The European Cup was first played out in the 1955/56 season, where the final consisted of Spanish side Real Madrid, and French team Reims. It was held in the Parc des Princes in Paris, so you’d have thought that Reims might have held a slight advantage. However, in what was clearly a sign of things to come, Madrid pulled off a 4-3 victory and was declared the first official European champions.
Since that first final, many things have changed about the tournament, such as the format (group stages were introduced, plus the number of teams has increased several times) as well as the name, as the tournament has been going under the name of the Champions League since the early 1990s. In total, 22 different sides have won the tournament, with 9 of those teams only ever having tasted victory once each. This clearly shows that some teams have had periods of domination, where they have won the lifted the famous trophy frequently in their history. These are the sort of teams that fans will be researching the betting odds on every time they play in European competition, as they always stand a good chance of winning.
Which sides have won the most Champions League trophies I hear you ask? Well, let’s look into the clubs who have real pedigree when it comes to winning this huge tournament.
Los Blancos lead the way
More than any other team, the Spanish giants Real Madrid have come to be synonymous with the Champions League. They are royalty in Spanish football, as no side has won more league titles than they have. Not only did they win the first edition of the European Cup, but they won all of the first five tournaments up until 1960. This was one of the greatest club sides that the world has ever seen, with the main man for Madrid Alfredo di Stefano, a striker who would 216 goals in 282 appearances for Los Blancos.
There was a 30-year drought between their sixth European Cup in 1966 and their seventh in 1998, where they came up against Juventus in the final at the Amsterdam Arena. In a close game, Madrid won 1-0, with the goal scored by Predrag Mijatovic. They also won the competition in 2000 and 2002, but had to wait 12 years for their tenth title, known as ‘La Decima’.
The wait was finally over in the 2014 final, where they beat their city rivals Atletico 4-1. From there, they went on a real winning spree, winning three out of the next four finals. Their total currently stands at 13, a figure that we don’t see being matched, let alone beaten, for some time.
Milan the best of the rest
For fans who have been following Italian football only for the last five years, they might be surprised to see that AC Milan are the next most successful side in the Champions League. While this is the first year in five seasons that they have actually qualified for the tournament, it cannot be overstated what a good side the Milan team of the late 1980s and the early 1990s were. They won the Serie A five times in this period and picked up three European Cups for good measure. Their most recent win came in 2007, where they beat Liverpool 2-1, in revenge for the 2005 final (more on that later).
Bayern, Liverpool and Barcelona are not far behind
It’s hard to remember a time when Bayern Munich didn’t dominate domestic football in Germany, where they have won the Bundesliga on 31 separate occasions. In fact, the last time they didn’t win the league was in 2012. They have also performed very well in the Champions League- first in the 1970s, where they won the tournament three years in a row, and since the turn of the century, winning in 2001, 2013 and 2020.
Liverpool also have six Champions League titles to their name. Four of them came in the late 1970s and early 1980s, with their most recent coming in 2019, where they beat Tottenham Hotspur 2-0 in the final in Madrid. Their most famous win came in 2005, where they faced Milan in the final. At halftime, it was 3-0 to the Italian side, and Liverpool looked dead and buried. Somehow, through sheer determination and a never-say-die attitude, they scored 3 goals themselves in the 2nd half and took the game to penalties, where they won largely thanks to goalkeeper Jerzy Dudek. It is safe to say it was the most extraordinary final in living memory.
FC Barcelona may have fallen on hard times recently, but have been a force to be reckoned with in the Champions League in the last 20 years. They have 5 Champions League titles in total, with the most recent coming in 2015, where they beat Juventus in the final.
