September 11, 2026, 10:43 AM
Matchday 1 of the 2026–27 UEFA Champions League produced a wave of major results, individual milestones and emphatic opening statements across the league phase. Paris Saint-Germain began their title defence with a 6–0 victory over Slovan Bratislava, while Bayern Munich, Barcelona, Manchester United, Manchester City, Arsenal and Como also opened with wins.
Kylian Mbappé moved level with Raúl as the fifth-highest scorer in Champions League history after taking his tally to 71 goals. Only Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Robert Lewandowski and Karim Benzema have scored more in the competition. Mbappé also dismissed a viral meme portraying him as a dictator, saying it reflected a lack of political awareness and adding that he had “not killed anyone.”
Erling Haaland continued his remarkable Champions League scoring record as Manchester City won 2–0 at Porto. His two goals took him to 59 in 59 appearances in the competition, giving him the best goals-per-game ratio in Champions League history among players with at least 20 appearances. He also drew level with Sergio Agüero as City’s leading scorer in the competition on 36 goals.
Bayern Munich swept aside Bodø/Glimt 5–0 at the Allianz Arena. Jamal Musiala opened the scoring before Harry Kane, Alphonso Davies and Michael Olise, who scored twice, completed the rout. Kane extended his Champions League scoring streak to eight consecutive matches, while Olise finished the night with two goals and an assist.
Barcelona also delivered a dominant display, defeating Feyenoord 5–1. Lamine Yamal continued his record-breaking rise, reaching 12 Champions League goals and 22 goal contributions as a teenager. He is one goal short of Mbappé’s teenage scoring record in the competition but has surpassed the Frenchman’s teenage total for combined goals and assists.
Yamal’s broader contribution to Barcelona has been equally striking. At 19 years and 58 days, he became the youngest player in the club’s history to reach 100 goal contributions, surpassing Lionel Messi’s previous record. Raphinha scored in Barcelona’s first five matches of the season, becoming the first Barça player in the 21st century to achieve that feat, while Ferran Torres scored a Champions League hat-trick.
Real Madrid started their campaign with a 2–1 win over Inter Milan at the Santiago Bernabéu, while Arsenal overcame travel disruption to defeat Napoli 1–0 in Italy. Martin Ødegaard scored the decisive goal in the 75th minute as Arsenal registered 26 shots and 4.05 expected goals, both their highest totals in a Champions League match since the 2010–11 season.
David Raya’s clean sheet against Napoli took his record to 20 in 37 Champions League starts, a 54% clean-sheet rate that is the best in the competition’s history among goalkeepers with at least 25 starts.
Manchester United enjoyed a comfortable 4–0 victory over Sabah at Old Trafford, with Matheus Cunha, Bruno Fernandes, Benjamin Šeško and Lisandro Martínez scoring. Cunha became the fourth Brazilian to score for United in the Champions League, while Patrick Dorgu became the club’s youngest player to provide an assist on his Champions League debut since Wayne Rooney in 2004.
Como supplied one of the round’s most memorable results, hammering RB Leipzig 4–1 in their first-ever European match. Martin Baturina, Tasos Douvikas, Assane Diao and Máximo Perrone scored for Cesc Fàbregas’s side, while Nico Paz provided two assists and became the youngest Argentine to set up two or more goals in a Champions League match since Messi in 2008.
The opening week also brought landmark moments for several clubs and players. Bayern became only the second club to reach 900 Champions League goals, behind Real Madrid; Thibaut Courtois made his 100th appearance in the competition; and John McGinn became Aston Villa’s leading scorer in major European competition with 12 goals.
