The FA Cup may be known for its history of giant-killing and fairytale stories, but more often than not, the stronger clubs often end up lifting the trophy.
Last year saw Manchester United claim their 13th FA Cup trophy, defeating Manchester City in the process. This year sees another all-Premier League tie in the final, with City taking on Crystal Palace, who are searching for a first major trophy.
Nothing quite beats the magic of the cup, but who has lifted it most often? Here’s a look at the nine most successful clubs in the history of the competition.
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1 ByRoss Kilvington 9 Blackburn Rovers 6 FA Cups
Blackburn Rovers are currently the ninth-most successful team in the competition, despite their last victory coming back in 1928.
One of the founding members of the Football League, Blackburn won five FA Cups during the 19th century: 1884, 1885, 1886, 1890 and 1891. The club also won the English First Division in 1912 and 1914.
Since their last win nearly 100 years ago, Blackburn have reached the final just once, losing to Wolverhampton Wanderers in 1960.
Year
Opposition
Result
Goalscorers
Queen’s Park
2-1
Sowerbutts, Forrest / Christie
Queen’s Park
2-0
Forrest, Brown
West Brom
0-0
None
West Brom (replay)
2-0
Brown, Sowerbutts
Sheff Wed
6-1
Townley (3), Walton, Southworth, Lofthouse / Mumford
Notts County
3-1
Dewar, Southworth, Townley / Oswald
Huddersfield
3-1
Roscamp (2), McLean / Jackson
8 Newcastle United 6 FA Cups
The Magpies have the same number of titles as Blackburn, although they have reached a total of 13 finals in their history.
The club won all six of their cups between 1910 and 1955, which included a spell in the 50s that saw the Toon win three cups in four years.
Since that last success in 1955 – which is also the last time they won a major domestic honour – Newcastle reached the final three times in 1974, 1998 and 1999. While it is no shame in losing to Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester United on those occasions, the supporters will be hoping Eddie Howe can lead them to a first FA Cup in over 60 years.
Year
Opposition
Result
Goalscorers
Barnsley
1-1
Rutherford / Tufnell
Barnsley (replay)
2-0
Shepherd (2)
Aston Villa
2-0
Harris, Seymour
Arsenal
2-1
Allen (2) / John
Blackpool
2-0
Milburn (2)
Arsenal
1-0
George Robledo
Man City
3-1
Milburn, Mitchell, Hannah / Johnstone
7 Aston Villa 7 FA Cups
Aston Villa are ranked as the seventh-most successful team in the tournament, yet their last victory came in 1957.
Between 1894 and 1920, Villa won six league titles and six FA Cups, establishing themselves as one of the best teams in the country. Under Unai Emery, the club are attempting to return to past glories, but it is certainly a surprise that they have only made two finals since their last triumph.
A narrow defeat to Chelsea in 2000 – the last final at the old Wembley – was followed up by a 4-0 loss to Arsenal 15 years later. The Premier League and Champions League may be the priority for Emery, but a cup win would endear him to the supporters even more.
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Year
Opposition
Result
Goalscorers
West Brom
2-0
Hunter, Hodgetts
West Brom
1-0
Chatt
Everton
3-2
Campbell, Wheldon, Crabtree / Bell, Boyle
Newcastle
2-0
Hampton (2)
Sunderland
1-0
Barber
Huddersfield
1-0 (aet)
Kirton
Man Utd
2-1
McParland (2) / Taylor
6 Manchester City 7 FA Cups
Manchester City’s success in the FA Cup has been spread throughout their history. Indeed, each of their successes in the tournament have arrived in seven different decades.
They first won the trophy in 1904, before claiming another three wins by the end of the 1960s. The Etihad side then endured a drought of 42 years as Roberto Mancini led the club to their fifth success in 2011.
Under Pep Guardiola, the club have reached three finals in eight years, winning twice. Don’t be surprised to see their trophy count increase while the Spaniard is still in charge of the team.
Year
Opposition
Result
Goalscorers
Bolton
1-0
Meredith
Portsmouth
2-1
Tilson (2) / Rutherford
Birmingham
3-1
Hayes, Dyson, Johnstone / Kinsey
Leicester
1-0
Young
Stoke
1-0
Yaya Toure
Watford
6-0
David Silva, Jesus (2), De Bruyne, Sterling (2)
Man Utd
2-1
Gundogan (2) / Fernandes
5 Tottenham Hotspur 8 FA Cups
Tottenham Hotspur find themselves fifth on this list, despite failing to win the trophy since 1991 and claiming only one major honour this century.
Considered cup specialists during their most successful period between the early 60s and early 80s, Spurs won five FA Cups during this spell, along with numerous other trophies. Tottenham notably became the first and only non-league club to win the competition when they did so in 1901.
Remarkably, since that victory over Brian Clough’s Nottingham Forest 33 years ago, the north Londoners haven’t even made it back to Wembley for an FA Cup final.
Could Ange Postecoglou be the man to break this drought?
Year
Opposition
Result
Goalscorers
Sheff Utd
2-2
Brown (2) / Priest, Bennett
Sheff Utd (replay)
3-1
Cameron, Smith, Brown / Priest
Wolves
1-0
Dimmock
Leicester
2-0
Smith, Dyson
Burnley
3-1
Greaves, Smith, Blanchflower / Robson
Chelsea
2-1
Robertson, Saul / Tambling
Man City
1-1 (aet)
Hutchison og / Hutchison
Man City (replay)
3-2
Villa (2), Crooks / MacKenzie, Reeves
QPR
1-1 (aet)
Hoddle / Fenwick
QPR (replay)
1-0
Hoddle
Nottingham Forest
2-1 (aet)
Stewart, Walker og / Pearce
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ByJack Salveson Holmes 4 Liverpool 8 FA Cups
Liverpool had to wait until 1965 to win their first FA Cup title, despite having won six First Division titles prior.
Bill Shankly led the Reds to another cup in 1974, yet only six have arrived since the Scot retired that year. Indeed, the Anfield side have won the competition just three times since the turn of the century.
The 2001 and 2006 finals saw the Merseyside club secure wonderful comebacks to defeat Arsenal and West Ham United respectively. Jürgen Klopp won his only FA Cup in 2022, as Chelsea were defeated on penalties in the final.
Year
Opposition
Result
Goalscorers
Leeds
2-1 (aet)
Hunt, St John / Bremner
Newcastle
3-0
Keegan (2), Heighway
Everton
3-1
Rush (2), Johnston / Lineker
Everton
3-2 (aet)
Aldridge, Rush (2) / McCall (2)
Sunderland
2-0
Thomas, Rush
Arsenal
2-1
Owen (2) / Ljungberg
West Ham
3-3 (aet)
Cisse, Gerrard (2) / Carragher og, Ashton, Konchesky
Chelsea
0-0 (aet)
None
3 Chelsea 8 FA Cups
Winning the same number of cups as Liverpool and Spurs, Chelsea’s success has come within a much shorter space of time.
Only 48 years separate their first success (1970) and their latest victory in the competition (2018), while the Blues have reached another eight finals in their history.
By losing against Liverpool in 2022, Chelsea became the first team in FA Cup history to lose three successive finals. Enzo Maresca has a big job on his hands, but winning the tournament could be the catalyst for future success.
Year
Opposition
Result
Goalscorers
Leeds
2-2 (aet)
Houseman, Hutchinson / Charlton, Jones
Leeds (replay)
2-1 (aet)
Osgood, Webb / Jones
Middlesbrough
2-0
Di Matteo, Newton
Aston Villa
1-0
Di Matteo
Man Utd
1-0 (aet)
Drogba
Everton
2-1
Drogba, Lampard / Saha
Portsmouth
1-0
Drogba
Liverpool
2-1
Ramires, Drogba / Carroll
Man Utd
1-0
Hazard
2 Manchester United 13 FA Cups
13-time winners Manchester United have enjoyed plenty of success in the FA Cup, yet there have been a fair few shocks throughout too.
Sir Alex Ferguson won five FA Cup titles, with Sir Matt Busby winning two, yet the pair also lost finals. Bolton Wanderers defeated United in 1958 just months after the Munich Air Disaster, while Ferguson suffered defeats to Arsenal and Chelsea in 2005 and 2007 respectively.
Erik ten Hag led the Old Trafford side to a stunning victory last season, prevailing 2-1 over Man City. The Dutchman has since been sacked, but can his successor win a record-equalling 14th title this campaign?
Year
Opposition
Result
Goalscorers
Bristol City
1-0
Sandy Turnbull
Blackpool
4-2
Rowley (2), Pearson, Anderson / Shimwell, Mortensen
Leicester
3-1
Law, Herd (2) / Keyworth
Liverpool
2-1
Pearson, Greenhoff / Case
Brighton
2-2 (aet)
Stapleton, Wilkins / Smith, Stevens
Brighton (replay)
4-0
Robson (2), Whiteside, Muhren
Everton
1-0
Whiteside
Crystal Palace (aet)
3-3
Robson, Hughes (2) / O’Reilly, Wright (2)
Crystal Palace (replay)
1-0
Martin
Chelsea
4-0
Cantona (2), Hughes, McClair
Liverpool
1-0
Cantona
Newcastle
2-0
Sheringham, Scholes
Millwall
3-0
Ronaldo, Van Nistelrooy (2)
Crystal Palace
2-1 (aet)
Mata, Lingard / Puncheon
Man City
2-1
Garnacho, Mainoo / Doku
1 Arsenal 14 FA Cups
Not only do Arsenal hold the record for the most wins in the competition, but alongside their north London rivals, they also have the joint record of seven consecutive final appearances without losing, stretching back to 2001.
Arsène Wenger won 7 of the club’s 14 triumphs in the tournament, which is also a record, losing just once in the final (2001).
The club have lost only seven finals in their history. The 2020 victory was the first trophy won by Mikel Arteta in his managerial career. While ending their 21-year league title drought will be the priority for the Spaniard, winning a 15th FA Cup for the north London side could be just as beneficial.
Year
Opposition
Result
Goalscorers
Huddersfield
2-0
James, Lambert
Sheff Utd
1-0
Drake
Liverpool
2-0
Lewis (2)
Liverpool
2-1 (aet)
Graham, George / Heighway
Man Utd
3-2
Talbot, Stapleton, Sunderland / McQueen, McIlroy
Sheff Wed
1-1 (aet)
Wright / Hirst
Sheff Wed (replay)
2-1 (aet)
Wright, Linighan / Waddle
Newcastle
2-0
Overmars, Anelka
Chelsea
2-0
Parlour, Ljungberg
Southampton
1-0
Pires
Man Utd
0-0 (aet)
None
Hull
3-2 (aet)
Cazorla, Koscielny, Ramsey / Chester, Davies
Aston Villa
4-0
Walcott, Sanchez, Mertesacker, Giroud
Chelsea
2-1
Sanchez, Ramsey / Costa
Chelsea
2-1
Aubameyang (2) / Pulisic
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