When did Man Utd last win the Premier League?

Cameron Smith
Cameron Smith
  • Updated: 23 May 2023 09:01 CDT
  • 8 min read
Robin van Persie, Man Utd, 2012-13
© ProShots

Manchester United are one of the biggest clubs in world football, in terms of both fanbase and trophies won - but it’s been quite a while now since they last won the Premier League title.

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The Red Devils have the third highest numbers of followers across all social media channels of any football club in the world, behind only Real Madrid and Barcelona, and they currently boast the most English top-flight titles of any team in history with 20.

The Old Trafford club have also been the dominant side in England since the introduction of the Premier League in 1992, or at least they were for the first two decades of the competition.

However, after so many years at the top of English football with unprecedented success, the departure of Sir Alex Ferguson in 2013 led to a remarkable drop-off in performance, with Man Utd failing to win the English top flight since the Scotsman left his role at the helm, while they are without a trophy of any kind since 2017.

Man Utd's last Premier League title - when was it?

The last time Man Utd won the Premier League title was in the 2012/13 season. The Premier League trophy was clinched on Monday April 22, 2013 thanks to a 3-0 win over Aston Villa in which Robin van Persie netted a hat-trick. Van Persie had joined the Red Devils in 2012 from rivals Arsenal and helped fire Man Utd to their most recent Premier League triumph with 26 goals in the league.

So the wait for United fans is getting longer by the minute, with the clock ticking down towards TEN YEARS since their team last ruled English football.

It was Sir Alex Ferguson’s last season in charge and he bowed out of management with his 13th Premier League trophy. His first triumph in the division had come in its first season in 1992/93, which ended a 26-year wait for an English top-flight title.

The most recent title for the Red Devils before 1993 was in the 1966/67 campaign, clinching top spot by four points from Nottingham Forest. That was Sir Matt Busby’s last league title with Man Utd.

In total, Man Utd have won 68 trophies in their history, across domestic, European and international competitions.

Ferguson was in charge for all 13 of Man Utd’s Premier League trophies and his last game in charge of the club was a 5-5 draw against West Bromwich Albion at The Hawthorns in May 2013.

Man Utd after Sir Alex Ferguson - a title-free zone

Man Utd have failed to win the Premier League since Ferguson left his role in charge in 2013. Their best finish since he departed is second under Jose Mourinho in the 2017/18 season and then under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in the 2020/21 season.

In the first season after Ferguson left, David Moyes was in charge for the majority of the season before being sacked before the end of the campaign. Ryan Giggs took charge for the final few games and the Red Devils finished down in seventh place. They accumulated 25 less points than in the season prior.

Louis van Gaal was then appointed ahead of the 2014/15 campaign and guided Man Utd to fourth place and a return to Champions League football. Van Gaal was unable to repeat the trick in the Premier League in 2015/16, with Man Utd finishing in fifth place. The FA Cup he won was merely a consolation prize for losing his job at the end of the season.

The Dutchman was replaced by Mourinho in the summer of 2016 and finished sixth in his first season in charge at Old Trafford. He did however win the Europa League, the League Cup and the Community Shield.

The following year, Mourinho achieved more success in the league, guiding the Red Devils to second place, behind only Manchester City. They were 19 points behind their city rivals, but held off the likes of Tottenham Hotspur, Liverpool and Chelsea to finish second.

Mourinho began the 2018/19 season in charge but was sacked in December after a poor run of form. Solskjaer took over on an interim basis and was handed the role on a full-time basis after a famous Champions League win over Paris Saint-Germain in March 2019. His team finished only sixth in the Premier League though.

Solskjaer and Rangnick boths struggled
© ProShots - Solskjaer and Rangnick boths struggled

Solskjaer then guided them to third place the following year before backing that up with a second-place finish in the 2020/21 campaign, their joint-best ever since Ferguson left the club.

The Norwegian was sacked though in November 2021 and was replaced by Ralf Rangnick on a deal until the end of the 2021-22 season. The former RB Leipzig head coach finished sixth in the top flight before leaving to take up a role as the Austria national team head coach.

Dutchman Erik ten Hag is now in charge and Man Utd are currently in third place in the table in 2022-23. They are five points behind league leaders Arsenal after a 3-0 win over Leicester City on February 19.

€1.6billion transfer flops - the price of Man Utd failure

Manchester United have spent around €1.6 billion (£1.4billion) on buying new players since Ferguson’s retirement - and right now it does not look like value for money.

Here is the full list of players they have signed, and the transfer fees they have paid:

Man Utd's transfer signings since Sir Alex Ferguson left

PlayerFromFeeYear
Marouane FellainiEverton€32.4m2013
Juan MataChelsea€44.7m2014
Angel Di MariaReal Madrid€75m2014
Luke ShawSouthampton€37.5m2014
Ander HerreraAthletic Club€36m2014
Marcos RojoSporting CP€20m2014
Daley BlindAjax€17.5m2014
Radamel FalcaoAS Monaco€7.6m Loan2014
Vanja Milinkovic-SavicVojvodina€1.8m2014
Anthony MartialAS Monaco€60m2015
Morgan SchneiderlinSouthampton€35m2015
Memphis DepayPSV Eindhoven€34m2015
Matteo DarmianTorino€18m2015
Bastian SchweinsteigerBayern Munich€9m2015
Sergio RomeroSampdoriaFree2015
Andy KellettBoltonLoan2015
Paul PogbaJuventus€105m2016
Henrikh MkhitaryanBorussia Dortmund€42m2016
Eric BaillyVillarreal€38m2016
Zlatan IbrahimovicParis Saint-GermainFree2016
Romelu LukakuEverton€84.7m2017
Nemanja MaticChelsea€44.7m2017
Victor LindelofSL Benfica€35m2017
Alexis SanchezArsenal€34m2018
FredShakhtar Donetsk€59m2018
Diogo DalotFC Porto€22m2018
Lee GrantStoke City€1.7m2018
Harry MaguireLeicester City€87m2019
Aaron Wan-BissakaCrystal Palace€55m2019
Daniel JamesSwansea€17.8m2019
Bruno FernandesSporting CP€63m2020
Odion IghaloSH Shenhua€12m Loan2020
Donny van de BeekAjax€39m2020
Alex TellesFC Porto€15m2020
Facundo PellistriPenarol€8.5m2020
Edinson CavaniParis Saint-GermainFree2020
Amad DialloAtalanta€21.3m2021
Jadon SanchoBorussia Dortmund€85m2021
Raphael VaraneReal Madrid€40m2021
Cristiano RonaldoJuventus€17m2021
Tom HeatonAston VillaFree2021
AntonyAjax€95m2022
CasemiroReal Madrid€70.7m2022
Lisandro MartinezAjax€57.4m2022
Tyrell MalaciaFeyenoord€15m2022
Martin DubravkaNewcastle€2.3m Loan2022
Christian EriksenBrentfordFree2022
Jack ButlandCrystal PalaceLoan2023

Season after season, the Red Devils have looked to rectify past transfer flops with even more expensive arrivals, and that strategy hasn’t helped their bid to reclaim the Premier League title.

They have spent over €50m on 12 different players since 2013, with most of these arguably going down as failures rather than success stories.

Their top 10 most expensive purchases since 2013 are: Paul Pogba, Antony, Harry Maguire, Jadon Sancho, Romelu Lukaku, Angel Di Maria, Casemiro, Bruno Fernandes, Anthony Martial, and Fred.

Pogba was an expensive failure
© ProShots - Pogba was an expensive failure

Pogba originally left the club on a free transfer in 2012 to join Juventus, and after four years in Turin, he was re-signed by the Red Devils for €105m in 2016. After six years of inconsistent form, Pogba left the club - yet again on a free transfer to Juventus.

The Frenchman was scapegoated during his time at Old Trafford and blamed for their poor form multiple times. The same fate has occurred to Maguire, who was made club captain after just a few months at the club, but has received much criticism for his performances in recent years.

Lukaku and Di Maria both left without leaving too much of an impression, while Sancho has been a major disappointment since arriving from Borussia Dortmund in 2021.

What was the last trophy Man Utd won?

The last trophy Man Utd won was the 2017 Europa League under Jose Mourinho. The former Chelsea and Real Madrid head coach won three trophies in the 2016/17 season - the Europa League, the League Cup and the Community Shield.

The last of those came on 24 May, 2017 with a 2-0 victory over Ajax in the Europa League final in Stockholm. Goals from Paul Pogba and Henrikh Mkhitaryan sealed the win and ensured Man Utd won a treble in the campaign. That was the last trophy the club won.

Since Ferguson’s retirement in 2013, Man Utd have won five trophies - the Community Shield (2013 and 2016), the FA Cup (2016), the League Cup (2017), and the Europa League (2017).

Read more about: Premier League, Man Utd

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