The Champions Cup was first played in 1955- 56. The first winner was Real Madrid who have won the cup an impressive 9 times out of 12 Cup finals. The last time they won was in the 2001- 2002 season. They are followed by AC Milan with 6 titles and 4 second places. They last won in 2003. Liverpool is next with 5 titles and 1 second place.
Real has been struggling off late and AC Milan has had to play a third round match to advance to the group stage of the Cup. The teams that have made an impressive surge in recent years are Liverpool and Arsenal, with the Reds winning the big one in 2005 and the Gunners coming up just short in 2006. Before that was Manchester United in 1999 that ended a 14 year drought since Liverpool’s title in 1984. There might have been more cup wins if not for English clubs being banned after 1985 following the Heysel stadium disaster that led to the deaths of 39 Juventus football fans trapped against a wall that collapsed on them after being chased there by Liverpool fans, following a melee. The tragedy led to a 5 year suspension for English clubs and 6 years for Liverpool in European competition.
There is every reason to believe that the Premiership teams will have a lock on the title of best European club from now on. Chelsea beat Barcelona, 1-0 at Stamford Bridge and now travel to Camp Nou for the return match. Liverpool won their match against Bordeaux even though they have ruined their chances in their domestic league. Arsenal lost to CSKA Moscow but they will be back to form in their return tie against Roman Abramovich’s second club this week at the Emirates stadium. FC Porto is their biggest rival in their group. Manchester United stands on top of their table with Celtic, both having beaten their biggest rival Benfica.
The success of the Premiership usurping the Serie and La Liga in having the best domestic league in recent years is primarily because the non- English coaches of these teams, Rafael Benitez with Liverpool; Arsene Wenger with Arsenal; Sir Alex Ferguson with Man Utd; and Jose Mourinho with Chelsea have succeeded in attracting players from overseas. The increasing competitive transfer fees that the English clubs can afford nowadays with private investors plowing in money into the clubs, the relatively benign racial climate in England, and a huge TV and media market that ensures the Premiership is the most watched league in the world have created the right circumstances for the ascendancy of English clubs in Europe.
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