Turns out the royal coronation song is basically the same as Champions League theme tune

Football and the royal coronation have a lot more in common than realised.

The UEFA Champions League intro music has become legendary with football fans since its introduction 20 years ago.

And now, it's been revealed that the song is jarringly similar to George Frideric Handel's "Zadok the Priest," the song played during the coronation of a monarch ever since the coronation King George II of Britain in 1727.

Some journalists on Twitter highlighted this interesting tidbit of information.

Ben Rumbsby, a Sports Investigations Reporter for the Daily Telegraph, noted that the Champions League anthem wouldn't be played at home games by British teams this week following the death of Queen Elizabeth II, aged 96.

"There will be no Champions League anthem played during matches played at home by British teams this week. Interestingly, it's the same song played during a coronation," he captioned his tweet.

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Anthony Hurrey, a writer and editor for The Athletic UK, quote-tweeted Rumbsby's initial tweet, confirming the point.

He also shared a quote from British composer Tony Britten, the man behind the league's anthem.

"There's a rising string phase which I pinched from Handel, and then I wrote my own tune. It has a kind of Handelian feel to it, but I like to think it's not a total rip-off,'" Britton said.

People took to the platform to express their surprise by the songs' similarities, likening the music to an adaptation.

"This is mental, although I can't wait to hear the Champions League anthem being belted out when Charles is crowned king," another added.

A third agreeing with the sentiment wrote: "It's not the same song, though clearly inspired. Imagine the scenes if the coronation was to the Champions League theme."

According to the UEFA's website, Britten composed the anthem in 1992, based on Handel's Zadok the Priest.

It was also the official anthem of the UEFA Women's Champions League from its inception in 2001 to the 2021 creation of an independent anthem.

The anthem is about three minutes long and has two short verses and a chorus. The lyrics are in UEFA's official languages: English, French, and German.

The chorus has the following phrases: "Die Meister! Die Besten! Les grandes équipes! The champions!"

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