Chelsea begins its journey in the UEFA Champions League for the 2025/2026 season with a fiery match against Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena, the same stadium that witnessed the Blues clinch their first European title in 2012. This match carries historical memories for Chelsea fans, who will never forget their team's victory in the final that year after beating Bayern on penalties 4-3, following an exciting 1-1 draw.

The last encounter between the two teams was in the Round of 16 of the 2019/2020 edition, when Bayern triumphed 3-0 in London in the first leg, then repeated the victory 4-1 in Munich in the second leg, on their way to winning the title. This will be the first time the two teams meet during the group stage of the Champions League.

Bayern enters the match with a strong record at home against English clubs, having won eight of their last ten encounters, with one draw and one loss. On the other hand, Chelsea has won its last two matches against German teams with a score of 2-0 and has only lost twice in their last 11 group stage matches against Bundesliga clubs, achieving seven victories and two draws.

Bayern Munich is participating in the Champions League for the twenty-ninth time in its history, making it the third most participating team behind Real Madrid and Barcelona. The Bavarian team has not missed the tournament since the 2008/2009 season and has reached the knockout stages in every edition.

In the last season, Bayern Munich finished twelfth in the league stage and overcame Celtic in the playoff round before facing Inter Milan in the quarter-finals after losing 2-1 at home and drawing 2-2 away.

Bayern is one of the best teams in opening matches, having won its first group stage match in the last 21 editions of the tournament, keeping a clean sheet 18 times since losing to Deportivo La Coruña 3-2 in September 2002.

Chelsea returns to the Champions League after a two-season absence and is participating in its twentieth edition in history. The team reached the quarter-finals in its last participation in the 2022/2023 season and has reached the knockout stages in its last eight appearances in the tournament. The Blues enter this season with confidence after winning the UEFA Europa Conference League title last season following a significant victory over Real Betis 4-1 in the final.

It is worth noting that striker Nicolas Jackson transferred from Chelsea to Bayern Munich on loan during the last summer transfer market, making him one of the key figures in the matchup.

Statistics show a clear advantage for Bayern in the group stage, having lost only three matches out of their last 48 matches in this stage, achieving 41 wins and four draws. They have not been defeated at home in their last 34 group stage matches since losing to Manchester City in December 2013, and they have scored in 54 of their last 56 matches played at home in the Champions League.

On the other hand, Chelsea is enjoying a remarkable European period, having won 12 of their last 13 matches in continental competitions, achieving 10 consecutive wins in the group stage, and losing only twice in their last 23 matches in this stage, with 15 wins and six draws.