Top five English clubs with most Champions League round of 16 appearances

English clubs have maintained their supremacy in the Champions League.

Every team aspires to win the UEFA Champions League, which is the greatest trophy in European football. No less than 24 clubs—some more than others—have won the trophy since it was first introduced as the European Cup in 1955.

Many of them have been English teams. But how frequently do English teams participate in the competition, and how far do they typically go in the Champions League? Let’s look at it below.

English clubs with the most appearances in the Champions League round of 16

5. Manchester City: 12 times

Despite winning the competition only once, Manchester City were regular participants in the Champions League. But their inability to go far in the competition is what kept them from winning the tournament. In past years, Man City have managed to reach the last four of the tournament quite well, but always fell short.

In the 2022-23 season, the club finally broke the curse and lifted their first-ever Champions League trophy. Moreover, City are among the only few English clubs that have reached the competition’s round of 16 most number of times.

4. Manchester United: 12 times

Manchester United’s trophy collection includes a good number of European Cups. Two of their three Champions League trophies were won during the illustrious tenure of Sir Alex Ferguson. The moments when the Red Devils failed are frequently forgotten.

The last time Manchester United advanced to the Champions League final was in 2011. In a classic spectacle, Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona defeated Sir Alex Ferguson’s club. Since then, the team has participated in the competition, albeit infrequently.

This is because of their persistently subpar performance over the years, which also prevented them from qualifying. However, despite their absence in the competition, United have reached the UCL round of 16 a total of 12 times.

3. Liverpool: 13 times

Liverpool are the only English team with a European heritage. Only AC Milan and Real Madrid have won the title more times than the Merseyside club. Few clubs have ever performed as well as the Reds did during this golden age for supporters who lived through the 1970s and early 1980s.

Given the magic that transpired in Istanbul in 2005, many supporters feel that the long wait between their fourth and fifth wins was worthwhile. Following that, they had to wait for a decade to finally lift the trophy when the club won the competition in 2019.

However, there was a brief time when Liverpool would barely advance in the competition, which led to them hardly making it to the UCL round of 16.

2. Arsenal: 17 times

Despite not winning the trophy in their history, Arsenal have had regular chances to play in the competition. The club have been a regular participant. The club remain the second English club with the most Champions League round of 16 appearances.

1. Chelsea: 18 times

In the UEFA Champions League 2025-26 final 16, Chelsea will play either AS Monaco, Qarabag, Paris Saint-Germain, or Newcastle United. On Wednesday night, Joao Pedro led Liam Rosenior’s team to victory at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium, guaranteeing automatic advancement to the knockout stages.

Chelsea became the first English team to make it to the Champions League round of 16 more times than any other English team after earning a direct spot in the round of 16.

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