Football Greats Who Never Won the Champions League (Ranked 25 to 1)
Kylian Mbappe
Frenchman Kylian Mbappe has been ranked 25th on this list, because of the probability that he might win the UEFA Champions League in the future. In fact, winning the UCL remains his biggest goal, which even prompted him to join Real Madrid from PSG last summer, after having made it to the final with the French side during the 2019-20 season.
Gabriel Batistuta
Legendary Argentine striker and a Serie A icon Gabriel Batistuta spent a few seasons of his glorious career at AS Roma, whom he guided to the Italian League title during the 2000-01 season. 31 at the time, Batistuta could never make it big in the UCL, as Roma could not make it past the group stages in both seasons of the European competition.
Roberto Baggio
One of Italy's greatest-ever football players, Roberto Baggio played for clubs like Juventus, AC Milan and Inter Milan throughout his career, but could never win the UCL title. A Ballond d'Or winner in 1993, Baggio won the UEFA Cup with Juventus during the 1992-93, but left the club just before it won the UCL title in 1996.
Hernan Crespo
Another Argentinian legend who could never lay his hands on the Champions League title, Hernan Crespo did play for big clubs around Europe, including Inter Milan, AC Milan and Chelsea, but the UCL title always slipped away. He reached the closest during the 2004-05 season with Milan, even scoring two goals in the final, but ultimately lost to Liverpool.
Antoine Griezmann
Former France international Antoine Griezmann, now in the dawn of his footballing career, is one of the best players of the era to have gone without UCL glory. A World Cup winner in 2018, Griezmann's closest chance of winning the UCL title came during the 2015-16 season, when Atletico Madrid made it to the final, but lost to city-rivals Real Madrid.
Cesc Fabregas
Despite making over 100 appearances in the competition, Cesc Fabregas could never win the UCL title throughout his career. An EPL winner, the Spaniard reached the final of the 2005-06 Champions League with Arsenal, but lost to Barcelona, a club which he later went on to join, during the 2011-12 season.
Michael Ballack
One of Germany's greatest midfielders of the 21st century, Michael Ballack was a pivotal part of the 'Neverkusen' Bayer Leverkusen side, which did make it to the UCL final during the 2001-02 season. However, Leverkusen lot to Real Madrid, following which Ballack once again made it to the final in 2008, with Chelsea, this time losing to Man Utd.
Romario
Brazilian legend and 1994 Ballon d'Or winner Romario never won the UCL title, despite having spent two seasons at Barcelona from 1993 to 1995. His closest attempt was during the 1993-94 season when the Catalan club made it to the UCL final under Johan Cruyff as manager, but was crushed by AC Milan 4-0.
Ruud van Nistelrooy
With 56 goals in the competition, Dutchman Ruud Van Nistelrooy is the highest-scoring player in Champions League history to have never won the tournament. He joined Manchester United two years after their historic treble in 1999, before leaving to join Real Madrid, who were under-performing in Europe at the time.
Pavel Nedved
Legendary Czech midfielder and 2003 Ballon d'Or winner Pavel Nedved could never lay his hands on the UCL title, despite having made it to the final on two occasions with Juventus. In 2002-03, Juventus lost the UCL final to Italian rivals AC Milan on penalties, and in 2004-05, Juventus lost the final to Liverpool, once again on penalties.
Lilian Thuram
Like Pavel Nedved, former French full-back and legend Lilian Thuram was a part of the Juventus sides, which made it to the final during the 2002-03 season, but could not lay its hands on the UCL title. A World Cup and Euro winner with France, Thuram then joined Barcelona, just after the club had won the Champions League in 2006.
Francesco Totti
Having spent his entire playing career at AS Roma, Francesco Totti's closest opportunity of winning the UCL title came in the 2002-03 season, when the club made it to the quarter-finals. He did win the Serie A title as well as multiple Copa Italia and Supercoppa titles with Roma, but the UCL always eluded him.
George Weah
Liberian legend and 1995 Ballon d'Or winner George Weah could never manage to win the UCL title, despite having played for clubs like Monaco, PSG and AC Milan. With the French giants, Weah's closest challenge for the UCL title lasted until the semi-finals during the 1994-95 season, where PSG lost to AC Milan.
Michael Owen
Another Ballon d'Or winner who could never win the Champions League title, Liverpool legend Michael Owen's years at the Anfield were full of domestic success, but limited European glory. Owen later joined Real Madrid in 2004 in a blockbuster move at the time, but arrived only after the team had won the UCL title during the 2002-03 season.
Fabio Cannavaro
Italian World Cup-winning legend and 2006 Ballon d'Or winner Fabio Cannavaro played for Parma during the peak of the club's success from 1992 to 2002, even winning the UEFA Cup in the 1998-99 season. Cannavaro joined Real Madrid in 2006, at a time when the Los Blancos had not won a UCL title in over a decade until 2014.
Eric Cantona
One of the greatest forwards of all time, Eric Cantona was the catalyst behind Manchester United's success in the 1990s, winning four EPL titles at the time, before he surprisingly announcing his retirement at a young age. With Alex Ferguson at the helm, United first lifted the UCL title during the 1998-99 season, two years after Cantona had departed.
Patrick Vieira
A part of the historic 2002-03 'Invincibles' Arsenal side, French midfield legend Patrick Vieira spent his peak years at North London, winning multiple domestic titles. However, he could never win the Champions League title, coming close in the 2005-06 season, when Arsenal lost to Barcelona in the final.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic
One of the greatest forwards of the generation, Zlatan Ibrahimovic spent the entirety of his playing career at big clubs around Europe, including Ajax, Inter, AC Milan, Juventus, Barcelona, PSG and Manchester United. Despite winning the league title in four different countries, Ibrahimovic could never play beyond the semi-finals of the UCL.
Sergio Aguero
Manchester City icon and the club's all-time top goal-scorer, Sergio Aguero was a part of the team that dominated in the English Premier League, but could not win the Champions League title. Two years after Aguero retired, City went on to win the UCL title during the 2022-23 season.
David Silva
Similar to Sergio Aguero, David Silva could not lay hands on the UCL title as well, despite spending more than a decade at Manchester City. Prior to his stint in the EPL, Silva played for La Liga side Valencia, who has made it to the UCL final twice during the early 2000s, much before the midfielder made it to the big stage.
Dennis Bergkamp
One of the greatest players to have featured in the English Premier League, Dutchman Dennis Bergkamp did not lift the UCL title, despite having played at Ajax, Inter Milan and Arsenal. A three-time EPL winner with the Gunners, Bergkamp was a part of team that made its way to the UCL final in 2006, but eventually lost to FC Barcelona.
Lothar Matthaus
One of the greatest defensive midfielders of all time, former German World Cup-winning captain and 1990 Ballon d'Or winner Lothar Matthaus is another great players who could never win the UCL title, despite having won six Bundesliga and one Serie A titles. Matthaus finished runners-up twice, making it to the UCL final with Bayern, in 1987 and 1999.
Gianluigi Buffon
Second on the list of players with the most appearances for Juventus, Gianluigi Buffon was unlucky to have never won the UCL title, despite having featured in three finals with the Italian giants. He was on the losing end thrice, in 2002-03 against AC Milan, in 2014-15 against Barcelona, and in 2016-17 against Real Madrid.
Diego Maradona
Argentine legend Deigo Maradona, often referred to as the greatest footballer of all time, could never win the UCL title, despite spending his time at Barcelona and Napoli from 1982 to 1991. At Napoli, he went on to become a club legend, winning two Serie A titles and a UEFA Cup, but could never win the biggest prize in Europe.
Ronaldo Nazario
While his namesake Cristiano has won five UCL titles, Brazilian icon Ronaldo Nazario could never lay his hands on the trophy, despite having spent most of his career at clubs like Barcelona, Real Madrid, Inter Milan, and AC Milan. A two-time Ballon d'Or winner, R9's biggest prize in Europe was the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup with Barca during the 1999-2000 season.
