The most prestigious match in European club football will return to Wembley following a 19-year absence after Uefa chose the stadium to host the 2011 Champions League final.

The Republic of Ireland is also to host its first major European club final after Dublin's Lansdowne Road was chosen as the venue for the 2011 Europa League final – the new name for the Uefa Cup.

Munich will stage the Champions League final in 2012 and Bucharest's National Stadium was awarded the Europa League final in that year.

"We are delighted that Uefa has chosen Wembley Stadium to stage the Champions League final in 2011," said FA chairman Lord Triesman.

"This is fantastic news for London and the UK and is acknowledgement of Wembley's ranking alongside the very best football stadiums in the world. Wembley is a stadium for the big games and has a unique history that is sure to inspire Europe's finest players."

Arsenal had hoped that the Europa League final would be hosted at the Emirates Stadium but the club will miss out because one nation cannot stage both Uefa finals in the same year.

"As Wembley has been chosen to host the Champions League final this means the Emirates Stadium can't stage the 2011 Uefa Europa League final," Triesman said.

"I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone at Arsenal for all their valuable support during the bid process and recognise the very strong bid that they put together."

The final will return to the UK for the first time since 2003 when AC Milan defeated Juventus at Old Trafford, and to Wembley Stadium for the first time since 1992, when Barcelona beat Sampdoria in the European Cup final in the season before the competition became the Champions League.