List of English football champions
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The English football champions are the annual winners of the top-tier competition in the English football league system. Following the codification of professional football by the Football Association in 1885,[1] the Football League was established in 1888, after meetings initiated by Aston Villa director William McGregor.[2]
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| List of English football champions | |
|---|---|
| Football League (1888–1892) | |
| Football League First Division (1892–1992) | |
| Premier League (1992–present) | |
Leicester City celebrate winning the 2015–16 Premier League | |
| Country | |
 England | |
| Founded | |
| 1888 | |
| Number of teams | |
| 24 winners | |
| Current champions | |
| Arsenal (14th title) (2025–26) | |
| Most successful club(s) | |
| Liverpool & Manchester United (20 titles each) |
The new league's inaugural season was 1888–89, and the first club to be crowned champions was Preston North End, whose team completed its fixtures unbeaten.[3] In its first four seasons, with only twelve to fourteen clubs involved, the league was a single entity in which all the teams were from the North or the Midlands. Professionalism had been embraced more readily in those areas than in the South of England.[4] The Football League expanded its membership in 1892 when it absorbed the rival Football Alliance. With 28 members, the league was split into two divisions. Most of the former Alliance clubs joined the new Second Division, while the original league became the First Division, with promotion and relegation between the two.[5]
Rules stipulating a maximum wage for players were abolished in 1961. This resulted in a shift of power towards bigger clubs with more financial means.[6] Financial considerations became an even bigger influence from 1992, when the clubs then in the First Division defected to form the FA Premier League, which became the new top tier.[7] A series of progressively larger television contracts has put unprecedented wealth into the hands of top flight clubs.[8]
List of champions by season
List of champion clubs by titles won
24 clubs have won the English top level title, including seven which have won the Premier League (1992–). The most recent to join the list were Leicester City (2015–16) and before that, Nottingham Forest (1977–78) and Derby County (1971–72).
Seven teams have at some point held first or joint first place in the number of titles won: Preston North End (1889–1895), Sunderland (1893–1899, 1936–1953), Aston Villa (1897–1953), Arsenal (1948–1976), Liverpool (1966–1971, 1973–2011, 2025–), Manchester United (1967–1971, 2009–), and Everton (1970–1971).
Eight teams have finished as runners-up without ever finishing top: Bristol City (1906–07), Oldham Athletic (1914–15), Cardiff City (1923–24), Charlton Athletic (1936–37), Blackpool (1955–56), Queens Park Rangers (1975–76), Watford (1982–83), and Southampton (1983–84). Of these, Cardiff City came closest to winning the league, matching champions Huddersfield Town in points but losing out on goal average (goals scored divided by goals conceded), the precursor to goal difference.
Where teams in the table are tied for championship wins, they are ordered by earliest title won.
See also
Notes
- Completed the season unbeaten.
- Sheffield Wednesday were known as The Wednesday until 1929.
- Also won the UEFA Cup/UEFA Europa League.
- Also won the European Cup/UEFA Champions League.
- Also won the League Cup/EFL Cup.
- From the 1981–82 season onwards three points were awarded for a win. Prior to this a win was worth two points.
- Also won the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup.
- Manchester United won a continental treble of the Premier League, FA Cup and UEFA Champions League in 1999.
- Also won the Intercontinental Cup
- Also won the FIFA Club World Cup
- Manchester City won a domestic treble of the Premier League, FA Cup and EFL Cup in 2019.
- Manchester City won a continental treble of the Premier League, FA Cup and UEFA Champions League in 2023.