The 12 Most Successful Football Clubs In The World
Top teams regularly make illustrious claims about their status within the global football landscape. Clubs like Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Manchester United boast of having millions of supporters all over the world, while their stadium tours display jam-packed trophy cabinets to visiting tourists.
When it comes to naming the most successful football club in the world, there are plenty of angles to come from and debates to be had. But in terms of cold, hard trophy wins, which is the world's most successful club?
That's the question we'll be answering in this article, as we guide you through a number of giants of the global game.
Our list of the top 12 most successful teams in history only counts the senior teams of fully professional clubs operating under the umbrella of FIFA and its six continental confederations: UEFA, CAF, AFC CONMEBOL, CONCACAF, and OFC.
From African to South American to European clubs, some of these trophy hauls are astonishing.
Which Is The Most Successful Football Club In The World?
There are some huge, historic clubs in this list, but you might be surprised to hear that none of the top five most successful football clubs — purely in terms of total trophies won — are currently playing in either the UEFA Champions League or the English Premier League.
12. Olympiacos (Greece)
After a dramatic victory over Fiorentina in the final of the 2024 UEFA Europa Conference League, Olympiacos became the first Greek club in history to win a European trophy, a victory that ensured owner Evangelos Marinakis' status as a pivotal figure in the club's modern history.
However, the Piraeus-based outfit has been winning domestic competitions for many decades, and is easily the most decorated team in Greek football history.
Founded a century ago in 1925, Olympiacos has won a total of 83 major senior trophies at the time of writing: 48 Greek League titles, 29 Greek Cup trophies, four Greek Super Cups, a Europa Conference League title, and one Balkans Cup.
11. Al-Faisaly (Jordan)
The recent rise of Al-Hussein means Jordanian heavyweights Al-Faisaly haven't won a league title since 2022, but historically, they're far and away the most successful football team in Jordan.
Based in the capital of Amman, Al-Faisaly won the first-ever Jordanian Pro League title and has dominated the top division ever since, winning eight consecutive titles between 1959 and 1966, and five consecutive titles on two other occasions.
In total, they've secured a whopping 35 league titles plus an additional 21 FA Cups, nine FA shields, and 17 Supercups. They also won the second and third editions of the AFC Cup, Asia's second-tier continental club competition. This leaves them with a total trophy haul of 84.
10. Bayern Munich (Germany)
A giant of the European game, Bayern Munich has dominated German football throughout most of the 21st century.
Between 2013 and 2023, they won an incredible eleven consecutive German championships, until Xabi Alonso's Bayer Leverkusen finally broke their hold on the top-flight in 2023/24.
Since 2009, Bayern have reached four Champions League finals, and while they only triumphed in one of them (2019/20), the club has won a total of six European Cups since being formed in 1900.
Domestically, the Munich side has won 34 German league titles, 20 DFB German Cups, 12 German Supercups, and six League Cups, their most recent trophy (as of Feb 2026) being the 2024/25 Bundesliga title.
They've also seized an array of continental and international trophies: six European Cups, one UEFA Cup, one UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, two UEFA Supercups, two Intercontinental Cups, and two Club World Cups.
With this collection — a grand total of 86 trophies — they're easily the most decorated club in German football history.
9. Porto (Portugal)
Tied with Bayern Munich on 86 trophies are Porto, one of Portugal's three big clubs (alongside Benfica and Sporting CP). Porto have racked up an incredible 30 Portuguese championships, 20 Portuguese Cups, and 24 Portuguese Supercups.
And when it comes to Europe's premier club competition, Porto have made more of a splash than most teams.
Their 2003/04 Champions League triumph — masterminded by a young, innovative Jose Mourinho — is arguably the most impressive European Cup underdog story since the competition's 1992 rebrand.
8. Benfica (Portugal)
With 88 major trophies to their name, Benfica are the most decorated club in the history of Portuguese football.
They've won more league titles than any other club in the Primeira Liga, with 38 championships stretching from 1935/36 all the way to the present day.
On top of that, their trophy cabinet includes 26 Portuguese Cups, ten Portuguese Supercups, and eight Portuguese League Cups.
In Europe, they've been serious competitors from the very beginning: they were the first team to break Real Madrid's early dominance of the European Cup following the tournament's formation in 1956, and after winning the 1960/61 competition they defended their title the following season, inspired by talismanic striker Eusebio. Today, their total trophy haul stands at 88.
7. Barcelona (Spain)
The Catalan club is a giant of the global game, with the second-biggest social media following in world football and fans in every corner of the globe.
Largely this is because of their incredible record on the pitch: since forming in 1899, the club has consistently competed for regional, national, and eventually European trophies.
However, the exact number of trophies won by Barcelona is often disputed; ultimately, it comes down to whether you include the 23 Catalan Championships and other regional awards won in the early 1900s before La Liga was created.
We've chosen to discount these trophies as they're not seen today as major honours, and even without the Catalan accolades, Barcelona still have a whopping 94 trophies to their name: 28 national league titles, 32 Copa Del Reys, 15 Spanish Super Cups, two Spanish League Cups, five European Cups, five European Super Cups, four European Cup Winners' Cups, and three Club World Cups.
6. Real Madrid (Spain)
Real Madrid's continental record is seriously impressive: with 15 European Cup wins to their name, stretching from 1956 to 2023, they're easily the most successful club side in Europe.
The European Cup's second-most successful team AC Milan trails them by eight trophies, meaning Madrid's record is likely to stand for many years to come, and at national level, it'll be some time before anyone surpasses Los Blancos, too — currently the club's league title tally stands at 36, eight more than arch rivals Barcelona.
When you add Spanish Cups and Spanish Supercups, UEFA Cups and UEFA Supercups, and Club World Cups to the mix, Real Madrid's total trophy haul reaches an incredible 101.
5. Atlético Peñarol (Uruguay)
Based in the Uruguayan capital Montevideo — one of the first places to take up association football en masse following the global spreading of the sport in the late 19th century — Club Atlético Peñarol is one of South America's most successful sides ever.
They've won more domestic league titles than almost anyone else on this list, having racked up a ridiculous 52 championships since their first trophy in 1900, and unlike any other Uruguayan team, they've never been relegated from the top division.
They've also been successful on the continent, winning the illustrious Copa Libertadores on five occasions. Only Independiente in Argentina (seven) and Boca Juniors (six) have a better record in this competition.
There is some debate around exactly how many trophies Peñarol have won, but given that until recently there was no national knockout cup competition, titles like the Torneo Competencia (11 wins), Torneo de Honor (10), Copa de Competencia (six) and Torneo Cuadrangular (five) are usually counted in records, leaving Peñarol with a grand total of 110 trophies.
4. Rangers (Scotland)
The oldest club on this list, Glasgow giants Rangers have challenged at the top of the Scottish top flight since their formation in 1872, winning a whopping 55 league titles, as well as a record 34 Scottish Cups and 28 Scottish League Cups.
Only one other club in world football has won as many league championships as Rangers, but it's not just domestic success that has pushed them toward the top of this leaderboard: the club triumphed in UEFA's Cup Winners' Cup in 1971/72 and has reached the final of a major European trophy on five other occasions.
Trophy milestones achieved by Rangers include becoming the first club to win 50 top division titles and the first to win 100 major trophies, and in 2025, the club's total trophy haul stands at 118.
3. Celtic (Scotland)
Celtic was formed in 1887 to represent East Glasgow's predominantly Catholic community, quickly emerging alongside Rangers as one of Scotland's two most dominant teams, winning their first league title in 1892/93 and adding another three to their collection before 1900.
To date, Celtic have won a joint-record 55 Scottish league championships, 42 Scottish Cups, and 22 Scottish League Cups. Their dominance in recent years (winning 13 of the last 14 Scottish Premierships) recently helped them surpass arch-rivals Rangers in terms of trophies won.
They were also the first British team (and the first team from Northern Europe) to win the European Cup, triumphing over Internazionale in a dramatic 1967 final that saw Jock Stein's team labelled the 'Lions of Lisbon'. With that prestigious European trophy added to the pile, Celtic's total collection stands at a whopping 120 trophies.
2. Club Nacional De Football (Uruguay)
Just like Atlético Peñarol, Uruguayan outfit Club Nacional has faced some debate about their trophy haul.
Some doubt has been cast by the fact that 25 of their titles are classed as half-year/short tournaments (eg. Torneo Apertura, Torneo Clausara, and Torneo Intermedio), and while some sources claim that the club has won an incredible 163 official titles, the general consensus is that their trophy tally currently stands at 116.
Uruguay's most successful club has won 49 top division titles, as well as dozens and dozens of national cup competitions, including the Supercopa Uruguaya, the Torneo de Honor and the Torneo Competencia.
On the continental stage, they've got their hands on three Intercontinental Cups, three Copa Libertadores, and even a Recopa Sudamericana (an annual match-up between the Copa Libertadores winners and the winners of the Copa Sudamericana, South America's premier club competition).
This huge haul leaves Nacional as the second-most decorated club in world football.
1. Al-Ahly (Egypt)
At the top of the leaderboard is Egypt's most successful and powerful football club: Al-Ahly, the 12-time CAF Champions League winners who were crowned continental champions on four occasions between 2019 and 2024, and who have dominated domestic Egyptian football for much of the 21st and 20th centuries.
Founded in 1907 in Cairo, the club has grown to become the most financially valuable sports club in Africa, thanks to its huge success in both national and continental competitions.
Al-Ahly currently has 45 top division championship titles, 39 Egyptian Cup trophies, 15 Egyptian Super Cup trophies, 12 CAF Champions League titles, four African Cup Winners' Cups, eight CAF Super Cups, a CAF Confederation Cup, and an Afro-Asian Cup.
That leaves their total trophy count at a whopping 125, higher than any other club in world football.
Check out our guide to the most supported teams in the world for more insight into global football's power players.
Author: Fred Garratt-Stanley
Lead Content Writer
Fred Garratt-Stanley is an experienced football writer and journalist, specialising in industry insights, tactical analysis, and the culture of the game. He has contributed to publications such as NME, GQ, The Quietus, and Resident Advisor. As Lead Content Writer at Jobs In Football, he focuses on providing reliable, research-driven articles to help people navigate careers in the football industry.
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