Champions League kicks off in a week: BVB’s record in opening matches

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·10 septembre 2025

Champions League kicks off in a week: BVB’s record in opening matches

The final round of qualifying matches for the 2026 World Cup takes place tonight. By tomorrow, most players will be back with their clubs. For the BVB squad, the travelling then starts all over again. First, they play at 1. FC Heidenheim on Saturday. This is followed by the start of the new Champions League season with the match at Juventus Turin.

For the second time, there is no group stage in the Champions League with the classic four clubs per group, of which the best two reach the knockout round. In the new league system, you only play against each drawn opponent once, but there are also eight matches in this first phase.

Vidéos OneFootball

So far, the following results have been recorded for Borussia Dortmund when it comes to the start of a new Champions League season.

1995/96 1:3 against Juventus Turin (H)
1996/97 2:1 against Widzew Lodz (H)
1997/98 1:0 against Galatasaray Istanbul (A)
1999/00 1:1 against Feyenoord Rotterdam (A)
2001/02 2:2 against Dynamo Kiev (A)
2002/03 0:2 against FC Arsenal (A)
2011/12 1:1 against FC Arsenal (H)
2012/13 1:0 against Ajax Amsterdam (H)
2013/14 0:1 against SSC Napoli (A)
2014/15 2:0 against FC Arsenal (H)
2016/17 6:0 against Legia Warsaw (A)
2017/18 1:3 against Tottenham Hotspur (A)
2018/19 1:0 against FC Brugge (A)
2019/20 0:0 against FC Barcelona (H)
2020/21 1:3 against Lazio Rome (A)
2021/22 2:1 against Besiktas Istanbul (A)
2022/23 3:0 against FC Copenhagen (H)
2023/24 0:2 against Paris St. Germain (A)
2024/25 3:0 against FC Brugge (A)

Photo: Getty Images

Premiere against Juventus lost 1:3

This results in this overall record for BVB: 9 wins, 4 draws, 6 losses with 28:20 goals.

For opening games, like the upcoming one at Juventus Turin, which took place away, BVB's record is naturally a bit worse. They achieved 5 wins, 2 draws and 5 losses, scoring 18:15 goals. So, a clear trend cannot be read from this look at the history.

In any case, there is a score to settle with Juventus Turin. When they met this opponent for the only time at the start of the Champions League, they lost 3:1 at the Westfalenstadion in 1995. In addition, Turin won at BVB's season opening party a few weeks ago with a score of 2:1.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.