Only three clubs have won consecutive Premier League titles. Manchester United, as the most successful team in Premier League history, have gone back-to-back or better on four occasions.
Arsenal, despite winning three titles in seven years and being perennial contenders for the title in Premier League betting across the late 1990s and early 2000s, have never defended their crown.
It is a special feat managing to lift the trophy in consecutive seasons, and an achievement which immediately consolidates a manager’s position among the greatest of the modern era.
Here are the seven occasions a team has won multiple Premier League titles in a row, starting with the first two seasons after the rebrand…
Manchester United – 2 (1992-93, 1993-94)
The arrival of the Premier League coincided with Manchester United’s return to top flight glory. The club were without a league title since 1967 but the Red Devils had been runners up in two of the last five seasons.
Four Manchester United players made the Team of the Season in 1992-93, as they won the league by 10 points.
In the following campaign, they were eight points clear by the end of the season behind the superstar performances of the incomparable Eric Cantona. The Frenchman was named PFA Player of the Year, while Alex Ferguson received Manager of the Year honours.
Manchester United – 2 (1995-96, 1996-97)
After Alan Shearer fired Blackburn to the title in 1994-95, Manchester United went back-to-back again. The team was built around the Class of ’92 by this point, with Gary Neville being named to the Team of the Season in both 1995-96 and 1996-97.
Cantona was the star of the team for the 1995-96 season, finishing as top scorer after returning from his infamous eight-month ban. Former Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjær top scored in 1996-97, with Cantona retiring at the end of the campaign.
This was just the start of Ferguson’s dynasty. The Red Devils went on to win seven of the first nine Premier League titles.
Chelsea – 2 (2004-05, 2005-06)
Under the self-proclaimed ‘Special One’, Chelsea became the first team other than Manchester United to win back-to-back Premier League titles.
The mega-charismatic José Mourinho arrived from Porto as a European champion. Bankrolled by Roman Abramovich, Mourinho constructed a winning machine in west London.
The Blues set the record for the most points in a Premier League season (which has since been broken), and the fewest goals conceded (which has not).
While the big-spending obviously elevated Chelsea to title contention, the core Chelsea from 2004 to 2006 remained at the club for years to come.
Mourinho instilled a winning culture, which the club retained throughout the 2000s and into the 2010s via numerous managerial changes. Chelsea have since won three more Premier League titles, including a third under Mourinho in 2014-15.
Manchester City – 2 (2017-18, 2018-19)
Manchester City had to settle for third in Pep Guardiola’s first season in charge. A summer of change set City up for title contention in 2017-18.
The geriatric full backs were replaced. Aymeric Laporte and Ederson arrived. Guardiola’s team were transformed with the personnel required to play his style of football.
Club legend Sergio Agüero scored 30 goals in 2017-18. Fernandinho, Leroy Sane, and Raheem Sterling excelled, while Kevin De Bruyne continued to build his reputation as one of the best players on the planet.
Racking up 100 points in 2017-18, City broke Chelsea’s record.
They had the second-most points in Premier League history in 2018-19 with 98, but only narrowly pipped Liverpool to the title, with Vincent Kompany’s screamer against Leicester in the penultimate match proving the decisive moment.
Manchester United – 3 (1998-99, 1999-2000, 2000-01)
The first threepeat in Premier League history began with a treble. After beating Arsenal by a single point in 1999, Manchester United won the league at a canter in the following two seasons. They had 15 players named to the Team of the Season over those three campaigns.
Jaap Stam, Roy Keane, David Beckham, Ryan Giggs, and Dwight Yorke were all integral.
The squad was littered with Premier League icons – it’s perhaps the most memorable group in modern English football history from the Class of ’92 through to their reliable, impactful goal-scoring options.
Arsenal were runners up in all three seasons. The Gunners claimed two of the next three titles, including becoming the first English team to go unbeaten through a topflight season in 2003-04.
Manchester United – 3 (2006-07, 2007-08, 2008-09)
The second threepeat for Alex Ferguson and the second of the Premier League came between 2006-07 and 2008-09. After seeing Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea go back-to-back, the Red Devils delivered a string of three straight titles, including a Champions League triumph over Chelsea in 2008.
Cristiano Ronaldo ascended from inefficient trickster to one of the world’s best players, winning the Ballon d’Or in 2008. For the second of the three titles, Carlos Tevez was crucial, and Wayne Rooney shone throughout in differing roles.
For all the attacking firepower, much of the success was built on a sturdy foundation of Edwin van der Sar, Nemanja Vidic, Rio Ferdinand, Michael Carrick, and Paul Scholes.
Manchester City – 3 (2020-21, 2021-22, 2022-23)
Manchester City have been the heavy betting favourite to win the Premier League title throughout Pep Guardiola’s tenure. The 2020s have belonged to City, conquering, and dominating English football, and winning an historic treble in 2023.
City disappeared into the distance in 2020-21. In 2021-22, they had another fierce title race with Liverpool, which required a spectacular final-day win over Aston Villa at the Etihad. The arrival of Erling Haaland ahead of 2022-23 set City up to finally win the Champions League.
While they trailed Arsenal for much of the 2022-23 campaign, there was an inevitability about City over the last couple of months. A drubbing of the Gunners in Manchester put City on course for the title, and they ultimately won the league with ease.
City are well-placed to become the first team in Premier League history to win four consecutive league titles.
*Credit for the main photo belongs to Alamy*
