Both teams went into the game in fine form, with the Nerazzuri winning four and drawing two of their last six matches in all competitions. Though they conceded eight times during that run, they scored 14 and were on the score sheet first in all of those six games.
If Inter could continue their habit of grabbing the opener, and then play a typical Italian catenaccio style, it could turn into a long night for Luis Enrique and his squad.
PSG had won five and lost one of their previous six, also scoring 14 and letting in just five.
The first goal was crucial
The Allianz Arena was alive with a sea of blue and black as the players entered the pitch, and rarely can the Champions League theme have been greeted so loudly.
A first-ever competitive game between the sides began with a strange kick-off from PSG, who were then straight on the front foot and dominating possession (73.3% after five minutes).
It was noticeable how fluid the Ligue 1 outfit were out of the blocks, with the Nerazzurri solid in their defensive work but laboured more generally.
Hakimi gets the ball rolling
A brilliant move in the 12th minute completely opened up Inter's defence, and when Desire Doue delivered centrally, former Nerazzurri defender Achraf Hakimi had the simplest of chances to put his side 1-0 up.
Doue's third assist of the competition gave Hakimi his fourth goal - no defender scored more in 2024/25 - and PSG's record of W8 D0 L2 when scoring first in this season's Champions League was an ominous sign.
As a spectacle, the early goal meant that Inter now had to come out and attack, and abandon a more defensive way of playing, which had served them well up to the final.
A special goal by a special player
Vitinha, as expected, was running the show and, with 20 minutes played, had made the most touches (23) of anyone on the pitch, and completed 18 of his 19 passes for a 94.7% accuracy.
More intense pressure from the Parisiens quickly brought a second goal, the electric Ousmane Dembele providing the pass to Doue to fire home via a deflection. In doing so, he became just the third teenager (at 19y and 362d) to score in a Champions League final after Patrick Kluivert in 1995 (for Ajax v Milan) and Carlos Alberto in 2004 (for Porto v Monaco).
The sixth different player to both score and assist in a UCL final, Doue was also the youngest.
Only Reims in 1956 (3-4 loss v Real Madrid), Real Madrid in 1962 (3-5 loss v Benfica) and Milan in 2005 (3-3 draw with Liverpool, loss on penalties) had led in a European Cup/Champions League final by 2+ goals and failed to go on and win the trophy
A desire to keep pushing forward and ensuring Simone Inzaghi's side couldn't get a foothold in the game was self-evident. 10 touches in Inter's box after 30 minutes of play compared to just two touches in the PSG box from the Nerazzurri.
Inter wasteful with their passing
On the rare occasions that Inter managed to get upfield, either they were wasteful with their passing and crossing, or they were crowded out by PSG players who were like bees around a honey pot.
The latter had poise and purpose in building their attacks, which was in sharp contrast to an Inter side that appeared completely overwhelmed by the occasion and the opponent. The age difference between the sides - Marquinhos was the only player over 30 for PSG - looked to also be playing a part in the huge difference in energy levels.
Indeed, in the 15 minutes leading up to half-time, Luis Enrique's side enjoyed 69.8% possession, with Joao Neves the only player on the pitch to complete 100% of his passes (42/42).
PSG's 13 shots in the first half were also significant. Only Bayern Munich in 2012 (16) had recorded more shots in the first half of a UCL final on record (since 2003/04). Five shots on target during that opening 45 were the joint-most, along with Liverpool in 2022 and Borussia Dortmund in 2013.
Quiet night for Donnarumma
Marcus Thuram's header from a corner was the closest the Italian side came to getting a goal back in the first half, with PSG keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma not having to make a save of note before the whistle was blown for half-time.
If the Serie A runners-up wanted to take any positives from the first half, they had a better win percentage in their one-on-one duels (58.6%), had won more tackles (six to PSG's five) and made more interceptions (four to PSG's three).
An early free-kick in the second half and in a promising position for Inter was completely wasted by Hakan Calhanoglu, who, along with Francesco Acerbi, Federico Dimarco and Denzel Dumfries, could only get their pass completion around the 75% mark.
Thuram's 58.8% was by far the worst on show, with no PSG player other than Doue and Donnarumma under 80%.
Similar pattern after the break
A similar pattern had already shown itself in the opening 10 minutes after the break, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia going close with his fifth shot of the game and Dembele just off target shortly after.
Just two minutes after coming on in the 53rd minute, Inter's Nicola Zalewski earned the first booking of the match, as the men in yellow looked for a more physical approach to help bring them some success, and shortly after that, Inzaghi joined him in the referee's notebook.
Yann Bisseck had come on with Zalewski but was substituted just 10 minutes later after picking up an injury as Inter's night got steadily worse.
Nicolo Barrella, so often a player that can be relied upon to get his foot on the ball for the Italians, was being reduced to pot shots that could only find the Allianz Arena stands, and just eight touches in total for Inter in PSG's box after an hour of play continued to sum up their evening.
Game over with a half-hour left
The final was finished as a contest in the 63rd minute after Vitinha released Man-of-the-Match Doue to expertly fire home PSG's third, and another stunning break 10 minutes later ended when Kvaratskhelia incredibly slotted a fourth past Yann Sommer.
It was just the fourth time a team had scored 4+ goals in a UCL final after Milan in 1994 (4-0 v Barcelona), and Real Madrid in 2014 (4-1 v Atletico Madrid) and again in 2017 (4-1 v Juventus).
20 shots on goal including seven on target from PSG with 15 minutes still to go was a damning statistic from Inter's point of view, particularly when you consider Inzaghi's men had offered just one shot on target in return.
With five minutes left, PSG sub Senny Mayulu - who had only been on the pitch for 137 seconds - made it a historic night with a fifth goal. No team had ever managed more than four in any European Cup/Champions League final previously.
Deserved PSG celebrations
The celebrations at the final whistle were extensive and deserved for a PSG side who had comprehensively and completely torn apart opponents who left the pitch after losing their second UCL final in three years, but who will be hurting a lot more after this than they were against Manchester City in 2023.
It also carried on a run of having a team winning their first Champions League in Munich.
On the four previous occasions that the final had been played in Bavaria, Nottingham Forest (1979), Marseille (1993), Borussia Dortmund (1997) and Chelsea (2012) all took home their maiden title.
