The season 1987–88 of the European Cup football club tournament was won for the first time by PSV on penalties in the final against two-times winners Benfica. PSV became the first Dutch team to win the title in fifteen years.

Porto, the defending champions, were eliminated by Real Madrid in the second round.

English clubs were still banned, so for the second time in 3 years Everton were denied a place in the competition.

¹ Partizani Tirana were banned from the competition by UEFA because they had 4 players sent off in the first leg match.

This game was played behind closed doors due to a UEFA ban resulting from the incidents in the April 22, 1987 game in the previous edition of the European Cup between Real and Bayern Munich.

Neuchâtel Xamax beat Kuusysi 7–1 on aggregate.

Bayern Munich beat CFKA Sredets 5–0 on aggregate.

Real Madrid beat Napoli 3–1 on aggregate.

Porto beat Vardar 6–0 on aggregate.

Lillestrøm beat Linfield 5–3 on aggregate.

Bordeaux beat Dynamo Berlin 4–0 on aggregate.

Rapid Vienna beat Ħamrun Spartans 7–0 on aggregate.

The UEFA Champions League /juːˈeɪfə ˈtʃæmpiənz ˈliːɡ/ known simply as the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual continental club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It is one of the most prestigious tournaments in the world and the most prestigious club competition in European football. The final of the competition is the most watched annual sporting event worldwide, drawing over 300 million television viewers.

Prior to 1992, the tournament was officially called the "European Champion Clubs' Cup," but was usually referred to simply as the "European Cup." The competition was initially a straight knockout competition open only to the champion club of each country. During the 1990s, the tournament began to be expanded, incorporating a round-robin group phase and more teams. Europe's strongest national leagues now provide up to four teams each for the competition. The UEFA Champions League should not be confused with the UEFA Europa League, formerly known as the UEFA Cup.