Champions League first scorers: Kenan Yıldız makes history with inaugural league phase goal

Juventus forward Kenan Yıldız made history as the first goalscorer in the inaugural league phase of the UEFA Champions League, but how many of the opening goals from previous campaigns can you remember?

Yıldız opened the 2024/25 account in spectacular fashion, bending in a delightful long-range strike to put Juve ahead against PSV after 21 minutes of the Matchday 1 early kick-off.

This season is the 33rd in the Champions League era, albeit the first with the new league phase format; UEFA.com looks back through the archives to see which players were quickest off the mark in every campaign since the competition was rebranded in 1992/93.

Former Real Madrid and Manchester United forward Cristiano Ronaldo remains the only player to strike first in the competition on two occasions.

Champions League group stage/league phase first scorers

1992/93 Daniel Amokachi, Club Brugge 1-0 CSKA Moskva (17 minutes)
1993/94 Domingos Paciência, Porto 3-2 Werder Bremen (7 minutes)
1994/95 Nikolai Pisarev, Dynamo Kyiv 3-2 Spartak Moskva (12 minutes)
1995/96 Andreas Möller, Borussia Dortmund 1-3 Juventus (1 minute)
1996/97 Jari Litmanen, Auxerre 0-1 Ajax (4 minutes)
1997/98 Stéphane Chapuisat, Galatasaray 0-1 Dortmund (74 minutes)*
1998/99 Joseba Etxeberria, Athletic Club 1-1 Rosenborg (6 minutes)
1999/00 Jan-Derek Sørensen, Boavista 0-3 Rosenborg; Robert Pirès, Marseille 2-0 Sturm Graz (9 minutes)

2000/01 Yegor Titov, Spartak Moskva 2-0 Leverkusen (51 minutes)*
2001/02 Marc Hendrikx, Lokomotiv Moskva 1-1 Anderlecht (15 minutes)*
2002/03 Zlatan Ibrahimović, Ajax 2-1 Lyon (11 minutes)
2003/04 Mikaël Silvestre, Manchester United 5-0 Panathinaikos (13 minutes)
2004/05 Vicente Rodríguez, Valencia 2-0 Anderlecht (16 minutes)
2005/06 Florent Sinama Pongolle, Real Betis 1-2 Liverpool (2 minutes)
2006/07 Andrés Iniesta, Barcelona 5-0 Levski Sofia (7 minutes)
2007/08 Brandão, Shakhtar Donetsk 2-0 Celtic (5 minutes)
2008/09 Sergio Agüero, PSV Eindhoven 0-3 Atlético de Madrid (9 minutes)
2009/10 Cristiano Ronaldo, Zürich 2-5 Real Madrid (27 minutes)

2010/11 Petri Pasanen**, Werder Bremen 2-2 Tottenham Hotspur (12 minutes)
2011/12 Pato, Barcelona 2-2 AC Milan (1 minute)
2012/13 Isco, Málaga 3-0 Zenit (3 minutes)
2013/14 David Alaba, Bayern München 3-0 CSKA Moskva; Filip Djuričić, Benfica 2-0 Anderlecht (4 minutes)
2014/15 Hulk, Benfica 0-2 Zenit (5 minutes)
2015/16 Ángel Di María, Paris 2-0 Malmö (4 minutes)
2016/17 Edinson Cavani, Paris 1-1 Arsenal (1 minute)
2017/18 Seydou Doumbia, Olympiacos 2-3 Sporting CP (2 minutes)
2018/19 Lionel Messi, Barcelona 4-0 PSV Eindhoven (32 minutes) *
2019/20 Sardar Azmoun, Lyon 1-1 Zenit (41 minutes)*

2020/21 Álvaro Morata, Dynamo Kyiv 0-2 Juventus (46 minutes)*
2021/22 Cristiano Ronaldo, Young Boys 2-1 Manchester United (13 minutes)*
2022/23 Mislav Oršić, Dinamo Zagreb 1-0 Chelsea (13 minutes)*
2023/24 Mohamed Simakan, Young Boys 1-3 Leipzig (3 minutes)*
2024/25 Kenan Yıldız, Juventus 3-1 PSV (21 minutes)*

* Early kick-off (from season 2018/19 onwards, two matches have regularly kicked off earlier than the others on the opening night)
**Own goal