Zlatan is known for his skill and ability on the football pitch, but he is also known for his fiery personality and his tendency to speak his mind and that has created most controversial moments of Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

Ibrahimovic is a player who is not afraid to speak his mind or stand up for himself on the pitch. His savage moments, including insulting Pep Guardiola, calling out Marco Materazzi, and scoring spectacular goals, have made him one of the most entertaining and controversial players in football history.

While he has been criticized for his behavior at times, Ibrahimovic remains a legend of the game. He is, if not all the times, but sometimes respected for his talent and his passion for the sport. Here are five of the most historic moments of Zlatan Ibrahimovic's career:

Insulting Pep Guardiola

🎙 | "When you buy me, you are buying a Ferrari. If you drive a Ferrari you put premium petrol in the tank, you hit the motorway and you step on the gas. Guardiola filled up with diesel and took a spin in the countryside. He should have bought a Fiat."

Zlatan on Pep. pic.twitter.com/Ds0wyH5bun

— ΛROUND THE GROUNDS (@ArndTheGrnds) June 4, 2023

In his autobiography, "I am Zlatan," Ibrahimovic revealed that he had a contentious relationship with Pep Guardiola when they were both at Barcelona.

In one incident, Ibrahimovic claimed that Guardiola had insulted him during a training session, saying, "You have no balls." In response, Ibrahimovic reportedly shouted back, "You don't have any balls either."

This incident highlighted the tension between the two men and Ibrahimovic's willingness to stand up for himself in the face of criticism.

Scoring a Bicycle Kick Against England

In a 2012 friendly match between Sweden and England, Ibrahimovic scored one of the most spectacular goals in football history.

Throw back to when Zlatan Ibrahimovich scored the craziest bicycle kick in football history. pic.twitter.com/aLLsV97sRJ

— Mikael Madridista (@MikaelMadridsta) June 4, 2023

With Sweden trailing 2-1 in the 90th minute, Ibrahimovic scored a stunning bicycle kick from 30 yards out that sailed over the goalkeeper's head and into the net.

The goal was a moment of genius from Ibrahimovic and cemented his status as one of the most talented and audacious players in the game.

Calling out Pep Guardiola Again

In 2019, Ibrahimovic made headlines when he criticized Guardiola again, this time for his performance as Manchester City's manager. In an interview with the Mirror, Ibrahimovic said, "He's not a man, he's a coward. He's a little baby who's been pampered all his life."

Pep bought Zlatan from Inter for €45mil + Eto'o only to loan Zlatan out a year later and sell him to AC Milan for €24mil. worst deal ever and no one can convince me otherwise lol. https://t.co/tuKAOCyKek

— mufc billy 👹🇾🇪 (@vibesnotactics) May 29, 2023

The comments were a clear swipe at Guardiola's perceived arrogance and his tendency to be confrontational with players.

Confronting Marco Materazzi

In a 2010 match between AC Milan and Inter Milan, Ibrahimovic had a heated exchange with Inter defender Marco Materazzi. Ibrahimovic accused Materazzi of insulting his wife and family, and the two men had to be separated by teammates and officials.

The incident highlighted Ibrahimovic's passionate nature and his willingness to stand up for himself and his family, even in the face of provocation.

Scoring Four Goals Against Anderlecht

In a 2013 Champions League match between Paris Saint-Germain and Anderlecht, Ibrahimovic put on a clinic, scoring four goals in a 5-0 victory. The goals were a showcase of Ibrahimovic's skill and versatility, as he scored with both feet and his head and from a range of distances.

The performance was a reminder of Ibrahimovic's ability to dominate matches and his importance to his team's success.

Hat tricks are one of the toughest and most exciting things in football. To score thrice in a single match is not only hard but also one of the rarest things as well. However, some players have made it look so easy.

Today, in this article, we will talk about the top ten players with most hat tricks in football in the 21st century.

But before that, let me answer the question that you have in your mind. I know that you want to know who has scored the most hat-tricks in football history.

Note that the article was first written by Koushik Biswas and then got updated by the editioral team for relevancy of the stats.

Who has scored the most hat-tricks in football history?

Now that's a very tricky question to answer because there is a lack of proof with the data of football score lines from the past.

As per Guinness World Records, the Brazilian legend Pele has scored the most hat-tricks in football history. The former striker scored as many as 92 hat tricks in his career, with seven of them being for Brazil. However, since Pele never played in Europe, there is no exact data or proof to support the answer. Most of Pele's hat-tricks came in unofficial and friendlies as well.

Top 12 players with most hat-tricks in football in the 21st century

Now, to list the top ten players with most hat tricks in football in the 21st century, there will be no confusion, because we have the proof and the data to support our list. This data not only validates but also proves why keeping the record of every football stat is important.

With this list, you will know how the 21st century has been dominated by two of the greatest footballers in history.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have scored twice as many hat tricks as the 3rd player on the list has achieved.

Here is the full list of the top 12 players with most hat-tricks in football in the 21st century.

12. Sergio Aguero | 18 hat-tricks

The former Manchester City and Argentina legend is one of the greatest strikers of this century. Sergio Aguero finished his career as one of the highest scorers in Premier League history with 180 goals for Manchester City in the league.

With 18 hat tricks to his name, including his club and international career, Aguero is the player with the 12th most hat-tricks in the 21st century.

Not surprisingly, twelve of his 18 hat tricks came for Manchester City, most in the Premier League. However, Aguero only scored one hat-trick for Argentina in his international career.

The former striker scored more than four goals three times in his career, all in the Premier League. 

11. Klaas-Jan Huntelaar | 18

Now, this name can come as a surprise to many Gen-Z football followers. Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, the former Dutch and Ajax centre-forward, scored 18 hat-tricks in his stunning football career.

Although three of his 18 hat-tricks came in the second division of the Dutch League, they are considered official hat-tricks.

Huntelaar scored seven hat-tricks for Ajax and eight for German club FC Schalke. He could only score one international hat-trick for the Netherlands.

Huntelaar scored 366 goals in his career and also featured for clubs like Real Madrid and AC Milan.

Read Also | European treble winners in men's football history

#10. Mario Gomez | 18

The former German striker is one of the most underrated players of his generation. Over his entire career, Mario Gomez scored 333 goals in 610 games for teams like FC Bayern Munich, VfB Stuttgart and Fiorentina.

The one-time Champions League and three-time Bundesliga winner scored 18 hat-tricks in his career.

12 of his hat-tricks came for FC Bayern Munich, while four came for Stuttgart and one each for Wolfsburg and Germany.

#9. Zlatan Ibrahimovic | 20

One of the most acrobatic and threatening strikers of the modern era, Zlatan Ibrahimovic is one of the highest scorers of the 21st century.

The Swedish legend is perhaps one of the greatest players to never win the UEFA Champions League despite playing for teams like FC Barcelona, Inter Milan, AC Milan, Manchester United, PSG and Juventus.

Read Also | Players with most Champions League finals without winning it ever

Zlatan scored 20 hat-tricks in his career, among which half were for PSG. He scored four hat-tricks for his country, Sweden.

#8 Neymar | 21

The Brazilian modern-day great, Neymar, is one of the most loved and eye-catching footballers of the 21st century. Neymar is Brazil's highest goal scorer ever, with 79 goals in 120 matches.

The attacking midfielder made his name with Brazilian club Santos and then went on to conquer Europe with FC Barcelona and PSG before joining Al Hilal in Saudi Arabia.

Four of his 21 hat tricks came for Brazil, which is the second most for the five-time world champion nation. He scored four hat tricks each for FC Barcelona and PSG, while scoring eight hat tricks for his home club, Santos. 

#7 Kylian Mbappe | 23

Now here comes the new generation superstar. Kylian Mbappe has already broken multiple football records in his short career for AS Monaco, PSG, Real Madrid and France.

One of the youngest goal scorers in FIFA World Cup history and one of the youngest ever to score in a World Cup final, Kylian Mbappe is indeed made for greatness.

Read Also | Most Valuable Football Players In 2025: Who is Worth the Big Bucks?

Mbappe has already scored 23 hat-tricks in his career, which include one in the famous FIFA World Cup 2022 final as well. The youngster, who is often compared with Cristiano Ronaldo, has scored 14 hat-tricks for PSG and three for France. The rest came for AS Monaco (2) and Real Madrid (4).

#6 Erling Haaland | 27

Norwegian Erling Haaland is a beast when it comes to scoring goals within the 'D box'. He would always see him at the right place at the right time, scoring some great acrobatic goals.

Haaland rose to fame with German club Borussia Dortmund and then unleashed his absolute best for Premier League club Manchester City. In his first season in the Premier League, he broke the record for the most goals in a season in the tournament (36).

In his short career so far, he has scored 27 hat-tricks and can only get better from here on. 11 of his hat-tricks came for Manchester City, among which 8 came in the Premier League, in only two seasons. 

Read Also | Football facts: Son-father footballer duo to play for national teams

#5 Harry Kane | 29

Harry Kane is the only English player on our list of the top 12 players with most hat tricks in football in 21st century. With 27 hat tricks in his career till now, Harry Kane is fifth on our list currently.

Read Also | Harry Kane becomes the fastest footballer to score 50 Bundesliga goals

The Tottenham Hotspur legend, who left Premier League with the second most goals in the competition's history, is now breaking records in the Bundesliga as well.

Kane scored 14 hat-tricks for Spurs and has already scored 8 hat-tricks for FC Bayern Munich in just two seasons.

Read Also | Last 10 European Golden Shoe winners List

#4 Luis Suarez | 30

Uruguayan legend Luis Suarez, who dominated European football first for Ajax and Liverpool and then for FC Barcelona, creating the famous M-S-N trio with Lionel Messi and Neymar, scored 30 hat-tricks in his career.

Suarez is currently playing for Inter Miami and has scored 505 goals so far in his career, among which 69 came for Uruguay. 

Twelve of his total 30 career hat-tricks came for FC Barcelona and 9 for Ajax during his early days.

Read Also | MSN vs BBC: Rivalry of football's greatest trio in stats

#3 Robert Lewandowski | 34

If we do not count Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, Robert Lewandowski of Poland has been the greatest footballer of this generation. It is harsh that he always gets compared to those two and has not recieve the appreciation he should get.

He was even unlucky not to win the 2020 Ballon d'Or, which was cancelled due to COVID-19. Apart from Messi and Cristiano, he is the only player to score over 100 Champions League goals.

Read Also | Highest scoring footballers of the 21st century

Lewandowski scored 34 hat-tricks in his career so far, and 20 of them came for FC Bayern Munich, where he won 8 Bundesliga and one Champions League titles. With 6 UCL hat-tricks, he is the player with the second most hat-tricks in the competition's history, only behind Lionel Messi. 

#2 Lionel Messi | 60

Now you will have to bear with me a bit because the list will get bigger.

Lionel Messi, who has won the most trophies in football history, won the most Ballon d'Or awards, scored the second most four or more goals in football (8), and also has the record for most goal contributions in football history, scoring 60 hat-tricks in his career so far.

Messi also has the record of scoring the most La Liga (36) hat-tricks, which is more than other player's whole career.

The Argentine has scored 48 hat-tricks for FC Barcelona, which is also a record. Messi till now has scored 10 international hat-tricks, the most for Argentina and joint-most in men's international football history.

Moreover, out of Messi's 60 hat-tricks, only 13 included a penalty, which makes him the player with the most non-penalty hat-tricks as well. 

#1 Cristiano Ronaldo | 66

Here comes the greatest goal scorer in football history, Cristiano Ronaldo. The Portuguese legend has scored the most hat-tricks in football in the 21st century. And, if you do not count the unverified record for Pele, he has the most hat-tricks in football history.

Most goals in club history, most goals in international football, most Champions League goals, joint-most Champions League hat-tricks (10), most league hat-tricks (45) - these are a few of the records set by the former Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus star.

Ronaldo, till now, has scored 66 career hat-tricks, among which 44 came for Real Madrid, a record for the Los Blancos. Moreover, he has scored four or more goals in a game a record 11 times, scoring 4 goals in a game nine times and 5 goals twice.

However, compared with Lionel Messi, 29 of Ronaldo's 66 career hat-tricks included a penalty.

Full list

Hello and welcome everyone to another live blog of the Premier League 2025- 26 season.

Tonight we have one of the biggest matches of the season as Manchester City hosts their archrivals, Manchester United, at the Etihad Stadium from 9:00 PM IST.

Both football clubs from Manchester have struggled to get going this season. City, managed by Pep Guardiola, have lost two out of their three games while United, under Ruben Amorim, has lost once, won once and drawn once so far.

So with both teams looking desperate for a win, we have got a mouth-watering contest at our hands. So sit back and relax as we bring you all the live updates of the Manchester City vs Manchester United match from our web desk.

The 21st century has been a golden age for football, filled with breathtaking talents and goal-scoring giants. It gave us the legends whose legacy can never be matched, and moments to cherish for the longest time. 

The footballers indeed took this sport to another level, shaping the modern era with passion and brilliance. Join us as we count down the highest-scoring footballers in the 21st century, celebrating their remarkable journey.

13. Klaas-Jan Huntelaar (408 goals) | Netherlands

• Goals: 408
• Matches: 738
• Position: Forward

Securing the 13th position is Dutch striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar with 408 goals in 738 matches. He made his international debut in 2006 and was widely known for his lethal finishing. He reached the 2010 World Cup Final, where they ended up as runners-up.

Huntelaar won multiple Dutch Cups and Eredivisie titles for Ajax. He had a rollercoaster-like club journey, with his stints for AC Milan and Real Madrid. He later became a fan favourite for FC Schalke 04, where he was the Bundesliga's top scorer in 2011-12.

Breakdown of Huntelaar's goals:

Read Also: 11 players who have won the most trophies in football history.

12. Samuel Eto'o (424 goals) | Cameroon

• Goals: 424
• Matches: 872
• Position: Forward

Cameroon's iconic striker and all-time leading goal-scorer, Samuel Eto'o, holds the 12th spot with 424 goals in 872 matches, after his international debut in 1997.

From winning an Olympic gold medal in 2000 to leading the Indomitable Lions to back-to-back Africa Cup of Nations (2000, 2002) and winning 3 La Liga titles and 2 Champions League titles (2006, 2009) for Barcelona, he has done it all.

He then moved to Inter Milan and achieved a historic treble in 2010, winning Serie A, the Coppa Italia, and another Champions League under Jose Mourinho. Samuel is the only player to win back-to-back trebles with different clubs.

Breakdown of Samuel's goals:

11. David Villa (426 goals) | Spain

• Goals: 426
• Matches: 827
• Position: Forward

The former Spanish footballer, David Villa, holds the 10th position with 426 goals in 827 matches. He made his international debut in 2005 and has been unstoppable ever since. He was a crucial part of Spain's 2010 World Cup triumph, where his 5 goals made him a joint top scorer.

Villa also found immense success in his club career, where he won numerous titles for Barcelona, including the UEFA Champions League in 2011 and 2 La Liga titles. He also won another La Liga title with Atletico Madrid.

Additionally, he holds the record of being Spain's all-time top scorer, which is unmatched even years after his retirement (in 2019).

Breakdown of Villa's goals:

Read Also: Trophies won by Spain in International Football (Men's)

10. Sergio Aguero (426 goals) | Argentina

• Goals: 426
• Matches: 786
• Position: Forward

Sergio Aguero is an impressive Argentinian footballer who made his international debut in 2006, scoring 426 goals in 786 matches.

He won the 2021 Copa America with the national team, but unfortunately missed the chance to be a part of the World Cup-winning squad of 2022.

He became an icon for Manchester City, transforming into the leading goal-scorer, who played a key part in securing their first Premier League title in 44 years in 2012.

After that famous victory, he never looked back and went on to win 6 Premier League titles, 6 League Cups, and one FA Cup. He also holds the most Premier League hat-tricks (12 times).

Breakdown of Aguero's goals:

Read Also: Football facts: Players with the most Champions League finals without winning it ever.

9. Neymar Jr. (442 goals) | Brazil

• Goals: 442
• Matches: 731
• Position: Forward

Neymar is the only Brazilian footballer to make it to the top 10 of this list, with 442 goals in 731 matches. After his international debut in 2010, he quickly became the face of the national team.

He is now Brazil's all-time leading scorer, surpassing legendary Pele's long-standing record.

Neymar led Brazil to win an Olympic gold medal in 2016 and won the Confederations Cup in 2013. He also did brilliantly at club level, playing for Barcelona and PSG, and later moving to Al-Hilal and Santos.

Neymar is hands down the most exciting and effective attacker of his generation, who is equally fun to watch!

Read Also | Football facts: Brazil fails without Neymar! These stats prove that.

Breakdown of Neymar's goals:

8. Edinson Cavani (456 goals) | Uruguay

• Goals: 456
• Matches: 865
• Position: Forward

The Uruguayan striker Edinson Cavani, who debuted internationally in 2008, scored 456 goals in 865 matches, which earned him the deserved spot here. He played a key role in Uruguay's 2011 Copa America win.

His scoring rate and passion made him the leading goal-scorer for Paris Saint-Germain (a record later surpassed by Kylian Mbappe). During his time at PSG, he won a collection of trophies, including six Ligue 1 titles, four French Cups, and five French League Cups.

Cavani also had successful spells at Napoli, Manchester United, and Valencia.

Breakdown of Cavani's goals:

7. Harry Kane (461) | England

• Goals: 461
• Matches: 714
• Position: Forward

Breaking into the top goalscorers and finally breaking his much-discussed trophy drought is England's captain, Harry Kane, with an impressive 461 goals in 714 appearances.

After his debut in 2015, he quickly established himself due to his all-around striking ability, pinpoint passing, and other skills.

For years, Kane's individual excellence, including winning multiple Premier League Golden Boots, was paired with an absence of team silverware. This narrative finally changed in 2025, after his transfer to Bayern Munich, where he played a pivotal role in their dominant 2024-25 Bundesliga title win.

Breakdown of Kane's goals:

Read Also: Is 2025 the miraculous year in sports history?

6. Karim Benzema (495 goals) | France

• Goals: 495
• Matches: 955
• Position: Forward

France and Real Madrid legend Karim Benzema is currently the sixth in the list of highest scoring footballers in the 21st century. One part of the famous B-B-C trio of Real Madrid, Benzema, is the second-highest goal scorer in Real Madrid's history. 

Till now, in his club career, the 2022 Ballon d'Or winner and five-time UEFA Champions League winner has scored 458 goals in 858 matches. 

For France, before hanging up his international boots, he had scored 37 times in 97 appearances for Les Bleus. 

Read Also | 11 players who have won the most trophies in football history

5. Zlatan Ibrahimovic (558 goals) | Sweden

• Goals: 558
• Matches: 949
• Position: Forward

Entering the Top 5 of highest scoring footballers in the 21st century is the Swedish maestro Zlatan Ibrahimovic with 558 goals in 949 matches. He was widely recognised for his boldness, acrobatic finishes and lively personality.

In his 10 years for Sweden (2006-2016), he became the top scorer with 62 goals, most likely to remain unmatched for a long time. He represented his nation in multiple World Cups and European Cups.

Zlatan won league titles with Ajax, Inter Milan, Barcelona, AC Milan, and PSG. He also had a notable spell at Manchester United, winning the Europa League.

Moving on to his legendary individual records, he won the FIFA Puskas Award in 2013 for his phenomenal overhead kick against England. He is also the only player to score 50 Serie A goals for both Inter Milan and AC Milan.

Breakdown of Zlatan's goals:

4. Luis Suarez (574 goals) | Uruguay

• Goals: 574
• Matches: 972
• Position: Forward

Uruguay's all-time leading goalscorer, Luis Suarez, makes his way to fourth rank with 574 goals in 972 matches. Known for his incredible skills and finishing, he was always a central figure in his nation's success since his debut in 2007.

Suarez won the 2011 Copa America and helped them reach the WTC semi-final in 2010. His club career is equally impressive. After winning the Dutch Cup with Ajax, he moved to Liverpool, becoming a Premier League top-scorer and earning a European Golden Shoe.

His prime time arrived at Barcelona, where he formed a fearsome attacking trio with Messi and Neymar. With Barcelona, he won La Liga titles, the Copa del Rey trophy, as well as the Champions League in 2015.

Read Also | MSN vs BBC: Rivalry of football's greatest trio in stats

Breakdown of Suarez's goals:

3. Robert Lewandowski (695 goals) | Poland

• Goals: 695 goals
• Matches: 981
• Position: Forward

Coming in at no. 3 is the Polish goal-machine, Robert Lewandowski, with 695 goals in 981 matches. He swiftly became his nation's all-time top scorer with the kind of positioning skills and consistency he has.

He made his international debut in 2008 and became one of the most celebrated Polish footballers of this century. He won two Bundesliga titles at Borussia Dortmund and later moved to Bayern Munich, where he cemented his status as one of the greatest strikers.

Lewandowski holds astonishing goal-scoring records, such as surpassing Gerd Muller's record for most goals in a single Bundesliga season (41 goals in 2020-21) and became the tournament's leading foreign scorer.

He also won two consecutive European Golden Shoes and 2 FIFA Best Men's Player awards.

Breakdown of Lewandowski's goals:

Read Also: Football teams with the most international trophies.s

2. Lionel Messi (866 goals) | Argentina

• Goals: 886
• Matches: 1108
• Position: Forward 

Probably the most anticipated name on the list, Argentina's golden boy, Lionel Messi, holds the 2nd position with a staggering 866 goals in 1108 matches. Having made his international debut in 2005, he had a career full of greatness, which shaped the modern era of football.

From Copa America glory to the 2022 World Cup triumph, which made the dreams of millions come true, there is not a single title left for him to fill his cabinet. He spent the majority of his career at the club level at Barcelona, becoming their all-time leading scorer.

Messi's unimaginable dribbling and scoring prowess earned him eight Ballon d'Or awards (which is the most by any player) and six European Golden Shoes. He also holds the record for most goals in a calendar year (91 in 2012).

It is really difficult to put the legacy of the greatest of all time into words and summarise in a couple of paragraphs!

Read Also | 10 legendary Barcelona players to wear jersey no. 10

Breakdown of Messi's goals:

Read Also: Top 10: Most Free-kick Goals In Football History (Updated)

1. Cristiano Ronaldo (938 goals) | Portugal

• Goals: 938
• Matches: 1281
• Position: Forward

Crowning the list as the highest scoring footballer in the 21st century is Portugal's indomitable Cristiano Ronaldo with 938 goals in 1281 matches. Following his debut in 2003, he was unstoppable and reached heights with his scoring talent.

He led Portugal to their first major international title (UEFA European Championship) in 2016 and followed it with the Nations League in 2019 and 2025. At club level, he won multiple titles with Manchester United, and later moved to Real Madrid, where he became the leading scorer.

Read Also | Every single trophy Cristiano Ronaldo has won in his career

Ronaldo's hunger for goals saw him achieve five Ballon d'Or awards and four European Golden Shoes.

His fitness and dedication to this game help him maintain an elite level of goal scoring in his late 30s, making him one of the greatest in the history of this sport.

Breakdown of Ronaldo's goals:

In football, a team wins a treble when they win three major trophies in a single season. Winning the continental treble means winning the premier national league competition, the main national cup competition, and the main continental trophy, for UEFA, which is the UEFA Champions League or UEFA Europa League.

Though winning the Europa League is also considered a treble, it is not accepted wholeheartedly by the pundits and fans as winning the UEFA Champions League. 

Till now, 9 European clubs have been able to win the continental treble. Before we discuss all the European treble winners in men's football history, we must know about the types of Trebles we have in football. 

Barcelona is the only club to win multiple trebles with both their men's and women's team, completing the feat in 2024.

Continental treble

This is considered the actual treble in football where a team go on to win the national league, national cup competition and the main continental trophy. Celtic Football Club in 1966-67 became the first team in football history to win a Continental treble. Till now, 22 men's teams have won the Continental Treble, with 30 being the total number of times. In Europe, only 8 football teams have been able to accomplish the feat.

Domestic treble

Generally, for most of the footballing nations, winning a domestic treble is not possible since they do not allow first-division teams to win any secondary cup or league. A domestic treble includes winning three national competitions, including the national league title, the national cup competition, and one secondary competition. Countries which were under British or French possessions once allowed domestic trebles to happen. Celtic with 8 domestic trebles, and Rangers, with 7, are the most successful teams when it comes to winning domestic trebles.

European treble winners in men's football history

1. Celtic | 1966-67

In the 1966-67 season, Celtic became the first team ever to win the continental treble when they won the Scottish Football League, Scottish Cup and European Cup (UEFA Champions League now).

Celtic with 58 points in the Scottish Football League went past Rangers to clinch the national league. In the Scottish Cup, they defeated Aberdeen Football Club by 2-0 in the final to win the trophy. William Wallace was the goalscorer for them in the final. 

In the European Cup, Celtic defeated Inter Milan by 2-1 in Lisbon to become the first-ever Treble winner in football history. Thomas Gemmell and Thomas Chalmers were the scorers for Cletic that day.

2. 1971-72 | Ajax

Ajax, the football club from the Netherlands became the second European team to win the treble in the 1971-72 season. They won the Eredivisie, their national league and then won the KNVB Cup and later on won the European Cup to complete their treble. That season, Ajax were nearly the invincible team losing just one game in the whole season. 

Here are all the teams which went unbeaten in a whole football season. 

In the Eredivisie, Johan Cruyff became their top goal scorer with 25 goals. Ajax with 63 points, 8 points cleared Feijenoord in the second position. In the KNVB Cup, they defeated FC Den Haag in the final by 3-2 to win the cup. Cruyff had scored the opener in that game also and scored three goals in the tournament. 

In the European Cup, they defeated Inter Milan by 2-0 with Johan Cruyff scoring a brace for them. In all together Cruyff had scored 33 goals for them that season in the three tournaments.

3. 1987-1988 | PSV

In the 1987-88 season, PSV became the second team from the Netherlands to win the historical treble. That season they won the Eredivisie, the KNVB Cup and the European Cup. They won their 10th Eredivisie title with 59 points, 9 points clear of Ajax in the league table. Wim Kieft scored 29 goals in that season for PSV in the league. 

In the KNVB Cup final they defeated Roda JC by 3-2 in the extra time. Then, they went on to win the European Cup by defeating Benfica in the final by a 6-5 penalty shootout. Ronald Koeman came out as one of the standout performers for PSV that season. 

Know about defenders with most UEFA Champions League goals.

4. 1998-99 | Manchester United

It took 11 more years for any team to win the European Treble and Manchester United became the first team from England to achieve that feat. United, under  Sir Alex Ferguson won the Premier League, FA Cup and the UEFA Champions League after not winning any trophies in the previous season. The treble is regarded as the achievement in his career, and he was awarded the knighthood in November 1999 after that success. 

They won the Premier League with 79 points, 1 point more than Arsenal. Dwight Yorke with 18 goals was their and League's joint-highest goal scorer in that season. In the FA Cup, despite facing difficult opponents throughout the tournament, Ferguson's men kept on fighting back, and after two semi-final replays against Arsenal and a final against Newcastle United, they won the FA Cup. Paul Scholes and Teddy Sheringham scored for them in a 2-0 win in the final.

Read about teams with the most Premier League titles. 

In the Champions League, they were drawn into the group of death alongside FC Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Brondby. They qualified for the knockouts as the runner-up from the group and defeated Inter Milan and Juventus in the quarter and semi-finals, respectively, before beating FC Bayern Munich in a historic comeback in the final. In front of 91000 people in Barcelona, Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer scored in the added minutes to hand Manchester United a terrific 2-1 win over Bayern.

Do you know which team won the FA Cup most number of times?

5. 2008-2009 | Barcelona

FC Barcelona in the 2008-09 season became the first Spanish team to win the European Treble. Under their former captain, and Barcelona B coach Pep Guardiola, the Spanish giants reached their peak in that season winning the La Liga, Copa del Rey and UEFA Champions League. They are still the only Spanish team to win the European Treble. 

After selling players like Deco and Ronaldinho, Barcelona started to reorganise their shape as a club and Lionel Messi alongside Samuel Eto'o became their hero at the front. They won La Liga with 87 points, 9 points clear of Real Madrid. Samuel Eto'o with 30 goals in the league was their top scorer. 

In the Copa del Rey final, they defeated Athletic Bilbao by 4-1 as Yaya Toure, Lionel Messi, Xavi Hernandez and Bojan scored for them after conceding an early goal. 

In the 2008-09 Champions League, Barcelona had to clear the qualifying round first to enter the group stage. They defeated Wisła Kraków in a two-legged qualifying round before entering the group stage alongside Shakhtar Donetsk, Sporting CP and Basel. 

They topped the group stage and then went on to beat Lyon, Bayern Munich, and Chelsea in the knockouts before beating Sir Alex Ferguson's Manchester United in the final in Rome. Samuel Eto'o and Lionel Messi scored one goal each as Barcelona scripted history. Messi finished with 38 goals in all competitions that season. That season saw Lionel Messi win his first Ballon d'Or award with a record margin of 240 points than second-position Cristiano Ronaldo.

Barcelona in 2009 became the first team to win a "sextuple" in European football history.

6. 2009-10 | Inter Milan

Right after Barcelona's historical 2008-09 season, Inter Milan created their history as they became the first and still the only Italian team to win the European treble. They were the sixth European Treble winners in the men's football history. It was the "special one", Jose Mourinho's second and last season with the club that helped the Italian giants create history. 

After a historical season with FC Barcelona, Samuel Eto'o was swapped with Zlatan Ibrahimovic and was sold to Inter Milan. Eto'o that season went on to become the only player to win back-to-back European Treble. That season Inter Milan won their fifth consecutive Serie A title, Coppa Italia, and the UEFA Champions League. 

They first won the Coppa Italia by beating Roma in the final. Diego Militao scored the lone goal for them in the final. Then, they won the Serie A on the final match day with 82 points, 2 points more than Roma. Diego Militao scored 22 goals in the league season for them.  

In the UEFA Champions League, they were clubbed with Barcelona, Dynamo Kyiv and Rubin Kazan and progressed to the knockout stage as the runner-up of the group. In the knockouts, they defeated Chelsea, CSKA Moscow and Barcelona before winning 2-0 against Bayern Munich in the final. Militao scored a brace for them and won the player of the match award as well. 

Read about managers with the most wins in UEFA Champions League history.

7. 2012-13 | FC Bayern Munich

In the 2012-13 season, FC Bayern Munich became the first and only German team to win the European Treble. Under head coach Jupp Heynckes, they won their 22nd Bundesliga title, and 5th UEFA Champions League title alongside the DFB-Pokal title. 

Before the season they brought in players like Xherdan Shaqiri, Dante, Claudio Pizarro, Mitchell Weiser, Tom Starke and Mario Mandzukic alongside Javi Martinez for a then-record signing fee. 

In the league, they acquired a record-breaking 91 points as Mario Mandzukic finished with 15 goals against his name. In the DFB-Pokal, they defeated VfB Stuttgart in the final by 3-2 as Mario Gomez scored a brace for them.

In the Champions League, they were grouped with Valencia, BATE Borisov and Lille. They moved to the next stage as the group champions and then faced Arsenal, Juventus and Barcelona in the knockouts. In an all-German final, they defeated Borrusia Dortmund by 2-1 to complete their treble. Mario Mandzukic and Arjen Robben scored for them in the final.

8. 2014-15 | FC Barcelona

Under head coach Luis Enrique, FC Barcelona in the 2014-15 season became the first team in European football history to win the treble more than once. In the summer, Barcelona signed Uruguayan striker  Luis Suarez which helped them create one of the most successful trios in football history in M-S-N with Messi, Suarez and Neymar. They had also signed Marc-André ter Stegen and Ivan Rakitic same season.

They won the La Liga narrowly with 94 points, 2 points clear of Real Madrid. Lionel Messi (43) was outscored by Cristiano Ronaldo (48) in the league that season. Neymar also scored 22 goals for Barcelona in the league that season.

In the Copa del Rey final, they defeated Athletic by 3-1 as Messi scored a brace and Neymar netted once. 

In the Champions League, they faced PSG, Ajax and APOEL in the group stage and advanced to the knockout stage as the champions of the group. They then went on to beat Manchester City, PSG and Bayern Munich before beating Juventus by 3-1 in the final. Neymar, Rakitic and Suarez scored in that final. Messi with 58 goals in all competitions was their top scorer. After that performance, Messi went on to beat Ronaldo and Neymar to win his 5th Ballon d'Or.

9. 2019-20 | FC Bayern Munich

Post Barca's remarkable success in the 2014-15 season, German club FC Bayern Munich went on to equal their records as the second team in European Football history to win the treble more than once. Under coach Hansi Flick they went on to become the second team in European football to win the "sextuple". 

Niko Kovac was the manager for FC Bayern Munich when they started the season, and then Hansi Flick was named as the interim manager. In a season hit by Covid-19, Bayern were forced to play behind closed doors. 

However, that did not restrict them from being their brutal best. Robert Lewandowski broke the record for the most goals scored in a single Bundesliga season (34) as Bayern lifted the league for the 29th time. 

In the DFB-Pokal final, they defeated Bayer Leverkusen by 4-2 as Robert Lewandowski scored a brace for them.

In the UEFA Champions League round of 16, they defeated Chelsea. Then, they humiliated Barcelona by an 8-2 win (the biggest margin in a UEFA Champions League knockout game) and thrashed Lyon by 3-0 before beating PSG by 1-0 in the final. Kingsley Coman scored the all-important goal for them in the final.

10. 2022-23 | Manchester City

In the 2022-23 season, Manchester City became the second English team and 8th overall team to win a European Treble. Pep Guardiola created one of his records as he became the first coach in European history to win the treble more than once.

Manchester City were coming into the season as the Premier League defending champions and signed players like Erling Haaland, Kalvin Phillips and Julian Alvarez to strengthen their squad. Erling Haaland went on to break the record for the most Premier League goals scored in a single season as he scored 35 goals in the whole season. City went on to win their 7th Premier League title with 89 points.

In the FA Cup final, City's captain Iikay Gundogan scored the fastest goal in the FA Cup final's history as they defeated Manchester United by 2-0 in the final. 

The Haaland riot continued in the UEFA Champions League as well as he scored four goals against RB Leipzig in the round of 16. They then went on to beat Bayern in the quarters and Real Madrid in the semis before beating Inter Milan in the final by 1-0. Rodri scored the lone goal for them in the final and was named player of the final as well. 

Erling Haaland scored 52 goals in his 53 games for Manchester City that season. However, despite that performance, he could not beat Lionel Messi to win the Ballon d'Or trophy. 

11. 2024-25 | PSG

PSG became the latest team to win the European treble under Luis Enrique as they clinched their first-ever Champions League trophy, and also lifted the Ligue 1 and Coupe de France trophies.

In Ligue 1, they clinched the French Championship with 84 points, as Ousmane Dembele, with 21 goals, won the Ligue 1 Golden Boot. 

In the Coupe de France final, they defeated Reims by 3-0 as Bradley Barcola scored a brace and Achraf Hakimi scored another goal to seal the win.

In their historic Champions League season, Dembele finished as their top scorer of the season while Desire Doue scored a stunning brace to help them lift the title. Achraf Hakimi scored in all quarters, the semis and the final to become one of the heroes for them.

With this win, Luis Enrique became the second manager to win two European trebles with two different teams. 

In Europe, the Champions League is seen as the most demanding title among players, managers, and clubs from all over Europe. The Giant clubs compete for this specific trophy every year, with the prestige and financial rewards received from the tournament being among the biggest in club football.

Achieving success in this competition is usually seen by most players and managers as the benchmark of club-level achievement in Europe. For many managers, winning the Champions League is the ultimate goal.

Some managers, however, have managed to win the competition multiple times, some with multiple teams as well. Without further due, here are the interesting football facts of the five managers with the most Champions League titles.

Read Also: Barcelona 2008/09 vs Man City 2022/23 - which Pep Guardiola treble team is better?

Football Facts: Managers with the most UCL titles 

Pep Guardiola | 3 Champions League titles

Many regard Pep Guardiola as the greatest manager of his generation due to his success with all the clubs he has managed. The Spanish manager has won the competition thrice in his managerial career, two times with FC Barcelona and once with Manchester City.

Guardiola won his first Champions League title in his first season in charge of Barcelona, with his side defeating Manchester United 2-0 in 2008-09 as part of their first-ever treble. The former Barcelona midfielder was 38 years old at the time, making him the youngest manager to win the competition to date.

He won his second title two years later in the 2010-11 season, defeating the same opponent 3-1 in the final. Lionel Messi was the star of both triumphs, scoring both times.

Then he managed Bayern but wasn't able to bring any Champions League titles to the German Club. Finally, his 12-year wait came to an end when Manchester City defeated Inter Milan 1-0 in the Final of the UCL 2022-23 season.

Read Also | European treble winners in men's football history

Zinedine Zidane | 3 Champions League titles

Zinedine Zidane led Real Madrid in its most dominant period of the 21st century. The Frenchman won three titles with Los Blancos in three years in charge of the club.

Zidane won his first title just four months after he replaced Rafael Benitez as manager of Real Madrid. He led the side to defeat Atletico Madrid on penalties in the 2015-16 final.

The next season, Real Madrid defeated Juventus 4-1 in the final for their 12th crown.

Zidane led Real Madrid to a 3-1 win over Liverpool in the 2017-18 final. The Frenchman is the only manager in history to win the competition three consecutive times. He is also the first and only French manager to win the competition to date.

Bob Paisley | 3 European Cups

Bob Paisley was a Liverpool soccer player, manager, and administrator for almost 50 years. 

No football manager demonstrated the art of leading quietly and without ego more than Bob Paisley. He won twenty trophies in nine years for Liverpool Football Club between 1974 and 1983.

He brought 3 European Cups, six League Championships (including three in a row in 1981, 1982, and 1983), three League Cups, 6 Charity Shields, one UEFA Cup, and the UEFA Super Cup.

Paisley is the only British manager to win the European Cup three times. Bob is now regarded as one of the best soccer managers of all time.

Carlo Ancelotti | 5 Champions League titles

Carlo Ancelotti is one of football's managerial greats of the 21st century. The Italian manager has won five Champions League titles in his time as a manager, having also won the competition twice as a player.

Ancelotti won his first Champions League title in the 2002-03 season with AC Milan as his side defeated Juventus on penalties in the final. He won his second title in the 2006-07 season as AC Milan defeated Liverpool 2-1.

Ancelotti won his third title with Real Madrid in the 2013-14 season after his side defeated Atlético Madrid 4-1. His fourth title came in the 2021-22 season with Real Madrid once again after a 1-0 victory over Liverpool.

He completed his fifth win in the Champions League as a manager in the 2023-24 season when Real Madrid defeated Borussia Dortmund by 2-0 in the final.

The Italian manager is also the only manager to win all of Europe's top five leagues.

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Football Facts: Managers with the most UCL titles (Top Ten)