Major honours
Founded in 1878 by railway workers as Newton Heath, the club took its current name in 1902. Its identity was shaped by the 1958 Munich air disaster, which killed eight of the young "Busby Babes" Matt Busby had built. Busby spent a decade rebuilding the team, and in 1968 at Wembley they beat Benfica 4-1 after extra time to become the first English club to win the European Cup. A second golden age followed under Alex Ferguson's 26-year reign (1986-2013), which produced 38 trophies including 13 league titles and, in 1998-99, English football's first treble. As of 2024-25, United's 20 top-flight titles are tied for most with Liverpool. Since the Glazer family's leveraged takeover in 2005, debt-servicing costs and patchy form have gone hand in hand, and Old Trafford — opened in 1910 and holding 74,310 — has faced growing calls for redevelopment amid concerns about its age.
Record comparison
Bars are scaled to the strongest team in this list.
Club legends
Rivalry
The Northwest Derby against Liverpool pits the two clubs who share the record for most English top-flight titles, an extension of a regional rivalry rooted in industrial-era competition over canals and ports. Since 2008, cross-town rival Manchester City has become the more immediate threat to United's standing.