Real Madrid UCL Final 2002 Intro

With eight European Champion Clubs' Cup titles to their name, Real Madrid CF are undoubtedly the most successful side in the history of European club football.

Recent revival
However, while their reputation has always been enormous, it wasn't so long ago that Madrid were a team crushed by the burden of a glorious past. Their UEFA Champions League triumph in 1998 marked the first time that they had won Europe's ultimate club competition since 1966.

Homegrown talent
Coach Vicente del Bosque's players may look like they were born for glory, but in fact their rise to European glory has been down to more recent effort and the heroic achievements of big money signings like Zinedine Zidane and Luis Figo are no less impressive than home grown sensations like Raúl González, Guti and goalkeeper Iker Casillas.

Irresistible force
On an individual basis, it is improbably hard to find a chink in Madrid's armour - they are superb in possession, effortlessly elegant, and play with the kind of cocksure confidence of a side who know they are more than a bit special. As the club celebrates its centenary, a ninth European Champion Clubs' Cup is well within their capabilities.

Occasional lapse
However, for all that hyperbole, they are not unbeatable. Denied possession, Madrid have a tendency to get a little edgy, and as they have already proved by losing to RC Deportivo La Coruña in the Spanish Cup final at the Santiago Bernabeú on the day they celebrated their centenary, the big occasion can get to them.

Qualification

Two defeats
With only two defeats on their road to the Champions League final, Madrid are rightly regarded as favourites to win the final. The first was a meaningless defeat at FC Lokomotiv Moscow in the first group stage with top spot long since secured. The other was 2-1 away at FC Bayern München in the first leg of the quarter-finals - a result they swiftly overturned with a 2-0 win at the Saniago Bernabeú. 

Sheer power
It is a measure of Madrid's sheer power that they dropped just two points in the second group stage of the Champions League and their strength and hunger for big games was proved with their quarter-final victory against Bayern and their 3-1 aggregate win against long-term rivals FC Barcelona in the semi-finals.

Recent triumphs
Vicente del Bosque's side go into their game against Bayer 04 Leverkusen with the memory of recent European triumphs fresh in the players' minds - but then again, so did the Germans' last vanquished opponents, Liverpool FC and Manchester United FC.

Significant past players: Alfredo di Stefano, Ferenc Puskás

Achievements: European Champion Clubs' Cup winners 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1966, 1998, 2000 UEFA Cup winners 1985, 1986