Treble (association football)
Accomplishment in Football
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A treble in association football is achieved when a club team wins three trophies in a single season.[1] A continental treble involves winning the club's top-level domestic league competition, main domestic cup competition, and main continental trophy.[1][2][3] Although winning a second-tier continental trophy (e.g. Europa League) has also been described as a continental treble, it is not as widely accepted.[1] A domestic treble involves winning three national competitions—including the league title, the primary cup competition, and one secondary competition, such as a league cup.[4][5][6]
Competitions which consist of a single match or a two-leg match are not normally counted as part of a continental treble (e.g., the FA Community Shield, Supercopa de España, Supercoppa Italiana, Trophée des Champions, DFL-Supercup, UEFA Super Cup, Recopa Sudamericana, FIFA Club World Cup (2005–2023 editions), Intercontinental Cup and others).[1][7]
Continental trebles
This list includes clubs who have won their country's top-tier league and the primary cup competition (the double), in addition to the major continental tournament, all within a single season. Tokyo Verdy of Japan and Barcelona of Spain are the only clubs to win continental trebles for both their men's and women's sections, completing the feat in 2019 and 2021, respectively.[8][9] Barcelona is the only club to win multiple trebles with both their men's and women's team, completing the feat in 2024.
Men
Twenty-three men's clubs have achieved the feat with 31 occurring in total, the first being Celtic of Scotland in May 1967, and then TP Mazembe (then known as FC Englebert) of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in November 1967.[10][11] European teams have won the most continental trebles with eleven, by nine clubs.[3] The only countries to have more than one team win a continental treble are Mexico, New Zealand, England and the Netherlands, with two teams winning trebles each.[3]
No South American team has achieved the feat with the above stipulations, making it the only continent to never have a continental treble winner.[3] Multiple Brazilian teams have won some combination of the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, their state championship, the Copa do Brasil, and the now-defunct Taça Brasil, plus the Copa Libertadores, but never by winning the Série A, Copa do Brasil, and Copa Libertadores.[a]
Five men's clubs have won the continental treble two or more times: Al Ahly of Egypt, Auckland City of New Zealand, Barcelona of Spain, Bayern Munich of Germany and Cruz Azul of Mexico.[12][13][14][10][15] with Cruz Azul being the first team to achieve it in 1997.[15] Al Ahly and Auckland City are the only teams with more than two continental trebles, with both having won four.[12][13] Auckland City completed this achievement first, winning their third treble in 2015 and fourth in 2022.[13] Al Ahly and Auckland City are also the only men's clubs to win trebles in back-to-back seasons, though Al Ahly were the first to do this after winning in both 2006 and 2007.[12]
Women
Ten women's clubs have won a continental treble with these stipulations, five of which are European clubs, one Asian, one African, one South American and two Oceanian club, with a total of 16 trebles across all the clubs. The first to do so was 1. FFC Frankfurt in 2002, who won the treble again in 2008.[35] The only other women's club to achieve it more than once are Lyon, who has done so five times (a record for both men's and women's clubs) and Barcelona and Corinthians, who have achieved it twice each. Lyon are also the only women's club to win trebles in back to back years twice.[36]
The lack of women's continental trebles compared to men's can largely be attributed to the absence of continental competitions for women until recently. The UEFA Women's Champions League did not begin until 2001,[37] the Copa Libertadores Femenina did not begin until 2009,[38] the AFC Women's Club Championship did not begin until 2019,[39] the CAF Women's Champions League did not begin until 2021,[40] the OFC Women's Champions League did not begin until 2023,[41] and the CONCACAF W Champions Cup had its inaugural edition began only in August 2024.[42][43] Additionally, many nations do not have a top level cup competition for women, and some do not even have a national women's football league.
Domestic trebles
A domestic treble is usually made up of the league, main domestic cup and the most prestigious secondary domestic cup (usually being a league cup, like the EFL Cup, Scottish League Cup, or the Thai League Cup).[7] Usually super cups or regional titles, like the Brazilian states championships, Biscay Championship and Glasgow Cup, are not included in the treble,[60] therefore domestic trebles are only possible in some countries, as most federations hold only one league and one cup competition,[61] thus clubs from countries like Spain, Germany and France, who used to hold a secondary national cup but were discontinued, currently cannot achieve the domestic treble in the most accepted form. Domestic trebles that might include super cups, or regional titles, are considered to have an "asterisk" attached to it for not being perceived as a "genuine" achievements.[62]
Men
76 men's clubs have won a domestic treble, 27 of whom have done it more than once, with 131 trebles occurring overall. The first team to win a domestic treble was Ireland's Shamrock Rovers in 1924–25. Scottish side Celtic has won the most domestic trebles, with eight.[7] Celtic, Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich are the only men's sides to have won both a domestic treble and a continental treble, but Celtic are the only one to win both in the same season. Celtic also hold the record for the most consecutive men's domestic trebles, with four.
Women
Eight women's clubs have won domestic trebles, and three of those teams have won their domestic treble more than once, for a total of 16 trebles overall. Scotland's Glasgow City and Arsenal of England have won the most domestic trebles, with five each. Glasgow City also have the most consecutive women's domestic trebles with four, while Arsenal were the first women's team to win a domestic treble when they won it in 1992–93. They, along with Tokyo Verdy Beleza of Japan and Corinthians of Brazil. are the only women's clubs to win both a continental treble and a domestic treble, and each team won the domestic treble in the same season they won the continental treble (2007 for Arsenal, 2019 for Tokyo Verdy and 2023 for Corinthians).
Notes
- In 1962, Santos won the Copa Libertadores, the Taça Brasil, and the Campeonato Paulista (São Paulo state championship).[126][127] In 2019, Flamengo achieved a similar feat by capturing the Copa Libertadores, Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, and Campeonato Carioca (Rio de Janeiro state championship).[128] In 2020, Palmeiras won the Copa Libertadores and the Copa do Brasil, along with the Campeonato Paulista.[129]
- Defunct competition
- The club is situated in Oswestry, England, but competes in the competitions of neighbouring association, the Football Association of Wales.
- The club is situated in Northern Ireland, but competes in the competitions of neighbouring association, the Football Association of Ireland.
- The club is situated in Canada and competes in the Canadian Championship, but otherwise competes in the competitions of neighbouring association, United States Soccer Federation.