Five nations with the most UEFA Super Cup winners

The annual football event has been a golden opportunity for teams to boost their trophy cabinet.

UEFA Champions League winners FC Bayern Munich will lock horns with Europa League champions Sevilla FC in the 2020 UEFA Super Cup. Both sides have won the Cup once previously in their history so this isn’t necessarily uncharted territory for the duo. This would be the German club’s fifth appearance in the Super Cup and they will be hoping to make it consecutive wins in the one-off fixture after defeating Chelsea back in 2013.

As for Sevilla, their last showing in this contest came back in 2016, where they lost against Real Madrid. Bayern will be entering the game as favourites though Sevilla can never be ruled out in knockout games. In any case, if the Bavarians prevail, it will only be the second time that a German side ends up as winners of the Super Cup.

On that note, let us look at five nations with the most UEFA Super Cup winners.

5. Netherlands

The Dutch have two UEFA Super Cup wins under their belt with Ajax picking up the trophy on both occasions in 1973 and 1995. Besides their twin triumphs, the Dutch club finished runners-up in 1987, coming short against Portuguese outfit FC Porto.

Ajax are the most successful club in the Netherlands and throughout the glorious history, they have looked as their nation’s best bet for success in Europe. Other than Ajax, PSV Eindhoven and Feyenoord have represented the country on the European circuit in this prestigious contest in 1998 and 2002 respectively, but couldn’t come away with a victory.

4. Belgium

The presence of Belgium on this list might come as a surprise to many given the modest status of their league and the absence of a clear heavyweight from it in the European competitions. However, the nation just edges its neighbours with three wins to their name. Anderlecht, Belgium’s most renowned football club, won the Cup twice in 1976 and 1978.

The other side to emerge victorious is KV Mechelen, who laid hands on the trophy in 1988 after initially winning the 1987-88 European Cup Winners’ Cup that season. Even though a club from Belgium have participated only thrice in UEFA Super Cup, it is rather commendable in many ways that the Belgian sides maintain a 100% record in these games, not losing a single contest.

3. England

Next up is England, the home of arguably the most exciting and undoubtedly the most lucrative league in the world. The English boasts eight wins and have taken part in total 18 clashes in the UEFA Super Cup. Last year, Liverpool and Chelsea, both English sides, squared up against each other in the UEFA Super Cup.

The former are leading the way, having won the Super Cup four times (1977, 2001, 2005, 2019) and have finished runners-up on three other instances. Manchester United and Chelsea FC share identical records with one win and three losses each whilst Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa both finished as the victors once. Lastly, Arsenal had an opportunity of winning the Cup in 1994 but ultimately suffered defeat at the hands of AC Milan.

2. Italy

Italian teams have won the esteemed trophy nine times, with AC Milan joint highest with FC Barcelona for most wins, having won it five times (1989,1990,1994, 2003, 2007). Though the Rossoneri are no longer a force in Italy and Europe, their previous tremendous achievements in European tournaments are a reminder of their long lost days as an unstoppable powerhouse.

Meanwhile, current Italian heavyweight Juventus have won the Super Cup twice in 1984 and 1996. The Old Lady are yearning for success in Europe, having dominated the league for the last decade. Parma and Lazio are other UEFA Super Cup winners from Italy whilst Sampdoria and Inter Milan couldn’t attain victory in their single appearances in 1990 and 2010 respectively.

1. Spain

Over the years, clubs from Spain have consistently made their mark in Europe and regularly appeared in the final stages of the competitions. As many might have expected, Spain have been the leaders in Europe, with 15 wins and 12 runner-up finishes in the UEFA Super Cup. As mentioned, Barcelona have emerged triumphant on five occasions (1992, 1997, 2009, 2011, 2015) joint-highest with the Italian giants AC Milan.

Real Madrid, their arch-rivals, have won it four times (2002, 2014, 2016, 2017) whilst Atletico Madrid have lifted the trophy thrice in 2010, 2012, and most recently in 2018. Valencia and Sevilla are other Spanish teams, who hold the UEFA Super Cup in their trophy cabinets with Real Zaragoza almost adding their name to the list of winners in 1995.

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