Berne 1961. Seville 1986. London 1992. Athens 1994. Paris 2006. Rome 2009... and now London again in 2011. FC Barcelona, having put out Madrid in the semi finals, are back in the final just two years after winning the trophy for the third time in Rome. This is the first time Barça will play the final in both a city and country they have already played one in. Barça are going back to Wembley!

Five Wembley winners

But the current Wembley Stadium is totally different to the one where FCB won in 1992. In 2002, the historic stadium was demolished, and replaced on the same site by the ultra-modern facility inaugurated in 2007. The iconic old stadium hosted five finals, which were won by five different teams: AC Milan, Manchester United, Ajax, Liverpool and Barça.

Three wins, three defeats

The final on May 28 at Wembley will tip Barça’s balance in finals one way or the other. The record is currently 3-3. The first two finals in Berne and Seville ended in disappointment against Benfica and Steaua Bucharest, respectively, and it was at Wembley that Barcelona were finally able tom lift the famous trophy. Two years later, FC Barcelona lost again, this time to Milan in Athens, but the two finals played since the turn of the century, in Paris and Rome, have both ended in Catalan joy.

Best of the 21st century?

After winning the seventh out of thirteen semi finals, FC Barcelona are chasing their fourth Champions League title, which will tie them with two traditional European giants: Bayern Munich and Ajax. Only Real Madrid (9), AC Milan (7) and Liverpool (5) have more. If Barça win at Wembley they will become the first team to win the Champions League three times this century.