UEFA has confirmed that the 2027 UEFA Champions League final will be played at Atletico Madrid's Estadio Metropolitano on Saturday, June 5 — a decision that came after a drawn-out bidding process spanning two years.

A long road to a final venue

The route to selecting a host stadium proved anything but straightforward. The original 2023 bidding round came down to two candidates: Budapest's Puskas Arena and Milan's San Siro. Neither ultimately secured the hosting rights for 2027.

Hungary's Puskas Arena was redirected to the 2026 final — where Paris Saint-Germain ultimately beat Arsenal on penalties to retain the trophy — while serious uncertainty over the San Siro's future left UEFA unwilling to commit the 2027 final to Milan. That caution proved well-founded as the stadium's renovation plans remained unresolved.

UEFA reopened the bidding in 2024, and two new contenders emerged: Azerbaijan's Baku Olympic Stadium and Spain's Estadio Metropolitano. UEFA opted for the Metropolitano, handing Atletico Madrid's home ground its second men's Champions League final.

The Metropolitano's history with the final

The stadium previously hosted the 2019 final — just two years after it opened — when Liverpool defeated Tottenham Hotspur to claim the trophy. The venue drew widespread praise for its transport links, facilities, and surrounding infrastructure.

Although the Metropolitano is only Spain's third-largest stadium, its operational track record and modern design appear to have given it the edge over rivals such as Real Madrid's Bernabeu. No official explanation was offered by UEFA for that preference.

Barcelona's renovated Camp Nou had been in contention for the 2027 men's final but will instead host the 2027 Women's Champions League final — which has since been relocated to Warsaw — while the club pushes for the men's event in 2029.

The competition this season

The 2026-27 UEFA Champions League kicks off in September with 36 clubs entering the league phase. After the turn of the year, the competition transitions into the knockout rounds, culminating in Madrid on June 5.

England will again send five clubs into the competition: Arsenal, Aston Villa, Manchester City, Manchester United, and Liverpool are all in the hunt for European glory.

Atletico themselves will be targeting a place in the final on home soil, having fallen to Arsenal in the semi-finals last season. The club have reached the final three times before — in 1974, 2014, and 2016 — but suffered defeat on each occasion.