Ten titles in a row – nobody in Europe’s top leagues had ever managed that before. Bayern Munich managed this feat on Saturday by beating Borussia Dortmund 3-1 (2-0) in the Bundesliga summit.
The German soccer record champion has thus surpassed Juventus Turin, who had also won Serie A nine times in a row from 2012 to 2020. Bayern’s dominance in the Bundesliga has lasted since 2013.
But there is still a long way to go before Skonto Riga (Latvia) and the Lincoln Red Imps (Gibraltar) set the “true” European record with 14 consecutive titles each. – The “SID” gives an overview of the record series in the five top European leagues – and beyond.
The record series in Europe’s top leagues: FC Bayern at the top
1. GERMANY: BAYERN MUNICH, TEN CONSECUTIVE TITLES (2013-2022)
In Germany, serial champions are actually rare, the current Bayern dominance is unprecedented – before that, three titles in a row were best. An exception is the GDR, where the BFC Dynamo – also thanks to well-disposed referees – won ten titles in a row from 1979 to 1988.
2. ITALY: JUVENTUS TURIN, NINE TITLES (2012-2020)
The old lady ruled the league almost at will – until the streak broke last season and Inter Milan grabbed the Scudetto. After all, AC Turin (1943-1949), Inter (2006-2010) and the early Juventus (1931-1935) managed five titles in a row.
3. FRANCE: OLYMPIQUE LYON, SEVEN TITLES (2002-2008)
In France, series champions have always been the exception, even the nouveau riche Paris St. Germain has so far only won four titles in a row. A total of ten titles are enough for AS St. Etienne to be the record champion to this day.
4. SPAIN: REAL MADRID, FIVE TITLES (1961-1965 AND 1986-1990)
Real and FC Barcelona do dominate the league, but usually in nice alternation. Barca “only” managed four titles in a row, from 1991 to 1994.
5. ENGLAND: FOUR CLUBS WITH THREE TITLES
Hard to believe: No English club has managed four championships in a row. Huddersfield Town (1924-1926), Arsenal FC (1933-1935), Liverpool FC (1982-1984) and Manchester United (1999-2001 and 2007-2009) won three titles in a row.
Other series champions in Europe:
14 titles: Skonto Riga (Latvia), from 1991 to 2004
14 titles: Lincoln Red Imps (Gibraltar) from 2003 to 2016
13 titles: BATE Borisov (Belarus) from 2006 to 2018
13 tracks: Rosenborg Trondheim (Norway) from 1992 to 2004
11 titles: Ludogorets Razgrad (Bulgaria) from 2012 to 2022
11 titles: Dinamo Zagreb (Croatia) from 2006 to 2016
10 titles: BFC Dynamo (GDR) from 1979 to 1988
10 titles: Dynamo Tbilisi (Georgia) from 1990 to 1999
10 titles: MTK Budapest (Hungary) from 1914 to 1925
10 titles: FC Pjunik Yerevan (Armenia) from 2001 to 2010
10 titles: Sheriff Tiraspol (Moldova) from 2001 to 2010
The unofficial world record is held by FC Tafea from Vanuatu, who won the first 15 championships in the South Pacific island state from 1994 to 2009.