A look at the British sides who have tasted European glory
British teams reached the finals of all three European competitions this season for the first time.
With Aston Villa already having claimed the Europa League title, Crystal Palace and Arsenal are now poised for their own dates with destiny.
Here, the Press Association looks back at the British sides who have previously tasted European glory.
Liverpool
European Cup/Champions League – 1976/77, 1977/78, 1980/81, 1983/84, 2004/05, 2018/19
Comfortably the most successful British club in European competition, Liverpool piled up trophies during the 1970s and early 1980s until the Heysel disaster before the 1985 European Cup final and the subsequent ban on English clubs in Europe ended their run. The European Cup returned to Anfield under Rafael Benitez after their stunning 2005 win over AC Milan, dubbed the ‘Miracle of Istanbul’, before Jurgen Klopp’s side beat Tottenham in the 2019 final to bring a sixth success in the competition.
Manchester United
European Cup/Champions League – 1967/68, 1998/99, 2007/08
UEFA Cup/Europa League – 2016/17
Manchester United were the first English club to lift the European Cup, scoring three goals in the space of seven minutes during extra time to brush aside Benfica 4-1. Sir Alex Ferguson oversaw two Champions League triumphs, with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer the hero of their come-from-behind win over Bayern Munich before a dramatic shoot-out win over Chelsea in 2008.
Chelsea
European Cup/Champions League – 2011/12, 2020/21
UEFA Cup/Europa League – 2012/13, 2018/19
Conference League – 2024/25
Chelsea became the first London club to be crowned European champions in 2012 under then caretaker manager Roberto Di Matteo, appointed two months before the final after Andre Villas-Boas was sacked that March. Last season’s success in the Conference League made Chelsea the first club to have won all three of UEFA’s current competitions.
Nottingham Forest
Five years after Brian Clough took over at a then-second division Nottingham Forest, he and Peter Taylor had made them two-time European champions in one of football’s most remarkable stories.
Aston Villa
European Cup/Champions League – 1981/82
UEFA Cup/Europa League – 2025/26
When Villa beat Bayern Munich in the 1982 European Cup final, it made it six years in a row that an English side had been crowned European champions. This season has brought more success as manager Unai Emery lifted the Europa League for the fifth time in his own career.
Manchester City
European Cup/Champions League – 2022/23
Rodri’s strike against Inter Milan in Istanbul saw Pep Guardiola’s City achieve their primary goal in Europe and become only the second English side – after rivals United – to win the treble.
Celtic
A year before Manchester United, Celtic became the first British club to win the European Cup when the ‘Lisbon Lions’ beat Inter Milan 2-1 in Portugal.
Tottenham
UEFA Cup/Europa League – 1971/72, 1983/84, 2024/25
Tottenham lost in their only Champions League final appearance, beaten by Liverpool in 2019, but are three-time winners of the UEFA Cup/Europa League, most recently when they beat Manchester United in last season’s final.
Ipswich
UEFA Cup/Europa League – 1980/81
Ipswich’s eighth European campaign ended in their only success to date in 1981 as they beat AZ Alkmaar 5-4 in a two-legged final, winning 3-0 at Portman Road before hanging on with a 4-2 defeat in the Netherlands.
West Ham
Conference League – 2022/23
Winners of the now defunct European Cup Winners’ Cup back in 1965, West Ham lifted the Conference League trophy in the competition’s second season, as David Moyes’ side beat Fiorentina 2-1 in Prague.