Which Teams Have Retained the Champions League? PSG Move One Step Closer to Back-to-back Titles

PSG’s 4-0 aggregate win over Liverpool in the Champions League quarter-finals took the reigning European champions one step closer to retaining their crown.

Les Parisiens are gathering momentum at exactly the right time, it seems, as they bid to hold onto the most coveted trophy in European club football.

Here, we take a look at who they could join as back-to-back European champions…

Which Teams Have Retained the Champions League?

There have been nine instances of a team winning back-to-back Champions League / European Cup titles.

Real Madrid were the first side to achieve the feat, winning the inaugural European Cup final of 1956 then lifting the trophy in each of the next five years – a run it’s hard to see ever being repeated.

That being said, Madrid were also crowned champions of Europe three years running from 2016 to 2018 – making the Spanish giants the only club to have retained the Champions League / European Cup in two separate streaks.

Seven other clubs have retained the trophy, with Benfica the second to do so when they became the competition’s second-ever winners in 1961 and held onto it the following year – beating Madrid in the final.

Inter Milan were the next side to go back-to-back, doing so in 1964 – when they, too, defeated Madrid – and 1965.

Between 1971 and 1973, Ajax became the second club to win three straight European Cups, making it four in a row for Dutch sides after Feyenoord had been crowned the Netherlands’ first continental champions in 1970.

Ajax’s success began a decade-long run of back-to-back European champions, with Bayern Munich also pulling off a three-peat between 1974 and 1976.

England’s continental domination then started: Liverpool lifted their first European Cup in 1977 then retained it – before Nottingham Forest repeated the trick.

The final side to retain the European Cup before its 1992 rebranding to the Champions League were AC Milan, who got their hands on the trophy in 1989 and 1990.

Here is the full list of teams who have retained the Champions League / European Cup:

Which Managers Have Retained the Champions League?

Ten different managers have retained the Champions League / European Cup, with Jose Villalonga the first to do so when he led Madrid to their first two continental successes.

Zinedine Zidane is the only coach to win three titles on the spin, overseeing Madrid’s 2016-2018 domination of the competition.

Here is the full list of managers who have retained the Champions League / European Cup:

Should PSG go on to retain their Champions League crown this season, Luis Enrique would join above the list.

Which Captains Have Won Back-to-Back Champions Leagues?

Eight players have captained a team to successive Champions League / European Cup triumphs, with two wearing the armband in three consecutive victories.

Here is the full list of skippers who have retained the Champions League / European Cup:

Having captained PSG to glory last season, Marquinhos could go on to join the list.

Which Teams Have Lost Consecutive Champions League Finals?

Two clubs share the dubious honour of having lost back-to-back Champions League finals.

Juventus were the first to suffer that fate, losing to Borussia Dortmund in 1997 and Madrid in 1998.

But it wasn’t long before they were joined in having that unwanted distinction by Valencia, who were beaten by Madrid in 2000 – in the first-ever Champions League / European Cup final between two sides from the same country – and Bayern, on penalties, in 2001.