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Liverpool: Red And Proud

As of writing this, Liverpool has won 19 top-flight English football titles. That’s 18 First Division league titles and one Premier League championship. It is, in fact, one of the most decorated clubs in the Premier League.

Start shopping for your Liverpool away kit. A fresh season has begun, so it’s time to look back and savour Liverpool’s many honours. Read on and feel proud to be Red.

The First Division and Premier League

The 2019-20 season was a defining year for Liverpool. Since 1992, the club has been part of the Premier League, the highest-ranking tier in the English football system. It has never lost its place in the league since the First Division of the English football league system transitioned into the Premier League. However, the title remained elusive and, for decades, stayed out of reach.

There were seasons when it seemed like Liverpool was about to grasp victory in its hands. It came in third in 1996, 1998, 2001, 2006, and 2007 and advanced within eyesight of the trophy in 2002, 2009, 2014, and 2019 when it ranked second.

However, the historic moment came on 25 June 2020. A global pandemic raged, but the Reds were unstoppable. They poured into Anfield to celebrate when Manchester City bowed to Chelsea 2-1. Liverpool finally clinched the top spot in the top-flight Premier League and reigned supreme as that year’s top football club in England. That victory ended Liverpool’s 30-year Premier League title drought.

Since 2020, Liverpool seems to be on track to win another Premier League trophy soon. It landed in third place in 2021 and the recently concluded 2024 season. In 2021-22, it yielded to Manchester City to take the runner-up position.

It shouldn’t be long before Liverpool secures its second Premier League Title and 20th top-flight English football trophy. The Reds are unstoppable when they get fired up, as proven by Liverpool FC’s iconic First Division titles. The First Division was the precursor of the Premier League.

  • 1901
  • 1906
  • 1922
  • 1923
  • 1947
  • 1964
  • 1966
  • 1973
  • 1976
  • 1977
  • 1979
  • 1980
  • 1982
  • 1983
  • 1984
  • 1986
  • 1988
  • 1990

While all of the above victories are worthy of celebrating, one of the most remarkable is the 1963-64 win. That was only Liverpool’s second season back into the First Division after being relegated to the Second Division from season 1954-55 until season 1961-62. In 1962-63, moreover, the club had a middling performance and ranked only eighth in the First Division. Therefore, nobody was expecting Liverpool to dominate the 1963-64 season.

It was the stuff of legends and one of the primary contests that would forever earn Bill Shankly a place in the heart of every Reds fan. In addition, Liverpool also accomplished the following feats while Bill managed the club:

  • Got promoted to the First Division on Bill’s fourth season as manager (Bill joined in December 1959)
  • Won the First Division title again in 1966
  • Raised the Football Association Challenge Cup (also known as FA Cup) in 1965
  • Won the Charity Shield in 1964 (a draw with West Ham United), 1965 (a draw with Manchester United), and 1966 (sole victor)

European Cups and Trophies

Liverpool remains unchallenged as the top English football club in Europe. The Reds were not the first English football club to have won a European cup or trophy. Many other English teams already had a European trophy in their awards cabinet when Liverpool won its Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) Cup in 1973.

Today, Liverpool is the English team with the most European honours at 14 awards, more than any other club in England.

European Cup (6)

Liverpool won its first European Cup in 1977 in a match against Borussia Monchengladbach in Rome. However, that was just one of the six European Cup honours Liverpool would bring home to Anfield. The club would win ‘Old Big Ears’ in:

  • 1977
  • 1978
  • 1981
  • 1984
  • 2005
  • 2019

Liverpool won three of the above honours under Bob Paisley, who played defender for Liverpool from 1939 until 1954. Paisley took over from Bill Shankly in 1974 and remained manager until 1983.

FIFA Club World Cup (1)

FIFA stands for Fédération Internationale de Football Association, and it is one of the most prestigious football championship cups in the world. To date, only four English football teams have won the World Cup. One of these is Liverpool, which raised the cup in the 2019 tournament held in Qatar.

This victory preceded Liverpool’s 2020 Premier League title, proof that the team was in great shape and was thriving under Jürgen Klopp’s management.

UEFA Cups (3)

UEFA, whose membership body consists of the national football associations in Europe, runs various football competitions. In 1973, Liverpool – under the management of Bill Shankly – defeated Borussia Monchengladbach and won the UEFA Cup and its first-ever European football trophy.

Liverpool would win two more UEFA Cups. One, they would win under Bob Paisley in 1976. The third, they would secure in 2001, under the leadership of club manager Gérard Houllier.

UEFA Super Cups (4)

The UEFA Super Cup is a competition among the Champions League and Europa League winners. Liverpool would contest the UEFA Super Cup championship six times:

  • 1977
  • 1978
  • 1984
  • 2001
  • 2005
  • 2019

It would win four Super Cups: 1977, 2001, 2005, and 2019.

Liverpool: Onward and Forward

Liverpool is currently third in the Premier League football clubs and the English club with the most European honours. It’s right to get excited. Start shopping for next season’s kit at the nearest Liverpool store because the team you love is going full steam ahead.

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