Olympique de Marseille in the context of "Meridional French"

Paris Saint-Germain Football Club, commonly referred to as Paris Saint-Germain (French: [paʁi sɛ̃ʒɛʁmɛ̃]) or simply PSG, Paris or Paris SG, are a French professional football club based in Paris. Founded in 1970, following the merger of Paris FC and Stade Saint-Germain, they compete in Ligue 1, the top division of French football. PSG play their home matches in the 47,929-capacity Parc des Princes in Paris. With 55 trophies won, they are the most decorated club in France. PSG are the most popular football club in France and one of the most widely supported teams in the world. The team has a longstanding rivalry with Marseille, against whom they contest Le Classique.

The Parisians won their first major title, the Coupe de France, in 1982 and their first Ligue 1 title in 1986. The 1990s were one of the most successful periods in the club's history, with their second league title in 1994 and their first European trophy, the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup in 1996. After a decline in fortunes during the 2000s, a recovery began in the 2010s when they were acquired by Qatar Sports Investments. With significant investment, PSG won multiple league titles and national cups, becoming a regular in the UEFA Champions League. They won their first Champions League in 2025 as part of a continental treble.

George Manneh Oppong Weah (born 1 October 1966) is a Liberian politician and former professional footballer who served as the 25th president of Liberia from 2018 to 2024. Before his election for the presidency, Weah served as senator from Montserrado County. He played as a striker in his prolific 18-year professional football career which ended in 2003. Weah is the first African former professional footballer to become a head of state, and the only African Ballon d'Or and FIFA World Player of the Year winner in history, winning both awards in 1995. He won the African Footballer of the Year 3 times and is considered one of the greatest strikers ever.

After beginning his career in his native Liberia, Weah spent 14 years playing for clubs in France, Italy, and England. Arsène Wenger brought him to Europe, signing him for Monaco in 1988. Weah moved to Paris Saint-Germain in 1992 where they won Division 1 in 1994 and became the top scorer of the 1994–95 UEFA Champions League. He signed for AC Milan in 1995 where he spent four successful seasons, winning the Serie A twice. Later in his career, he joined the Premier League having spells at Chelsea and Manchester City, winning the FA Cup with Chelsea, before returning to France to play for Marseille in 2001. He ended his career with Al Jazira in 2003. FourFourTwo named Weah one of the best players never to win the UEFA Champions League.

Ligue 1 (French: [liɡ œ̃]; lit. 'League 1'), officially known as Ligue 1 McDonald's for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in France and the highest level of the French football league system. Administered by the Ligue de Football Professionnel, Ligue 1 is contested by 18 clubs and operates on a system of promotion and relegation from and to Ligue 2. Seasons run from August to May. Clubs play two matches against each of the other teams in the league – one home and one away – totalling to 34 matches over the course of the season. Most games are played on Saturdays and Sundays, with a few games played during weekday evenings. Play is regularly suspended the last weekend before Christmas for two weeks before returning in the second week of January.

Ligue 1 was inaugurated on 11 September 1932 under the name National before switching to Division 1 after a year of existence. It continued to operate under that name until 2002, when it adopted its current name. During the late 1980s and early 1990s, Marseille were a domineering team, winning four consecutive league titles from 1988–89 to 1991–92, and starred England international Chris Waddle and Ballon d'Or winner Jean-Pierre Papin. Later in the 1990s, foreign-based club Monaco featured Thierry Henry and David Trezeguet, who would both go on to be amongst the most dominant strikers in Europe.

Stade Saint-Germainois, often known as Stade Saint-Germain, was a French football club founded on 21 June 1904. On 12 August 1970, it merged with Paris FC to form Paris Saint-Germain FC. It was based in the commune of Saint-Germain-en-Laye in the western suburbs of Paris. The club's badge was the town's coat of arms, with the cot, the fleur-de-lis and the date making reference to the commune being the birthplace of King Louis XIV.

Before merging with Paris FC, Stade Saint-Germain's best performance in the Coupe de France was in 1968–69, when it reached the quarter-finals of the competition before losing to Olympique de Marseille.

Le Classique (French pronunciation: [lə klasik], The Classic) is the name given to any football match between rival French clubs Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and Olympique de Marseille (OM). They are the two most successful clubs in French football and the only French teams to have won major European trophies. Therefore, this matchup is considered the biggest rivalry in France.

PSG and OM were the dominant teams before the emergence of Olympique Lyonnais in the 2000s, and are the most followed French teams internationally. Both clubs lead or come close to the top of French attendances each season. Their clashes during the 1970s gave little indication that they would become major adversaries. The newly formed Parisians were trying to form a competitive team, while the Olympians were Ligue 1 contenders.

The 2025 UEFA Champions League final was the final match of the 2024–25 UEFA Champions League, the 70th season of Europe's premier club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 33rd season since it was renamed from the European Champion Clubs' Cup to the UEFA Champions League. It was held at the Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany, on 31 May 2025, between French club Paris Saint-Germain and Italian club Inter Milan.

Paris Saint-Germain won the match 5–0 for their first European Cup title, marking the second final victory by a French club since Marseille in 1993. Their margin of victory was the largest in any of the main European men's club competitions final, with their goal tally only surpassed in one European Cup final by Real Madrid's seven in 1960. In doing so, Paris Saint-Germain completed a continental treble, the first of a French club, while Luis Enrique became the second manager since Pep Guardiola to have won the treble twice. As winners, Paris Saint-Germain earned the right to play against Tottenham Hotspur, winners of the 2024–25 UEFA Europa League, in the 2025 UEFA Super Cup, and automatically qualified for the 2025 FIFA Intercontinental Cup final and the 2029 FIFA Club World Cup. The match would also be Simone Inzaghi's final match as manager of Inter Milan as he would leave his post three days after the final by mutual consent.

Christopher Roland Waddle (born 14 December 1960) is an English former professional football player and manager. Since retiring, he has worked in the media for BBC Radio 5 Live as part of their Premier League and Champions League team. He currently works as a commentator.

Nicknamed "Magic Chris", football journalist Luke Ginnell wrote that Waddle was "widely acknowledged as one of the finest attacking midfielders in Europe". During his professional career, which lasted from 1978 to 1998, he played for several clubs, most notably Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspur, Olympique de Marseille and Sheffield Wednesday. In 1989, his transfer from Tottenham to Marseille for £4.5 million made him the third most valuable player in the world, and he won three successive Ligue 1 titles with the club and played in the 1991 European Cup Final. While playing for Wednesday in the Premier League, he was voted FWA Footballer of the Year for his performances in the 1992-93 season. He also played in the Premier League for Sunderland, in the Scottish Premiership with Falkirk and in the Football League for Bradford City, Burnley and Torquay United. He finished his career in non-League football with Worksop Town, Glapwell and Stocksbridge Park Steels, later whilst in his fifties, he continued to play at semi-professional level for Northern Counties East League side Hallam. Waddle earned 62 caps for England between 1985 and 1991, which included being a member of the teams which reached the quarter-finals of the 1986 FIFA World Cup and the semi-finals of the 1990 World Cup. He also played for England at UEFA Euro 1988.

The UEFA Europa League, formerly the UEFA Cup, is an association football competition established in 1971 by UEFA. It is considered the second most important international competition for European clubs, after the UEFA Champions League. Clubs qualify for the Europa League based on their performance in national leagues and cup competitions. For the first 25 years of the competition, the final was contested over two legs, one at each participating club's stadium, but in 1998, Inter Milan defeated Lazio in the competition's first single-legged final held at a neutral venue, the Parc des Princes in Paris. Tottenham Hotspur won the inaugural competition in 1972, defeating Wolverhampton Wanderers 3–2 on aggregate. Eleven finals have featured teams from the same national association: Italy (1990, 1991, 1995 and 1998), England (1972, 2019 and 2025), Spain (2007 and 2012), Germany (1980) and Portugal (2011).

Sevilla holds the record for the most victories, having won the competition seven times since its inception. Real Madrid (winners in 1985 and 1986) and Sevilla (winners in 2006 and 2007, and 2014, 2015 and 2016) are the only teams to have retained their title. The competition has been won fourteen times by teams from Spain, more than any other country. The last champions before the UEFA Cup was renamed to UEFA Europa League were Shakhtar Donetsk, who beat Werder Bremen 2–1 after extra time in the 2009 final. Benfica and Marseille have lost the most finals, with three losses in the competition. The current champions are Tottenham Hotspur, who defeated Manchester United 1–0 in the 2025 final.