Who is the most successful club in England? Liverpool and Manchester United lead Premier League teams with most trophies

It’s widely accepted that Sir Alex Ferguson achieved his greatest goal of ‘knocking Liverpool off their perch’ but was that just in the league alone?

The legendary manager won a record 13 Premier League titles while gazumping their rivals in the north west, moving from 18-7 down in the record books to 20-18 up before his 2013 departure.

Since then, though, there’s been a rebirth, with Liverpool taking one back in 2019/20, while United’s decade stint in the wilderness has allowed others to catch up.

United have won just four major trophies in the eleven years since Ferguson’s departure, while ‘noisy neighbours’ Manchester City have been dominating.

Chelsea and Arsenal have also been picking up plenty of silverware too, while there’s even been a Premier League and FA Cup for Leicester.

But where do all those teams rank when it comes to the most decorated English sides? Well talkSPORT is here to find out…

10th – Blackburn Rovers – 10 major honours

6x FA Cup, 3x league champions, 1x League Cup

Blackburn are perhaps best known as the pub quiz answer for Premier League champions with their 1995 title under Kenny Dalglish, but that wasn’t a one off.

Before the rebranding of the top flight, Rovers already had two titles to their name, in 1912 and 1914. 

Achieving much of their success around the turn of the century, they also racked up three-straight FA Cups from 1884 to 1886, and added another pair in 1891 and 1928.

Currently stuck in the Championship, Blackburn still have had more recent success than many, winning the League Cup in 2002 by beating Tottenham in the final.

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9th – Newcastle United – 11 major honours

6x FA Cup, 4x league champions, 1x Fairs Cup

Newcastle are able to bat away some of the criticism some new-monied teams face due to the size of their fanbase and their history, but it’s been a while since they landed a trophy.

That’s not for the want of trying, though, with them twice runners-up in the league and FA Cup in the 90s, they went close again last season, losing the League Cup final to Manchester United.

However, it’s been a while since their last major honour, the Fairs Cup in 1969, with their league and cup success even further back than that.

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8th – Everton – 15 major honours

9x league champions, 5x FA Cup, 1x Cup Winners Cup

Younger football fans may not be aware, but Everton were a footballing powerhouse before the turn of the century. It’s not been the easiest of times since their last trophy win in 1995, but before that silverware was somewhat of a formality.

Only three teams have more league titles than the Toffees nine, with their last two in the ‘80s, while they also took a Cup Winners Cup on top of their six FA Cups.

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7th – Tottenham – 17 major honours

8x FA Cup, 4x League Cup, 2x league champions, 2x UEFA Cup/Europa League, 1x Cup Winners Cup

Possibly the most common stick used to beat any English side is the ‘no trophies’ one directed at Spurs, whose last silverware came with the 2008 League Cup.

The London side have gone close since for the highest of honours, finishing runners-up in both the Premier League and Champions League in recent years, however, they remained trophyless during the Harry Kane era.

Despite going close in a number of competitions, Spurs haven’t done so in the FA Cup, which used to be one of their favourite competitions, with only Arsenal and Manchester United boasting more wins than their eight.

There’s also the topic of European success, with Spurs following up a 1963 Cup Winners Cup victory with two UEFA Cup triumphs.

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6th – Aston Villa – 20 major honours

7x league champions, 7x FA Cup, 5x League Cup, 1x Champions League/European Cup

Everyone’s been surprised by Aston Villa’s ascent into the top four under Unai Emery, but history suggests they deserve to be there as much as anyone.

One of only six English Champions League winners, Villa fans can proudly boast about their 1982 success, but much more on top of that.

Winning the Premier League and FA Cup a combined 14 times, it shows how good Villa were before the turn of the century that their last major honour was all the way back in 1996.

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5th – Chelsea – 25 major honours

8x FA Cup, 6x league champions, 5x League Cup, 2x Champions League/European Cup, 2x UEFA Cup/Europa League, 2x Cup Winners Cup

Chelsea fans have to deal with regular jibes about their history starting with Roman Abramovich’s purchase of the club in 2004, but if that were true they wouldn’t be anywhere near as high on this list.

While it’s true much of their success has come in recent years, particularly their four European titles, they won seven of their honours before being financially boosted.

In fact, the Blues have had only four trophyless campaigns since 2004, and even with their struggles this season, it’s hard to imagine they won’t get back to winning ways soon.

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4th – Manchester City – 26 major honours

9x league champions, 8x League Cup, 7x FA Cup, 1x Champions League, 1x Cup Winners Cup

Much like Chelsea fans, City supporters can nod to an illustrious history whenever they get any jokes about recent success, with their first European title coming in 1970.

They also had eight other honours before their 2011 Abu Dhabi takeover, but things have taken off ever since.

That’s with particular thanks to Pep Guardiola’s 12 titles, with the Spaniard landing an historic treble last season, and it looks almost certain he will add to that this term.

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3rd – Arsenal – 31 major honours

14x FA Cup, 13x league champions, 2x League Cup, 1x Cup Winners Cup, 1x Fairs Cup

Kicking off the podium is Arsenal on a huge 31 honours, but their list is interestingly far more concise.

That’s because the Gunners have been dominant in both the league and FA Cup, with no club bettering their 14 lifts of the latter trophy.

Arsene Wenger took seven of those FA Cup wins and three league triumphs, but even with the club out-of-sorts after the legendary Frenchman’s departure, they still maintained their Wembley form. 

The only thing missing from Arsenal’s trophy cabinet is the top tier of European football with the Champions League, but they still have two major continental honours to their name.

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2nd – Manchester United – 43 major honours

20x league champions, 12x FA Cup, 6x League Cup, 3x Champions League/European Cup, 1x UEFA Cup/Europa League, 1x Cup Winners Cup

In the runners-up spot is Manchester United, despite their record 20 league titles one side remains ahead of them. Ferguson’s legacy lives on with an unparalleled 25 trophies at Old Trafford, but it’s not just about the iconic Scot.

United were at the very top of football in the 1950s, and incredibly recovered from the horror of the Munich air disaster to win more leagues and a European Cup in the 1960s.

That incredible legacy set the club up as one of the biggest sports teams in the world, allowing Ferguson to continue the club’s tradition of dominating domestically.

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1st – Liverpool – 46 major honours

19x league champions, 10x League Cup, 8x FA Cup, 6x Champions League/European Cup, 3x UEFA Cup/Europa League

A League Cup success at Wembley makes Liverpool England’s most recent champions but also explains part of their record success.

Not only have the Reds won more League Cups than any other side, but they’ve also won more Champions Leagues or European Cups than any of their English rivals.

Jurgen Klopp has been a huge part of fighting back against United’s Ferguson era, and he managed to claim one more trophy during his final season at the club.

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