Arsenal Use Champions League Final Platform To Pursue Bigger Destinations, Arteta Says

Mikel Arteta has challenged Arsenal to treat the Champions League final against Paris Saint-Germain as a launchpad for sustained success, not a one-off high. Fresh from ending a 22-year wait for the Premier League title, Arsenal now target a first European crown when they meet the defending champions at Puskas Arena on 30 May 2026.

The Gunners know the scale of the task. PSG arrive as holders and have scored 44 goals in this season’s Champions League, with only Barcelona’s 1999-00 side managing more, with 45. Yet Arteta wants Arsenal to approach the occasion with belief, using their domestic triumph as proof they can compete with Europe’s elite.

Arsenal are attempting to become just the fourth English club to secure both the league title and European Cup or Champions League in the same campaign. Liverpool, Manchester United and Manchester City have previously done so, across seasons spanning 1976-77 to 2022-23. A victory in Budapest would also make Arsenal the 25th different team to lift Europe’s premier club trophy.

Despite their history in the competition, Arsenal are still chasing a first win. The club have played 225 matches in the European Cup and Champions League without securing the title. Their only previous final appearance came in 2006, when a 2-1 defeat to Barcelona denied Arsenal. Arteta wants the current squad to change that record and establish a new standard.

Arteta set out that long-term vision clearly when speaking to the media before the match. "No, the ambition is bigger, we have one and we want the second one. That is all we have been talking about," Arteta told reporters. "There has to be a platform to reach bigger destinations and to aim for more. The team is capable because they have shown that in the last seasons and this competition. What we have done this season in the competition, and then I want the players to be so confident that we are going to go and do it."

Standing in Arsenal’s way is a PSG side attempting something rare in the modern era. Luis Enrique’s team are aiming to become only the second club in the Champions League era to retain the trophy. Real Madrid are the only side to have managed that, winning three straight titles between 2016 and 2018, a run that underlines how difficult repeat success has become.

The numbers around this campaign highlight the physical and mental demands on Arsenal. The final will be Arsenal’s 63rd and last match of the 2025-26 season, more than any other club from Europe’s top five leagues. It is also Arsenal’s heaviest schedule for 46 years, since the 1979-80 season, when the club played a record 70 fixtures across all competitions.

Arteta acknowledged the strain but suggested the coaching staff have prepared with greater clarity than earlier in the season. "Not that many, we had a bit more time to go through it, we have more certainty as well for players that could be on the pitch," Arteta said. "In relation to the context of the game and what could happen tomorrow, we need to be ready. In a really similar way, and I think all the process and the journey that has taken us all the way here is remarkable for the team. As I said, we earned it in the manner that we have approached the competition, every game, and the contribution and performance that we have from our players, and tomorrow is the last game to go and win it and bring it home."

For Arteta, the occasion at Puskas Arena offers both an opportunity and a measure of progress. Arsenal have already matched their domestic achievement with a deep European run, but the manager is clear that lifting the trophy is the target. A win over PSG would end a long wait for continental success and reinforce Arteta’s message about using this stage to chase even greater goals.