A closer look at Borussia Dortmund's Champions League final record

Borussia Dortmund are widely regarded as one of the biggest clubs in Germany and have had their fair share of memorable journeys in Europe's most prestigious club competition.

There have been highs and lows for BVB in the European Cup/Champions League; they have celebrated going all the way to get their hands on the trophy, but have also come up short in heartbreaking fashion in the showpiece event.

Here, Sports Mole takes a closer look at Borussia Dortmund's record in the European Cup/Champions League final.

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Borussia Dortmund have only reached five semi-finals and three finals since the inception of Europe's premier club competition back in 1955.

Thirty-three years after progressing to their first-ever European Cup semi-final, Dortmund made it all the way to their first-ever Champions League final in the 1996-97 campaign, held on German soil at the Olympiastadion in Munich.

BVB beat Auxerre and Manchester United in the quarter-finals and semi-finals respectively to set up a memorable showpiece with Italian giants Juventus, the side that thrashed them 6-1 on aggregate in the UEFA Cup final just four years earlier.

Ottmar Hitzfeld's men got their revenge in the Champions League, though, as a first-half brace from Karl-Heinz Riedle as well as a second-half strike from substitute Lars Ricken helped Dortmund win 3-1, becoming the first German team to win the competition since the country's reunification in 1990.

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Dortmund were unable to retain their European crown as they were knocked out in the semi-finals by Real Madrid the following year, before they failed to qualify for 12 of the next 13 editions of the Champions League.

Jurgen Klopp eventually steered the club back into Europe's elite club competition after winning back-to-back Bundesliga titles. A year after being eliminated in the group stage, BVB reached the 2012-13 final after topping their group ahead of Real Madrid, Ajax and Manchester City, before beating Shakhtar Donetsk, Malaga and Real Madrid in the knockout rounds.

Standing in their way of glory was a familiar foe in the form of Bayern Munich, and it was the Bavarians who prevailed in the first all-German Champions League final. Ilkay Gundogan's second-half penalty cancelled out an opener from Mario Mandzukic, but Arjen Robben scored the decisive goal to seal a 2-1 victory for Bayern.

Dortmund returned to Wembley 11 years later for their third appearance in the 2024 Champions League final against Real Madrid, but they came up short against the record-breaking Spanish giants, who celebrated an unprecedented 15th European triumph after claiming a 2-0 win, thanks to second-half goals from Dani Carvajal and Vinicius Junior.