Barcelona host Bayern Munich in the latest blockbuster clash of the inaugural UEFA Champions League league phase.
Although plenty of these matches have failed to live up to their billing over the first couple of matchweeks, holders Real Madrid came from 2-0 down to claim a scintillating 5-2 win over Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday.
Now their two biggest domestic rivals take centre stage. Barca and Bayern are each top of their respective league tables and their respective new eras under Hansi Flick and Vincent Kompany face an acid test tonight.
The Sporting News is following the Barcelona vs. Bayern Munich match live, providing live updates and commentary
Latest live updates | Team news and lineups | Where to watch where you are
Barcelona vs. Bayern Munich score
| 1st Half | Goalscorers | |
| Barcelona | 1 | Raphinha 1′ |
| Bayern Munich | 0 |
Venue: Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys, Barcelona
Referee: Slavko Vincic (Slovenia)
Keep track of every game and every goal via SN’s live Premier League scoreboard
Lineups:
Barcelona (4-3-3, right to left): 13. Inaki Pena (GK) — 23. Jules Kounde, 2. Pau Cubarsi, 5. Inigo Martinez, 3. Alejandro Balde — 17. Marc Casado, 8. Pedri, 16. Fermin Lopez — 11. Raphinha, 9. Robert Lewandowski, 19. Lamine Yamal
Bayern Munich (4-2-3-1, right to left): 1. Manuel Neuer (GK) — 22. Raphael Guerreiro, 2. Dayot Upamecano, 3. Kim Minjae, 19. Alphonso Davies — 6. Joshua Kimmich, 16. Joao Palhinha — 17. Michael Olise, 25. Thomas Muller, 7. Serge Gnabry — 9. Harry Kane
MORE: All the latest soccer news | Barcelona news
Barcelona vs. Bayern Munich live updates, highlights, and commentary
9 mins: Kane has the ball in the net but it’s flagged offside! Just. That was a lovely, sweeping Bayern move. Muller’s wily movement is dragging the Barca defence all over the place right now. The veteran forward delivery a lovely cross for Kane to power home the header but he strayed just beyond the Barca defensive line.
8 mins: These high lines are going to be tremendous fun! Kane is flagged offside after Neuer pounches on his heavy first touch. Replays show the England captain was probably level.
7 mins: Cubarsi tidies up, closing the door on his first duel with Kane. A huge night in store for the prodigiously talented youngster, who gets a hand from Casado as Muller wins a corner.
5 mins: Raphinha right in the thick of things, wins a free-kick in his own half as Bayern press forward looking for a response.
1st min: GOOOOOAAAAAAALLLLLL!!!!! Raphinha!!!
What a start! Raphinha get his seventh goal of the season and Kompany is stomping around on the touchline after seeing Kimmich sit behind the back four. That of thing worked for Franz Beckenbauer but not with a back four on the halfway line. Raphinha surges through unchallenged onto Fermin’s pass, coolly rounds Neuer and slots home.
Kickoff: 1st Half
Off we go in this clash of 19th vs. 20th. What’s all the fuss about?
5 mins before kickoff: The Barca fans in fine voice. By the end of this elongated first phase they will be back at their famous Camp Nou home. First up, the small matter of trying to snap a run of six consecutive defeats to Bayern spanning eight-and-a-half years. Here they come.
30 mins before kickoff: These teams met in the old group stage a couple of seasons ago, with Bayern winning 2-0 away and 3-0 at home. The hope among the expectant locals is that Flick’s Barca vintage can pose more substantial problems.
1 hour before kickoff: Kompany has opted to go for Thomas Muller’s experience playing centrally off Kane, with Michael Olise and Serge Gnabry on the wings. Leroy Sane and Kingsley Coman are primed to make an impact from the bench, where Jamal Musiala is also present following his hip injury.
🚨 𝗧𝗘𝗔𝗠 𝗡𝗘𝗪𝗦 🚨
Here’s how we line up 🆚 Barcelona 💫#FCBayern #MiaSanMia | #FCBFCB #UCL pic.twitter.com/Wa1QNK5eul
— FC Bayern (@FCBayernEN) October 23, 2024
1 hr 10 mins before kickoff: Here’s the Barca team. Fermin Lopez gets his first start of the season in midfield, with the fit-again Dani Olmo among the substitutes. The now familiar frontline of Lamine Yamal, Lewandowski and Raphinha will look to do the damage,
🚨 BARÇA XI 🚨#BarçaBayern pic.twitter.com/D6JQbGXfzT
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) October 23, 2024
1 hr 20 mins before kickoff: Confirmed team will be with us shortly. What is almost certain is a showdown between two of the greatest European strikers of the modern era. Harry Kane plundered four goals in Bayern’s 9-2 thrashing of Dinamo Zagreb and is the early leader in the Champions League Golden Boot race, while Robert Lewandowski faces up to the club where he became a legend.
1 hr 40 mins before kickoff: This is certainly a game that should live up to its billing, with Flick and Kompany’s sides each committed to playing on the front foot with high defensive lines. In the Bundesliga and La Liga this season they have 47 goals between them. However Barca and Bayern have each had their noses bloodied by Monaco and Aston Villa on the Champions League stage.
2 hours before kickoff. Hello and welcome to The Sporting News’ live coverage of Barcelona vs. Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions League. Their bitter rivals Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund served up an instant classic last night. What have these two got?
Barcelona vs. Bayern Munich kick off time
The UEFA Champions League match kicks off in Barcelona at 9 p.m. local time.
Here’s how that time translates across some of the major territories:
| Date | Kickoff time | |
| USA | Wednesday, October 23 | 3:00 p.m. ET |
| Canada | Wednesday, October 23 | 3:00 p.m. ET |
| UK | Wednesday, October 23 | 8:00 p.m. BST |
| Australia | Thursday, October 24 | 6:00 a.m. AEDT |
| India | Thursday, October 24 | 12:30 a.m. IST |
Barcelona vs. Bayern Munich lineups, team news
For Barca, Inaki Pena continues in goal having deputised impressively since the serious injury sustained by Marc-Andre ter Stegen. That means Wojciech Szczesny, who came out of retirement to help Barcelona’s goalkeeping situation, will sit on the bench again.
Frankie de Jong is on the bench as Fermin Lopez gets the start in attacking midfield. Ferran Torres is out with a hamstring problem, with defenders Ronald Araujo and Andreas Christensen also sidelined.
Barcelona (4-3-3, right to left): Pena (GK) — Kounde, Cubarsi, Martinez, Balde — Casado, Pedri, Fermin Lopez — Raphinha, Lewandowski, Lamine Yamal
Barcelona substitutes: Szczesny (GK), Kochen (GK), Gavi, Fati, Torre, Pau Victor, Olmo, De Jong, Fort, Martin, Dominguez
MORE: All the latest Champions League news | How does the 2024/25 Champions League work? | Full UCL match schedule
Not to stir the pot, but…
👀 Here are Bayern Munich and Barcelona’s last 5 encounters in the Champions League #FCBayern #FCBarcelona #UCL #FCBFCB pic.twitter.com/QpqPwsVQDr
— DW Sports (@dw_sports) October 21, 2024
Bayern were keen to welcome back Jamal Musiala for this one. The attacking midfield talent is back in training and has made the bench following a hip injury.
The German are without Aleksandar Pavlovic after he broke his collarbone in the early stages of Bayern’s 4-0 win over Stuttgart. Joao Palhinha comes into central midfield.
Raphael Guerreiro has been asked to do a job at right-back with Joshua Kimmich starting alongside Palhinha in the engine room.Josip Stanisic and Sacha Boey are injured.
Bayern Munich (4-2-3-1, right to left): Neuer (GK) — Laimer, Upamecano, Kim, Davies — Kimmich, Palhinha — Sane, Olise, Gnabry — Kane
Bayern Munich substitutes: Peretz (GK), Ulreich (GK), Goretzka, Sane, Coman, Dier, Ibrahimovic, Laimer, Tel, Musiala, Aznou
Barcelona vs. Bayern Munich live stream, TV channel
Here’s how to watch this Champions League match across selected areas of the world’s major regions: