What is the Champions League anthem, and what do the lyrics mean?

You know the one. Strings swell, there's some stuff in another language, then a big lovely choir sings 'THE CHAAAMPIONS!', before a four-note brass blast.

Somehow, it still makes us think of watching the Champions League on ITV, despite the fact it's been used on every channel and at every game around Europe from 1992 to this very day.

But what is that bit of music, and whence did it arrive into the game?

The Champions League anthem is a (kind of) original composition in three languages

UEFA commissioned Tony Britten to write the signature Champions League theme in 1992 and it has been in use ever since. The piece is performed by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, with the vocals provided by the Academy of St Martin in the Fields, because apparently we cannot name anything at all sensibly when it comes to classical music.

As ClassicFM explain, the piece owes more than just a little bit to George Frideric Handel's 1727 piece 'Zadok the Priest' (see?), which was composed for the coronation of George II - commonly regarded as a 'faintly ludicrous king', in case you're interested.

Handel's Zadok the Priest - The Royal Scottish National Orchestra | Classic FM - YouTube

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And speaking of 'faintly ludicrous'...well, the song has lyrics, which in fairness do sound appropriately grand in their mix of English, French and German.

The bit you'll know but not really be able to confidently sing along to goes 'Die Meister! Die Besten! Les grandes équipes! The champions!' (do-do-do-dooo).

However, there are also verses - and the lyrics do not stand up well to direct translation, which make some of the little improvised songs we sing while doing housework sound like Bob Dylan masterpieces. Directly translated, it goes:

They are the best teams
They are the best teams
The main event
The master
The best
The great teams
The champions
A big meeting
A great sporting event
The main event
Also Tottenham are sometimes there too. (Alright, we made that last bit up)

And thus we finally have an understanding of why operas are typically sung in Italian.

If you really want to impress your mates down the pub in your best falsetto, the actual lyrics are:

Ce sont les meilleures équipes
Es sind die allerbesten Mannschaften
The main event
Die Meister
Die Besten
Les grandes équipes
The champions
Une grande réunion
Eine grosse sportliche Veranstaltung
The main event
Die Meister
Die Besten
Les grandes équipes
The champions
Ils sont les meilleurs
Sie sind die Besten
These are the champions
Die Meister
Die Besten
Les grandes équipes
The champions
(Tottenham est parfois là aussi)