Who Won The Most Premier League Titles?
Manchester City is the dominant force in the English Premier League, but where do Pep Guardiola’s team rank for Premier League titles?
Who has won the most Premier League titles?
The English Premier League is contested every year from August to May by the top 20 football clubs in England. Each team plays each other twice – home and away – over the course of 38 matches. Five clubs from Wales are also allowed to compete in the EFL, which means they can play in the Premier League
The Premier League is the wealthiest and most-watched football league in the world. The Premier League is the highest division in the English Football League (EFL) pyramid. Since 1992, there has been 32 completed seasons, but only seven clubs have lifted England’s ultimate prize.
The Premier League formed in 1992 when the clubs from the former First Division in England broke away to form a new top-tier league. The restructured top division played with 22 teams until the 1994/95 season, when the four teams were relegated. Only two clubs were promoted. The Premier League, like the rest of the English Football League operatespromotion and relegation from the EFL Championship.
SportsBoom has explored the football archives in search of the clubs who have won the mostEnglish Premier League titles.
Image Credits: Seán Murray
Most Premier League Titles
| Rank | Club | Premier League | First Division / Premier League Titles |
| 1 | Manchester United | 13 | 20 |
| 2 | Manchester City | 8 | 10 |
| 3 | Chelsea | 5 | 6 |
| 4 | Arsenal | 3 | 13 |
| 5 | Liverpool | 1 | 19 |
| 6 | Blackburn Rovers | 1 | 3 |
| 7 | Leicester City | 1 | 1 |
Most Premier League Titles
Who has won the most English Premier League titles?
Manchester United won the most English Premier League titles in history and are the only club to win the double-digit titles. United dominated the first two decades of the Premier League. Under the guidance of Sir Alex Ferguson, they won 13 of the first 20 editions of England’s top flight division.
However, times have been tough in recent years. Since Ferguson retired after the club’s record-extending thirteenth championship at the end of the 2012/13 season – and record twentieth English top division crown – the club has endured an 11-year barren spell.
To make matters worse, United have had to watch their two bitter rivals enjoy a decade of domestic and European success. Manchester City, for so long in United’s shadow, have claimed eight Premier League titles since 2011/12. United’s “noisy neighbours” have dominated the last decade, winning the most English Premier League titles since Ferguson retired.
Image Credits: Mr. Alexander Ottesen
In fact, Pep Guardiola’s City have won six of the last seven championships, and eight titles in the previous 13 league campaigns. Liverpool, United’s arch rivals and greatest foe, also managed to claim their first Premier League title.
This increased the Anfield club’s total league championship to 19 titles, one behind the Manchester club. The ‘Theatre of Dreams’ has become the “Theatre of Screams.” Chelsea, twice, and Leicester City have also claimed the top prize since the Salford side’s dramatic decline.
Chelsea (5) and Arsenal (3) have won the third- and fourth-most English Premier League titles. Blackburn Rovers, Leicester City, and Liverpool have all claimed on PL trophy. Although Liverpool has only won one league title in 32 years, the Merseyside club is still the most successful and decorated club in English football history.
Image Credits: Peter Woodentop
The history of the English Premier League
In the early years of the Premier League, only three teams won the title: Manchester United. Blackburn Rovers, and Arsenal. United won the first two editions of England’s new top flight league. Blackburn won an incredible final-day triumph in the third edition, pipping United to the title. The ‘Red Devils’ and the ‘Gunners’ would challenge for the title every year for more than a decade, with United winning six championships and Arsenal three.
Arsenal became the first “Invincibles” in 2003/04 when they went the entire season unbeaten. Arsene Wenger’s side won 26 matches and drew 12. Though, this is the last time the North London club has tasted Premier League glory. Despite this, Wenger cemented his legacy as a great of the English game.
Image Credits: Brian Minkoff, London Pixels
The mid-2000s saw the rise of Chelsea, who won back-to-back titles in Jose Mourinho’s first two seasons. The “Special One” took the West London club from a provincial side to a European juggernaut. Nevertheless, United regained their mojo, winning three Premier League titles on the bounce, and five in seven years.
Chelsea and Manchester City would claim the other two championships during this glittering United era. However, the tide began to turn when City became a powerhouse thanks to backing by the Qatar royal family. City, and Qatar’s immeasurable oil wealth, would see the sun set on United’s dynasty, and the ‘Blue Moon’ rise to power.
The ‘Citizens’ did not have it all their own way after winning their maiden Premier League trophy in extraordinary fashion 2011/12. Sergio Aguero’s last-gasp goal to beat QPR 3-2 on the final day, won City their first Premier League title. Both Manchester clubs would share the trophy again. Post Ferguson’s retirement, Chelsea would win the championship twice, sandwiching Leicester’s improbable league title in 2015/16.
Image Credits: Oldelpaso
By now, Jurgen Klopp had joined Liverpool, and the German began to turn the ‘Reds’ into title contenders. In fact, Klopp reawakened England’s sleeping giant. He won the Merseyside club their first Premier League title in history after a 30-year wait. Additionally, Liverpool would be the only team to challenge City during one of the greatest rivalries in football history.
Indeed, Guardiola and Klopp took their teams to new heights. The two clubs would win every trophy in the world, while breaking all manner of Premier League records along the way. The Catalan, however, managed to get the edge over the German. City would sweep to six titles in seven years. Klopp’s ‘Red Men’ would be the club to put up any sort of fight during this time.
In the last two seasons, however, Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal has challenged City and Liverpool. They came close to the title twice but fell agonisingly short in back-to-back campaigns. In the end, Guardiola lifted his sixth Premier League title, the second-most by a manager after Ferguson, as City won an unprecedented fourth Premier League in a row.
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FAQs
Seven football clubs have won the English Premier League.
Ryan Giggs has won the most Premier League titles in history. Giggs won 13 championships during his career at Manchester United.
Kaylan Geekie is a sports fanatic. He attended Durban High School before moving to Scotland, where he lived for 15 years. During his time in the United Kingdom, Kaylan graduated with a first-class BA Honours Degree in Sports Journalism at the University of the West of Scotland. Kaylan worked for nine years as the Match-Day Editor of SuperXV.com, reporting on Super Rugby, The Rugby Championship, the 2015 Men's Rugby World Cup and the 2017 British & Irish Lions series for the website.