The Bayern Munich players poured onto the field, celebrating the club’s first European title since 2013. In an empty stadium, they screamed and cheered and cried. The vacant echoes didn’t bother them any, nor did the absence of anyone outside of the players and staff to watch them lift the iconic trophy. This title will count like any other, no matter its strange circumstances.
Bayern was the favorite, and it delivered. On Sunday, it beat Paris Saint-Germain 1-0 in a delightful Champions League final that was technical, tight, tense and abidingly entertaining. In a remarkable twist, the winner was scored by Kingsley Coman, who spent 10 years in PSG’s youth academy and became its youngest-ever first-team player before leaving and joining Bayern after a spell at Juventus.