Since the inaugural edition of the European Cup in 1955/56, only nine teams have managed to retain their title. Real Madrid, the most successful team in the competition’s history, has achieved this feat four times, while AC Milan, Bayern Munich, Liverpool, Ajax, Inter Milan, Benfica, and Nottingham Forest have each done it twice.
Real Madrid’s first dynasty came in the late 1950s, when they won five consecutive European Cups from 1956 to 1960, led by legendary players such as Ferenc Puskas and Alfredo Di Stefano.
Benfica followed in Real Madrid’s footsteps, winning back-to-back titles in 1961 and 1962, thanks to the brilliance of Eusebio.
Inter Milan, under the guidance of Helenio Herrera, also won consecutive European Cups in 1964 and 1965.
Ajax’s ‘Total Football’ revolutionized the game in the early 1970s, and the Dutch club won three consecutive European Cups from 1971 to 1973.
Bayern Munich, with a team featuring Franz Beckenbauer, Gerd Muller, and Sepp Maier, won three consecutive European Cups from 1974 to 1976.
Liverpool, managed by Bob Paisley, won back-to-back European Cups in 1977 and 1978. The Reds also won the competition in 1984, becoming the seventh English club to win the European Cup in eight years.
Nottingham Forest, under the leadership of Brian Clough, pulled off one of the most incredible underdog stories in football history by winning back-to-back European Cups in 1979 and 1980, just three years after they were in the second tier of English football.
AC Milan, under the revolutionary management of Arrigo Sacchi, won back-to-back European Cups in 1989 and 1990.
Real Madrid are the most recent team to achieve consecutive Champions League wins, doing so in 2016, 2017, and 2018 under the guidance of Zinedine Zidane.
Winning the European Cup/Champions League is the pinnacle of club football, and retaining the title is an even greater achievement. The teams that have managed to do it deserve to be remembered as true giants of the game.
