In 2014 2015, Juventus won their fourth title in a row in the Italian Serie A, clinched the Copa Italia, and landed five players on the shortlist for the UEFA Best Player in Europe Award. Needless to say, the Zebras are one of the best football clubs in the world, and are tough to criticize from either an offensive or defensive standpoint. Yet despite Juve's incredible streak of success over the past few years, at least one benchmark of football dominance continues to elude them: a trophy at the UEFA Champions League. So Juventus at the UEFA Champions League, what is their history, and what can they do to succeed in 2015/16?
Juve's UCL Victories
That's not to say that Juventus have never won the UCL. On the contrary, they've hoisted the trophy twice, winning first back in 1984 1985, when the tournament was still known as the European Cup. They beat Liverpool that year to score their first UEFA trophy, winning the match 1-0 in front of a crowd of 59,000 at Heysel Stadium in Brussels. Three-time Ballon d'Or winner Michel Platini was the hero of the match, putting a penalty goal in the net at the 56-minute mark to give the Zebras the advantage.
Juve's second Champions League victory came during the 1995 1996 season. Having bested teams like Borussia Dortmund, Real Madrid, and Nantes en route to the final, the soccer squad faced off against AFC Ajax in the battle for the tournament. Juventus took an early lead, with a 12-minute goal from Fabrizio Ravanelli, but Ajax equalized the score at 1-1 just before halftime.
The match remained tied throughout the second half and into extra time, and ultimately came down to a penalty kick shootout. A flawless four-for-four shot performance gave the Zebras the win, with Ajax missing two of their four attempts.
The 20-Year Draught
It's true that the 1995 1996 Champions League final was one of the most exciting in the history of the tournament. With the 2015 2016 season, though, it will have been 20 years since that victory, and 
Juventus haven't won the UEFA Champions League since.
Not that the Zebras have been ineffective at the UCL since beating out Ajax in that thrilling penalty shootout 19 years ago. In fact, Juventus have reached the final four times since 1996, and were seemingly consistent fixtures in the championship match in the years following their 1996 victory.
Indeed, Juventus reached the final once more during the 1996 1997 Champions League, winning a two-leg semifinal rematch against Ajax to face off against Borussia Dortmund for the title. Dortmund won the final 3-1, to claim their first-ever Champions League trophy.
Undeterred, the Zebras were back once more in 1997 1998, fighting for their third Champions League title as Real Madrid fought for their seventh. The Spanish side ultimately prevailed, clinching the final 1-0.
Post-Millennial Close Calls
Juventus wouldn't find themselves back in the final game of the Champions League until 2003, at which point their losing streak continued. The championship match brought the Zebras face to face with national rivals AC Milan. It seemed the odds were in their favor, seeing as Juve had beaten Milan by 11 points on the Serie A table, topping the league while the Red and Blacks settled for third. But a fiercely competitive final turned expectations on their head, leaving both sides scoreless at the end of extra time, and allowing AC Milan to get the leg up when three of Juve's first four kicks missed the target.
After that close call, it would be over a decade before the Zebras finally made it back to the UCL final. When they did this past season, they played a strong tournament and a strong championship match, but couldn't quite stand up to the strength of an unstoppable FC Barcelona squad.
Is 2015 2016 the Year?
So can Juventus finally end their UCL draught this year, two decades removed from their last title? Such an outcome would be poetic, but it might be difficult considering the talent that the Zebras are losing this summer.
Carlos Tevez, Juve's top scorer in both the Serie A and the Champions League, is going home to Argentina to play for Boca Juniors. Meanwhile, two of the other Juventus stars who were shortlisted for the UEFA Best Player in Europe Award-midfielders Andrea Pirlo and Arturo Vidal-are departing as well, to New York City FC and Bayern Munich, respectively.
Considering these shifts, we think the Zebras might have to wait another year or two before they get back into the UCL winner's circle. It's never easy to predict the outcome of Europe's most prestigious soccer tournament, though, and Juve are good enough to always be contenders. Root for the football squad today, with a new Juventus shirt 2015 2016 from Soccer Box, and follow us on social media to keep up with Juventus transfer news and other breaking developments. You can find us on several social networks including Facebook, Pinterest, and Tumblr.
