SOCCER
With Real Madrid poised to win their 36th league title, are Los Blancos the most successful club side?
A 3-2 win at home against FC Barcelona puts Ancelotti’s men 11 points clear with the Bernabeu side on the cusp of their 36th LaLiga title.
It’s a good time to be a Real Madrid fan after the Bernabeu side advanced to the semi-final of the 2023-24 UEFA Champions League last week with a heroic ‘backs to the wall’ performance against holders Manchester City. The penalty shoot out win now sets up a tie against Bayern Munich as the club eye an incredible 15th win in the biggest domestic competition in club football.
On Sunday night, Los Blancos supporters had further reason to celebrate after Jude Bellingham bagged an added time winner in El Clásico to secure a 3-2 win over FC Barcelona and thwart any outside hopes the Catalan side had in mounting a title race with Ancelotti’s side now holding an 11 point lead at the top of the table with just six games left to play.
Madrid are on the cusp of claiming their 36th LaLiga title and whilst the side from Chamartin are comfortably ahead in the domestic league honours podium (ahead of Barça with 27 wins and third placed Atletico Madrid with 11 domestic league titles), Real Madrid’s league successes are still some way off other global clubs who have an even more successful history when it comes to lifting league championship trophies.
Belfast leads the way
If you’re looking for the most successful club side in global football, south Belfast in Northern Ireland is your destination with Linfield holding the record with an incredible 56 league titles with the first coming back in 1891 and the most recent coming in 2022. With just two games remaining in the NI Premiership ‘The Blues’ trail Larne by three points as they look to bag title number 57.
The blue side of Glasgow is home to Rangers with the Ibrox side winners of 55 Scottish top flight league championships but this season again, they do have the green half of the city hot on their heels with Celtic boasting 53 league titles and as the current season reaches its climax it’s Brendan Rodgers’ men who hold the edge at the top of the table with the Parkhead men gunning for title number 54. The Celts share the third place podium with Peñarol from Montevideo with the Aurinegros also boasting 53 domestic Uruguayan league titles in their (ample) trophy cabinet.
Top 10: most domestic league titles by club
1) Linfield (Northern Ireland): 56 league titles
2) Glasgow Rangers (Scotland): 55
3) Glasgow Celtic (Scotland): 53
3) Peñarol (Uruguay): 53
5) Nacional (Uruguay): 49
6) Olympiacos (Greece): 47
7) Olimpia (Paraguay): 46
8) Club Deportivo Olimpia (Honduras): 44
9) Al-Ahly (Egypt): 41
10) South China (Hong Kong): 41
18) Real Madrid (Spain): 35