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The UEFA Champions League (left) and Copa Libertadores (right) are the most prestigious club competitions in European and South American football.
Rayand via Wikimedia Commons (left) and public domain image (right)
What determines the success of world football?
The most successful football clubs have long and distinguished histories in national and continental championships. These clubs have often been at the top of the game for generations or eras.
The list considered 77 football clubs from 19 European countries and 6 South American countries. A mathematical formula ranks them based on their success with major trophies. The top 30 are shown below.
Mathematical formula
Only top domestic and continental titles (e.g. Champions League and Copa Libertadores) are considered. Other trophies were excluded because they didn’t last long in some countries. Since the league title is more prestigious in some countries, the average number of UEFA ties since 1955 determines its value.
The Spanish league champions have 11.7 points, ahead of England (11.4), Italy (10.3), Germany (9.8), France (7.4), Portugal (6.7), Russia (6.6), Netherlands (6.5), Ukraine (6.1), Belgium ( 6.1), Scotland (5.2), Yugoslavia/Serbia (4.5), Austria (4.2), Greece (4.1), Switzerland (4.0), Turkey (4.0), Hungary (3.9), Romania (3.8) and Bulgaria (3.2).
The UEFA Champions League has 25 points and the Copa Libertadores 18.1 points based on the number of South American champions (26) and European champions (36) in the Club World Cup and Intercontinental Cup.Based on the latter’s average UEFA ties, the Brazilian league title stands at 8.7 points
Due to the fact that the Brazilian team played the most games in the Copa Libertadores final (40 games), other leagues have relatively high valuations, including Argentina (8.1), Uruguay (3.5), Colombia (2.2), Paraguay (1.7) and Chile ( 1.3).
30. Olympia Club
- Country: Paraguay
- Founded: 1902
- Number of league titles: 46
- Continental Championships: 3
- Success Points: 135
Olympia might be aggrieved by the article’s low rating of the Paraguayan league, where they dominate. Paraguayan clubs have reached just eight Copa Libertadores finals (the continent’s top competition), seven of which were Olympia finals, won in 1979, 1990 and 2002.
In 1979, Olympia won the Copa Libertadores for the first time.
Dolfi via Wikimedia Commons.
29. Vienna Express
- Country: Austria
- Founded: 1899
- Number of league titles: 32
- Continental title: 0
- Success Points: 136
As the most successful Austrian club, Rapid Wien (or Vienna Express SK) won their first league title in 1912 (inaugural season) and by 1968 had won 25 league titles. They slowed down after that, winning titles in 1982, 1983, 1987, 1988, 1996, 2005 and 2008. Their best European Cup (Champions League) performance came in 1961 in the semi-finals.
28. San Lorenzo
- Country: Argentina
- Founded: 1908
- League titles: 15
- Continental titles: 1
- Success Points: 139
San Lorenzo is the fifth most successful club in Argentina’s “Big Five” clubs (all on this list). They were named after a Catholic priest who organized street-playing teenagers into the first team. Just over a century later, the club won the Copa Libertadores (2014). Their league titles were between 1923 and 2013.
27. Spartak Moscow
- Country: Russia
- Founded: 1922
- League titles: 22
- Continental title: 0
- Success Points: 145
Spartak Moscow was organized by a trade union, which makes them “the people’s team”. They are the most successful Russian club with 12 USSR titles and 10 post-1992 Russian titles, although their best performance in the European Cup was the 1991 semi-final.
26. Arsenal
- Country: United Kingdom
- Founded: 1886
- League titles: 13
- Continental title: 0
- Success Points: 148
Arsenal’s 14 FA Cups (a record) and fewer continental titles are worth nothing here, so their 13 league titles are more than enough (third in England). They won five championships in the 1930s, two after World War II, one in the 1970s and five between 1989 and 2004. They reached the UEFA Champions League final in 2006.
25. Palmeiras
- Country: Brazil
- Founded: 1914
- League titles: 11
- Continental Championships: 3
- Success Points: 150
Palmeiras are the most successful club in Brazil, but their league wasn’t established until 1959, which limits their historical success (need to develop civil aviation before Brazilian teams meet). Palmeiras won the title six times before 1973, twice in the 90s and three times since 2016. They have won the Copa Libertadores in 1999, 2020 and 2021.
24. Racing Club
- Country: Argentina
- Founded: 1903
- League titles: 18
- Continental titles: 1
- Success Points: 164
racing club founded by railroad workers known as Grande Primer (“The First Big Club”) won seven consecutive league titles in the 1910s. They also won twice in the 1920s, six times between 1949 and 1966 and three times since 2001. Their Copa Libertadores trophy was won in 1967.
23. Dynamo Kiev
- Country: Ukraine
- Founded: 1927
- Number of league titles: 29
- Continental title: 0
- Success Points: 177
Dynamo Kiev won 13 Soviet titles and 16 Ukrainian titles (after independence in 1992), including nine consecutive titles between 1993 and 2001. They have played in the top division of these leagues since 1936. Dynamo Kiev have won fewer intercontinental trophies, but they have only reached the semi-finals of the Champions League.
22. Red Star Belgrade
- Country: Serbia (former Yugoslavia)
- Founded: 1945
- Number of league titles: 34
- Continental titles: 1
- Success Points: 177.5
Red Star is the second most successful club in Eastern Europe. They were a mainstay of continental competition in the 1970s and 1980s, culminating in a European Cup triumph in 1991. After the breakup of Yugoslavia in 1992, their results declined on the continent, but won the Serbian league 14 times (before 20 Yugoslav titles).
21. Eindhoven
- Country: Netherlands
- Founded: 1913
- Number of league titles: 24
- Continental titles: 1
- Success Points: 181
PSV Eindhoven is one of the Dutch “Big Three” clubs, alongside Ajax and Feyenoord. It was founded by employees of Philips, with fans who cherish their working-class roots. Their Champions League title came in 1988. Seventeen of their league titles have come since 1986, three in the 1970s and four earlier.
20. Olympiacos
- Country: Greece
- Founded: 1925
- Number of league titles: 47
- Continental title: 0
- Success Points: 195
Olympiacos is named after the Olympic Games and promotes its ideals (such as sportsmanship). They have won the most league titles and are the most successful Eastern European club apart from Scotland and Uruguay. Although their best performance in the Champions League came in the quarter-finals in 1999, they have done so 47 times since 1930.
19. RSC Anderlecht
- Country: Belgium
- Founded: 1908
- Number of league titles: 34
- Continental title: 0
- Success Points: 206
The 19th greatest Belgian club of all time. Anderlecht didn’t win the Belgian league title until 1947, but they won it 34 times over the next 70 years. The number of intercontinental championships they have won in history is relatively small, but their best performances in the European Cup were the semi-finals in 1982 and 1986.
18. Nationalist Party
- Country: Uruguay
- Founded: 1899
- Number of league titles: 49
- Continental Championships: 3
- Success Points: 226
Nacional (tied with Penarol) has been at the pinnacle of Uruguayan football for over a century, and their trophy room is more like a trophy hall (see below). Their only drought came when they won five titles between 1973 and 1999. Their three Copa Libertadores victories came in 1971, 1980 and 1988, and they impressively won the Intercontinental Cup after each.
National team trophy hall.
Charrúa craze via Wikimedia Commons.
17. FC Porto
- Country: Portugal
- Founded: 1893
- Number of league titles: 30
- Continental Championships: 2
- Success Points: 252
Nicknamed “The Dragon” for the dragon on their crest, Porto is one of Portugal’s “Big Three” clubs (alongside Benfica and Sporting Lisbon). They have gone two unbeaten seasons in recent years (2010-11 and 2012-13), and their 23 league titles have all been won since 1984. Their Champions League titles came in 1987 and 2004.
16. Independents
- Country: Argentina
- Founded: 1905
- League titles: 16
- Continental titles: 7
- Success Points: 256
Independente was founded in 1905 by employees of a shoe store. The Argentine “Red Devils” won the Copa Libertadores seven times in a row in 1964, 1965, 1972-1975 and 1984. As “cup kings”, they also won 19 league titles: nine of them in 1960 and 1989, five before and two since.
15. Penarol
- Country: Uruguay
- Founded: 1891
- Number of league titles: 51
- Continental titles: 5
- Success Points: 269
The most successful Uruguayan clubs were founded by railway workers from the “Penarol” community (a suburb of the capital, Montevideo). Their five Copa Libertadores trophies (the third highest) were won in 1960, 1961, 1966, 1982 and 1987. Their earliest league title was in 1900 and they have been prolific since then.
14. Inter Milan
- Country: Italy
- Founded: 1908
- League titles: 19
- Continental Championships: 3
- Success Points: 270
It’s time for an Italian team to enter this list, and Inter Milan is the third most successful team. They have never been relegated, won an average of 13 league titles between 1910 and 1989 and six league titles since 2006 (including a run of five league titles between 2006 and 2010). They won the Champions League in 1964, 1965 and 2010.
13. Rangers
- Country: Scotland
- Established: 1872
- Number of league titles: 55
- Continental title: 0
- Success Points: 287
Along with Celtic, Rangers are one of Scotland’s two biggest teams (or ‘old teams’). It was formed by a group of teenagers more than 150 years ago and now has one of the largest fan bases in the world.Their 55 league titles are world recordand their total of 118 trophies, despite winning fewer Intercontinental titles.
12. Celtics
- Country: Scotland
- Founded: 1887
- Number of league titles: 53
- Continental titles: 1
- Success Points: 301.6
The “time-honored brand” on the other side has also won more than 100 trophies. The difference is that one of the Celtics was the 1967 European Cup (Champions League). They were started by a priest to alleviate the poverty of Irish immigrants in Glasgow. Their earliest league title came in 1893, and their only title came between 1947 and 1965.
11. Manchester United
- Country: United Kingdom
- Founded: 1878
- Number of league titles: 20
- Continental Championships: 3
- Success Points: 302
Manchester United became the first English club to win the European Cup in 1968 and went on to win two more European Cups in 1999 and 2008. Their triumph in 1999 was also a treble under legendary manager Alex Ferguson. Founded by a railway company, United won early league titles in 1908 and 1911, followed by five league titles between 1952-1967 and 13 league titles between 1993-2013.
10. Benfica
- Country: Portugal
- Founded: 1904
- Number of league titles: 38
- Continental Championships: 2
- Success Points: 306
The most successful Portuguese club is Benfica. The “Eagle” (the one on the team crest) has a huge supporter base and more than 80 trophies. Benfica won the European Cup twice, in 1961 and 1962, ending Real Madrid’s dominance. Their only dry spell since winning their first league title in 1936 was between 1995 and 2004.
9. Ajax
- Country: Netherlands
- Founded: 1900
- Number of league titles: 36
- Continental titles: 4
- Success Points: 335
Ajax is named after the ancient Greek hero who participated in the Trojan War and was never defeated. Their four European Cup titles (1971-1973 and 1995) are an incredible achievement for a country of just under 20 million people. They won seven league titles before World War II and three more until 1965 and have been incredibly productive since then.
8. Liverpool
- Country: United Kingdom
- Founded: 1892
- League titles: 19
- Continental titles: 6
- Success Points: 366
The most successful English club, Liverpool are also the team with the most goals (over 9,000) in the top flight of all time. They won the European Cup in 1977, 1978, 1981, 1984, 2005 and 2019 and won 11 league titles between 1973 and 1990 (many of them under legendary head coach Bob Pace). under the leadership of Lee). They finally won the league title again in 2020.
7. AC Milan
- Country: Italy
- Founded: 1899
- League titles: 19
- Continental…
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