.
Nevertheless, there was no fairytale in London on this event as Arjen Robben’s late winner broke Dortmund hearts after Ilkay Gundogan had cancelled out Mario Mandzukic’s opener. 2012/13 was the beginning of a decade-long reign of Roten superiority in Germany, as Bayern’s triumph at Wembley secured them the treble.
Borussia Dortmund Champions League finals outcomes
Season |
Outcome |
Goalscorers |
Location |
---|---|---|---|
1996/97 |
Borussia Dortmund 3-1 Juventus |
Karl-Heinz Riedle (x2), Lars Ricken |
Olympiastadion, Munich |
2012/13 |
Bayern Munich 2-1 Borussia Dortmund |
Ilkay Gundogan |
Wembley Stadium, London |