Arsenal have been one of the Champions League’s most frequent participants, but have not been able to take home the famous trophy.
The Gunners have come unstuck against Bayern Munich and PSG since returning to the competition after six seasons away, with Mikel Arteta’s side spending years in the relative wilderness of the Europa League (as well as one year out of Europe altogether) before threatening to go all the way in 2024/25.
From repeated last-16 heartache to final… heartbreak, the Gunners have had quite a journey in the Champions League over the years.
So how does Arsenal’s Champions League record shape up? While they had two European Cup campaigns in 1971 and 1991, they have appeared in 21 of the last 27 editions of the UEFA Champions League ahead of their expected entry in 2025/26.
Arsenal's top 25 Champions League moments
Arsenal have enjoyed some of their greatest European nights in the Champions League.
ByMark MarstonMay 15, 2025
Here is a complete Arsenal record in Europe’s premier club competition.
Season
Stage reached
Beaten by
1998/99
Group stage
Dynamo Kyiv, Lens, Panathinaikos
1999/00
Group stage
Barcelona, Fiorentina, AIK
2000/01
Quarter-finals
Valencia
2001/02
Second group stage
Leverkusen, Deportivo, Arsenal
2002/03
Second group stage
Valencia, Ajax, Roma
2003/04
Quarter-finals
Chelsea
2004/05
Round of 16
Bayern Munich
2005/06
Final
Barcelona
2006/07
Round of 16
PSV
2007/08
Quarter-finals
Liverpool
2008/09
Semi-finals
Man Utd
2009/10
Quarter-finals
Barcelona
2010/11
Round of 16
Barcelona
2011/12
Round of 16
Milan
2012/13
Round of 16
Bayern Munich
2013/14
Round of 16
Bayern Munich
2014/15
Round of 16
Monaco
2015/16
Round of 16
Barcelona
2016/17
Round of 16
Bayern Munich
2023/24
Quarter-finals
Bayern Munich
2024/25
Semi-finals
PSG
1998/99 First CL campaign ends in group stage disappointment
Arsenal secured their maiden UEFA Champions League berth after winning the Premier League title in Arsene Wenger’s first full season at the club.
Their first two seasons in the competition were marked by the Gunners playing their home games at Wembley in order to play in front of larger crowds, with the national stadium having almost double the amount of seats as Highbury.
Unfortunately, with only group winners guaranteed a quarter-final place, Arsenal were left to rue some late equalisers as they ended up finishing third on the head-to-head rule.
Round
Opponent
Result
Goalscorers
Group stage
Lens (a)
D 1-1
Vairelles / Overmars
Group stage
Panathinaikos (h)
W 2-1
Adams, Keown / Mauro
Group stage
Dynamo Kyiv (h)
D 1-1
Bergkamp / Rebrov
Group stage
Dynamo Kyiv (a)
L 1-3
Rebrov, Holovko, Shevchenko / Hughes
Group stage
Lens (h)
L 0-1
Debeve
Group stage
Panathinaikos (a)
W 3-1
Sypniewski / Asanovic (og), Anelka, Boa Morte
1999/00 Fiorentina and Barcelona win at Wembley to eliminate Gunners
Arsenal came up against some world superstars such as Gabriel Batistuta and Rivaldo in the first group stage, and while they were far from embarrassed, they fell short by a point to finish third once again.
They found solace in a run to the UEFA Cup final, where they were beaten on penalties by Galatasaray.
Round
Opponent
Result
Goalscorers
Group stage
Fiorentina (a)
D 0-0
None
Group stage
AIK (h)
W 3-1
Ljungberg, Henry, Suker / Nordin
Group stage
Barcelona (a)
D 1-1
Luis Enrique / Kanu
Group stage
Barcelona (h)
L 2-4
Bergkamp, Overmars / Rivaldo, Luis Enrique, Figo, Cocu
Group stage
Fiorentina (h)
L 0-1
Batistuta
Group stage
AIK (a)
W 3-2
A. Andersson (2) / Overmars (2), Suker
2000/01 Gunners suffer away goals heartbreak Pt. 1
The 2000/01 campaign was the first time the Gunners made it through the group stage – a feat they repeated for the following 16 years.
It was also the one and only time they made it past the second group stage before it was discontinued in 2003.
Qualifying comfortably from the group as winners, they survived a second group stage including would-be familiar foes Bayern Munich, before falling to Valencia on away goals in the quarter-finals despite Ray Parlour’s first-leg screamer.
Round
Opponent
Result
Goalscorers
Group stage
Sparta Prague (a)
W 1-0
Sylvinho
Group stage
Shakhtar Donetsk (h)
W 3-2
Wiltord, Keown (2) / Bakharev, Vorobey
Group stage
Lazio (h)
W 2-0
Ljungberg (2)
Group stage
Lazio (a)
D 1-1
Pires
Group stage
Sparta Prague
W 4-2
Parlour, Lauren, Dixon, Kanu / Labant, Rosicky
Group stage
Shakhtar Donetsk (a)
L 0-3
Atelkin, Vorobey, Byelik
Second group stage
Spartak Moscow (a)
L 1-4
Marcao (2), Titov, Robson / Sylvinho
Second group stage
Bayern Munich (h)
D 2-2
Henry, Kanu / Tarnat, Scholl
Second group stage
Lyon (a)
W 1-0
Henry
Second group stage
Lyon (h)
D 1-1
Bergkamp / Edmilson
Second group stage
Spartak Moscow (h)
W 1-0
Henry
Second group stage
Bayern Munich (a)
L 0-1
Elber
Quarter-final 1st leg
Valencia (h)
W 2-1
Henry, Parlour / Ayala
Quarter-final 2nd leg
Valencia (a)
L 0-1
Carew
2001/02 Double winners fall short in Europe again
Arsenal won all their home games to squeeze into the second group stage, where although they defeated eventual finalists Bayer Leverkusen, the Gunners were knocked out, with two defeats against then-Spanish giants Deportivo proving crucial.
Wenger’s men continued to impress on the domestic front, with another league and cup double leaving European success as the missing part in the trophy cabinet.
Round
Opponent
Result
Goalscorers
First group stage
Mallorca (a)
L 0-1
Engonga
First group stage
Schalke (h)
W 3-2
Ljungberg, Henry (2) / Van Hoogdalem, Mpenza
First group stage
Panathinaikos (a)
L 0-1
Karagounis
First group stage
Panathinaikos (h)
W 2-1
Henry (2) / Olisadebe
First group stage
Mallorca (h)
W 3-1
Pires, Bergkamp, Henry / Novo
First group stage
Schalke (a)
L 1-3
Mulder, Vermant, Moller / Wiltord
Second group stage
Deportivo (a)
L 0-2
Makaay, Tristan
Second group stage
Juventus (h)
W 3-1
Ljungberg (2), Henry / Taylor (og)
Second group stage
Bayer Leverkusen (a)
D 1-1
Kirsten / Pires
Second group stage
Bayer Leverkusen (h)
W 4-1
Pires, Henry, Vieira, Bergkamp / Sebescen
Second group stage
Deportivo (h)
L 0-2
Valeron, Naybet
Second group stage
Juventus (a)
L 0-1
Zalayeta
2002/03 Gunners draw four of six second-phase games
Experienced Champions League participants by this point, Arsenal secured a routine second group stage spot after seeing off the likes of Borussia Dortmund and PSV.
While they had their moments in the second group stage – including Thierry Henry’s hat-trick against Roma – failure to convert draws into wins saw Ajax and Valencia pip the Gunners to the two quarter-final berths.
Round
Opponent
Result
Goalscorers
First group stage
Borussia Dortmund (h)
W 2-0
Bergkamp, Ljungberg
First group stage
PSV (a)
W 4-0
Gilberto, Ljungberg, Henry (2)
First group stage
Auxerre (a)
W 1-0
Gilberto
First group stage
Auxerre (h)
L 1-2
Kanu / Kapo, Fadiga
First group stage
Borussia Dortmund (a)
L 1-2
Rosicky (2) / Henry
First group stage
PSV (h)
D 0-0
None
Second group stage
Roma (a)
W 3-1
Cassano / Henry (3)
Second group stage
Valencia (h)
D 0-0
None
Second group stage
Ajax (h)
D 1-1
Wiltord / De Jong
Second group stage
Ajax (a)
D 0-0
None
Second group stage
Roma (h)
D 1-1
Vieira / Cassano
Second group stage
Valencia (a)
L 1-2
Carew (2) / Henry
2003/04 Wayne Bridge denies Invincibles shot at European glory
With the second group stage now a thing of the past, Arsenal were arguably at their very best and poised to bring the Champions League to N5 for the first time.
A disastrous start to the group stage was remedied by three successive victories which included their 5-1 demolition of Inter at San Siro, before easing past Celta Vigo in the last 16 and being handed a quarter-final tie with London rivals Chelsea.
Despite a rocking first 45, Arsenal were unable to make their home advantage count as the Blues snatched the tie late on, leaving the Gunners to wonder what might have been as FC Porto went all the way.
Round
Opponent
Result
Goalscorers
Group stage
Inter (h)
L 0-3
Cruz, Van der Meyde, Martins
Group stage
Lokomotiv Moscow (a)
D 0-0
None
Group stage
Dynamo Kyiv (a)
L 1-2
Shatskikh, Belkevich / Henry
Group stage
Dynamo Kyiv (h)
W 1-0
Cole
Group stage
Inter (a)
W 5-1
Vieri / Henry (2), Ljungberg, Edu, Pires
Group stage
Lokomotiv Moscow
W 2-0
Pires, Ljungberg
Round of 16 1st leg
Celta Vigo (a)
W 3-2
Edu, Jose Ignacio / Edu (2), Pires
Round of 16 2nd leg
Celta Vigo (h)
W 2-0
Henry (2)
Quarter-final 1st leg
Chelsea (a)
D 1-1
Gudjohnsen / Pires
Quarter-final 2nd leg
Chelsea (h)
L 1-2
Reyes / Lampard, Bridge
2004/05 Arsenal fall to Bayern despite second-leg win
Arsenal topped their group despite winning just two of their six matches, though their reward of meeting Bayern Munich in the last 16 (sound familiar?) saw the Gunners endure another early exit.
After a 3-1 defeat at a snowy Olympiastadion, Arsenal threatened to stage a remarkable comeback in the second leg, but their 1-0 win was not enough to advance to the quarters.
2005/06 Gunners lose in Paris finale amid historic campaign
Arsenal’s closest call to date came in what was their final European campaign at Highbury. They bowed out in style by easing through the group, and enjoyed a magical night at the Santiago Bernabeu before holding Real Madrid to a goalless draw in north London.
Their penultimate night under the Highbury lights in Europe saw Cesc Fabregas and Thierry Henry see off Juventus before another shutout in Turin, while there was more drama in the semi-final.
Kolo Toure scored Highbury’s last-ever Champions League goal as they took a slender advantage to Spain, where a late Jens Lehmann penalty save secured Arsenal a place in the Champions League final.
The final was also fraught with controversy, with Lehmann’s first-half sending-off leaving the Gunners up against it, though they somehow led at half-time through Sol Campbell’s header.
Barcelona’s equaliser had more of a hint of offside about it, before the 10 men’s luck ran out late on, as Juliano Belletti’s winner broke Arsenal hearts.
2006/07 PSV’s Alex nets at both ends to send Gunners out
Arsenal’s fourth-place finish the previous year – their lowest under Wenger – saw the Frenchman’s side in the unfamiliar territory of having to enter the qualifying rounds, where they defeated Dinamo Zagreb over two legs.
The Gunners topped their group once more, but their run came to an abrupt end when Alex nodded in a last-gasp equaliser for PSV in the last 16 to defeat Arsenal on aggregate.
2007/08 Contentious penalty sees Arsenal’s San Siro victory count for nothing
This was another campaign that left the Gunners licking their wounds, as Arsenal were minutes away from the semi-finals before a late, debatable penalty call at Anfield put paid to their efforts to see off English opposition in the Champions League.
Arsenal dazzled at times in the group stage, securing their biggest-ever Champions League win in their 7-0 rout against Slavia Prague. They then dispatched holders Milan with a memorable victory at San Siro before meeting Liverpool in the last eight, where the Reds’ European experience showed.
Round
Opponent
Result
Goalscorers
Third qualifying round 1st leg
Sparta Prague (a)
W 2-0
Fabregas, Hleb
Third qualifying round 2nd leg
Sparta Prague (h)
W 3-0
Rosicky, Fabregas, Eduardo
Group stage
Sevilla (h)
W 3-0
Fabregas, Van Persie, Eduardo
Group stage
Steaua Bucharest (a)
W 1-0
Van Persie
Group stage
Slavia Prague (h)
W 7-0
Fabregas (2), Hubacek (og), Walcott (2), Hleb, Bendtner
Group stage
Slavia Prague (a)
D 0-0
None
Group stage
Sevilla (a)
L 1-3
Keita, Luis Fabiano, Kanoute / Eduardo
Group stage
Steaua Bucharest (h)
W 2-1
Diaby, Bendtner / Zaharia
Round of 16 1st leg
Milan (h)
D 0-0
None
Round of 16 2nd leg
Milan (a)
W 2-0
Fabregas, Adebayor
Quarter-final 1st leg
Liverpool (h)
D 1-1
Adebayor / Kuyt
Quarter-final 2nd leg
Liverpool (a)
L 2-4
Hyypia, Torres, Gerrard, Babel / Diaby, Adebayor