The 15 most successful British clubs in Champions League history have been calculated

British football clubs have generally fared well in Europe’s elite competition, with the small island nation boasting several winners of the European Cup, now known as the Champions League.

From Manchester United’s 1999 success, part of the Red Devils’ treble-winning season, to Manchester City’s more recent version of this achievement, and Nottingham Forest’s back-to-back triumphs in the 1970s, Britain has produced some of the most iconic winning teams in the tournament. In total, the British Isles account for 16 of the 69 triumphs, with Liverpool trailblazing with six separate successes, making the Reds the joint-third most successful club in the competition’s history.

Which British teams have been able to sustain consistent form in the continental contest over long periods of time? Well, here are the 15 sides who have accumulated the most points in Europe’s prodigious competition.

Ranking Factors:

• All-time points (including when it was European Cup)
• Three points for any win in normal time.
• One point for any game that went to extra-time.

15th – 11th

Aberdeen, Derby County, Linfield FC, Newcastle United, Aston Villa

The beauty of the Champions League is that teams from every country on the continent get the chance to pit themselves against the very best. That explains how and why the likes of Aberdeen and Linfield FC make this table, coming from Scotland and Northern Ireland respectively, nations offering two lower-ranked leagues in the UEFA coefficients.

Sitting 15th, many will be surprised to see Aberdeen feature, given Rangers and Celtic’s general domination of the Scottish Premiership. Indeed, the Dons have only played 12 games in Europe’s prestigious tournament, and haven’t featured since 1986, but enjoyed relative success under Sir Alex Ferguson in the European Cup. Going as far as the Quarter-Finals in 1986 under the former Manchester United manager, the Scottish outfit crashed out only on away goals to Swedish side IFK Goteborg.

As for Linfield in 13th, the Northern Irish club were regulars in the European Cup in the 1960s, 70s and 80s, as a result of their perennial success in their domestic league. Like their Scottish counterparts, Linfield also managed to reach a Quarter-Final, defeated by CSKA Red Flag of Bulgaria in the last eight in the 1966-67 season.

Joining the Scottish and Northern Irish sides in this part of the table are two Midlands teams in Derby County and Aston Villa. Similarly to Aberdeen, the former have only been involved in the competition on a handful of occasions, although the Rams did reach the Semi-Final of the 1972/73 European Cup, losing 3-1 on aggregate to Italian giants Juventus.

Villa, sat top of the current Champions League table, have achieved a lot more in the competition than the aforementioned teams on this list. Winning the 1982 European Cup, beating Bayern Munich 1-0 in Rotterdam on the club’s most storied night, the Villans became the fourth English side to lift the famous trophy. Many probably would’ve expected this triumph to catapult the Birmingham-based club up this table, but their generally limited involvement in the competition caps them at 11th.

Newcastle complete this section, as a side that have taken part in the European competition more frequently than the rest, but to limited success. The Magpies have never surpassed the ‘second group stage’ of the competition, with this feat achieved back in the 2002/03 iteration.

10th – 6th

Nottingham Forest, Leeds United, Tottenham Hotspur, Rangers, Celtic

Crashing the top ten are two-time winners Nottingham Forest who, despite their well-documented success in Europe, have only actually played 20 games in the elite bracket. Their 12 wins from these games does mean that the East Midlanders boast a remarkable 60% win rate in the competition, but they’ve only actually managed to qualify for the first round proper on one occasion outside of their two triumphs. However, beating Malmö 1-0 in the final in 1979, and following it up by beating Hamburg by the same scoreline a year later means Forest are undoubtedly one of the most successful British teams in Europe’s most prized tournament.

Yorkshire’s only representative in this table, Leeds United’s success in this competition has perhaps gone under the radar. Ever-present in European competition throughout the 70s, the 90s and the early 2000s, the Whites have reached the semi-finals twice, in 1970 and 2001, while they were denied European glory at the final hurdle by Bayern Munich in 1975, defeated 2-0 at the Parc des Princes in Paris.

Meanwhile, a side many might’ve expected to place higher in this table due to their recent prominence in the competition is Tottenham, who sit 8th. However, the Lillywhites featured in the European Cup first round just once prior to 2010, in 1961/62, when they reached the Semi-Final. The closest the North Londoners have come to the elusive piece of silverware was in 2019, when Liverpool beat them 2-0 in Madrid – a game dubbed the worst Champions League final ever.

Scotland’s two most successful clubs place higher than Spurs. Rangers, perpetually involved in the competition, have never progressed further than the Semi-Finals, a stage they reached once in 1960.

Meanwhile, Celtic have gone two better than their Glaswegian rivals, lifting the European Cup in 1967 after beating Inter Milan 2-1 in Lisbon. The Hoops nearly repeated the feat just three years later, but were defeated 2-1 by Feyenoord at the San Siro.

5th – 1st

Manchester City, Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester United

Predictably, the top five consist of the five sides regularly seen fighting at the latter stages of the competition in the last 20 years or so.

City, who had only featured in the Champions League once prior to 2011, have consistently found themselves in the advanced stages in recent years. First enjoying the taste of major European silverware in 2023 by beating Inter Milan 1-0 in Istanbul, the Citizens are growing as a force at this level, and are likely to continue to rise up this table.

Arsenal remain the only club in this cohort that are yet to win the competition, with the elusive trophy continuing to evade them, despite their ever-presence meaning they have accumulated a large number of points. Coming close in 2006, beaten 2-1 by Barcelona in the final in Paris on a night that haunts all Gunners fans, Mikel Arteta will be hopeful of ending this draught in the near future.

Chelsea, whose prominence in this competition was non-existent until 1999, have taken European football by storm in the 21st century. Failing at the first attempt in a final in 2008, the Blues responded by earning their winners medals in 2012 by defeating Bayern Munich on penalties, and then beating Manchester City in an all-English affair in Porto in 2021.

The two most successful British teams in the Champions League, Liverpool and Manchester United, inevitably top this table. Despite the former winning double the number of titles than the latter, the Red Devils sit at the summit of the list due to their frequent participation in the competition.

While recently not faring well, historically the Manchester-based side have reached the late stages on a consistent basis, claiming the honour in 1968, 1999 and 2008. Meanwhile, Liverpool have perhaps been more efficient in their stints in the European Cup, winning the tournament on four occasions during their golden era in the late 70s and early 80s, and then again twice throughout the 200s.

All Statistics via Transfernarkt – correct as of 24/10/2024

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