Real Madrid, Man City Begin Champions League Campaigns With Wins

The 2026-27 Champions League opened on Tuesday with victories for European heavyweights Real Madrid and Manchester City, led by their star forwards Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland.

Record 15-time champions Real Madrid defeated Inter Milan 2-1 at the Santiago Bernabeu. Mbappe opened the scoring in the 14th minute after Brahim Diaz set him up, taking his Champions League tally to 71 goals and level with Madrid great Raul in fifth place on the competition’s all-time scoring list.

Federico Valverde doubled Madrid’s advantage after capitalising on an error from Inter goalkeeper Josep Martinez. Inter, despite enjoying 61% possession, reduced the deficit through Carlos Augusto in the 77th minute but could not find an equaliser.

The match marked Jose Mourinho’s winning return to the Champions League as Madrid coach. The Portuguese, who guided Inter to the title in 2010, is chasing a third Champions League triumph.

Manchester City also started strongly, beating Porto 2-0 at Estadio do Dragao. Haaland scored a second-half header before adding another in stoppage time. The Norwegian now has 59 goals in 59 Champions League appearances. The victory also maintained new coach Enzo Maresca’s 100% start.

Elsewhere, Aston Villa ended their difficult domestic start with a 3-2 victory over Club Brugge. John McGinn, Emiliano Buendia and Nicolas Jackson scored for Villa, while the win came after the club had struggled for goals in their opening Premier League matches.

Borussia Dortmund edged Villarreal 3-2, with Serhou Guirassy scoring twice. Dortmund teenager Konstantinos Karetsas was taken to hospital after experiencing circulatory problems during his Champions League debut.

Real Betis beat Lille 3-2 through Troy Parrott’s decisive goal, while AEK Athens defeated LASK 1-0 thanks to Razvan Marin’s first-half free kick.

Defending champions Paris Saint-Germain begin their campaign against Slovan Bratislava on Wednesday.