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UEFA Super Cup: How It Works, Why It Exists, 2026 Breakdown
The first European silverware of the 2026–27 campaign is up for grabs on Wednesday, Aug. 12.
The majority of domestic seasons are yet to kick off around the continent and the current crop of UEFA competitions—the Champions League, Europa League and Conference League—are still in their preliminary qualifying stages. Yet, there is already a trophy to play for in Salzburg, Austria as Paris Saint-Germain face Aston Villa in the UEFA Super Cup.
The competition, which is celebrating its 51st edition, is the traditional curtain-raiser for the European season, and PSG are seeking to become the first side to defend their title in nearly a decade.
But what is the UEFA Super Cup? And why does the 2026 instalment involve PSG and Villa?
History of the UEFA Super Cup
The UEFA Super Cup was first officially staged in 1973 and pits the winners of the governing body’s two leading competitions against one another. Initially, that saw the European Cup champions take on the winners of the European Cup Winners’ Cup.
The competition was previously decided over two legs, but that was changed to a one-off final in 1997.
Anton Witkamp, a Dutch journalist for De Telegraaf, birthed the idea as “something new” to challenge the orthodoxy of Ajax, the Netherlands giant which won three straight European Cups in the 1970s.
“Who was the strongest team in Europe, which team ought to have been the strongest?” Witkamp asked himself. “The team that won the European Cup? In principle, yes. Yet football is often a hymn to relativity and, for this reason, can be an imprecise art. So why not pit the holders of the European Champion Clubs' Cup against the winners of the Cup Winners’ Cup? Why not throw down a challenge to Ajax?”
Nowadays, the winners of the last campaign’s Champions League and Europa League titles go head-to-head. In 2026, that sees PSG, who won the former, face Villa, who won the latter.
From 1998–2012, Monaco’s Stade Louis II had been used to host the match, but the Super Cup has been moved around the continent since then. The Red Bull Arena, home of RB Salzburg, is in use for the upcoming tie.
Past Winners of the UEFA Super Cup
Rather unsurprisingly, record 15-time European champions Real Madrid are also the UEFA Super Cup’s most prolific victors. They have contested the tie on nine occasions in total—with many of their European Cup wins coming before the Super Cup’s inception—and have six victories under their belt.
Their Clásico rivals Barcelona are closing in with five total victories, although their most recent came all the way back in 2015. Italian behemoths AC Milan have also won the competition on five separate occasions, but not since toppling Sevilla in 2007.
Liverpool are the most frequent winners from England, with four victories spanning from 1977–2019. Chelsea are the only other English side to have won multiple Super Cups, doing so in 1998 and 2021. The Manchester giants have each won once, but Man Utd have tasted three defeats, too.
Despite having never won the Champions League, Atlético Madrid have three Super Cup triumphs to their name as Europa League champions. Bayern Munich, meanwhile, have won just twice, joined by the likes of Ajax, Anderlecht, Juventus and Valencia.
Some big names have won the competition just once, including current holders PSG. Their upcoming foes Aston Villa also have a title to their name from 1982, while the likes of Porto, Lazio and Sevilla have also had their hands on the trophy previously—the latter winning just one of seven appearances.
Club | UEFA Super Cup Wins | Years Won |
|---|---|---|
Real Madrid | 6 | 2002, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2022, 2024 |
Barcelona | 5 | 1992, 1997, 2009, 2011, 2015 |
AC Milan | 5 | 1989, 1990, 1994, 2003, 2007 |
Liverpool | 4 | 1977, 2001, 2005, 2019 |
Atlético Madrid | 3 | 2010, 2012, 2018 |
Chelsea | 2 | 1998, 2021 |
Bayern Munich | 2 | 2013, 2020 |
Ajax | 2 | 1973, 1995 |
Anderlecht | 2 | 1976, 1978 |
Valencia | 2 | 1980, 2004 |
Juventus | 2 | 1984, 1996 |
Paris Saint-Germain | 1 | 2025 |
Manchester City | 1 | 2023 |
Zenit Saint Petersburg | 1 | 2008 |
Sevilla | 1 | 2006 |
Galatasaray | 1 | 2000 |
Lazio | 1 | 1999 |
Parma | 1 | 1993 |
Manchester United | 1 | 1991 |
KV Mechelen | 1 | 1988 |
Porto | 1 | 1987 |
Steaua București | 1 | 1986 |
Aberdeen | 1 | 1983 |
Aston Villa | 1 | 1982 |
Nottingham Forest | 1 | 1979 |
Dynamo Kyiv | 1 | 1975 |
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Ewan Ross-Murray is a soccer writer for SI FC. He boasts years of experience following his First Class Honours in Journalism from the University of Leicester, producing a variety of content from match reports and news pieces to more extensive features on an array of topics. With Scottish, Welsh and English heritage, Ross-Murray’s soccer influences are far-ranging, but his primary focus is on the Premier League and Champions League.