Avoiding defeat in football is one of the many fundamentals of the game, but doing it over a long period of time requires a large amount of luck, consistency, grit and determination. Five of the longest unbeaten runs in English top-flight football have come in the Premier League era, but what teams feature on the all-time list?
There have been ten occasions where teams have hit the 30-game milestone for matches unbeaten, which has been something of a stumbling block over the years. For this list, we've ranked the longest unbeaten runs since records began. Only league games count, and given there has only ever been one modern-day unbeaten season, it is perhaps no surprise that few have managed to even come close.
Rank
Team
Matches unbeaten
Years
Arsenal
49
2003-2004
Liverpool
44
2019-2020
Nottingham Forest
42
1977-1978
Chelsea
40
2004-2005
Leeds
34
1968-1969
Liverpool
31
1987-1988
Manchester City
30
2017-2018
Arsenal
30
2001-2002
Leeds
30
1973-1974
Burnley
30
1920-1921
10 Burnley 1920-1921 30 games
The Clarets cemented themselves in the history books of English football when they were crowned champions of England for the first time in March 1921, following a 30-game unbeaten run.
Under boss John Haworth, who spent 14 years in charge of the club, Burnley lost their first three games of the 1920/21 season, before going 30 games without losing and establishing a record that lasted 83 years – it was the first time a top-flight English football club had gone that many games unbeaten.
A special plaque commemorating the iconic Clarets record was restored in 2021 and displayed in a new lounge at Turf Moor, Burnley’s stadium.
30
3-0 v Huddersfield (6th September 1920)
1-0 v Man Utd (25th March 1921)
Manchester City (L 0-1, 26th March 1921)
9 Leeds 1973-1974 30 games
Following a third-place finish the previous season – which culminated with a 6-1 win over Arsenal at Elland Road – Leeds United stormed into the 1973/74 campaign thirsty for success.
Don Revie’s side were reeling from bitter cup final defeats. The first: a shocking FA Cup final defeat to Second Division Sunderland. The second: another 1-0 defeat to Milan in the European Cup Winners’ Cup, refereed by Christos Michas, who was later banned for match-fixing.
However, both defeats failed to rattle Revie’s men, as they started the next campaign by going 29 games unbeaten, winning 19 and drawing 10, in addition to their late-season win over Arsenal the previous term.
Their 30-game unbeaten run came to an end after a 3-2 defeat to Stoke City, but Leeds would go on to lift their second English League title finishing on 62 points.
It was Revie’s last season in charge of Leeds, as he accepted the England job where he remained largely unsuccessful for three years, before managing the United Arab Emirates.
30
6-1 v Arsenal (9th May 1973)
2-0 v Man Utd (9th February 1974)
Stoke City (L 2-3, 23rd February 1974)
8 Arsenal 2001-2002 30 games
Arsenal were a force to be reckoned with in the early 2000s, with star names like Thierry Henry, Sol Campbell, Patrick Vieira and Dennis Bergkamp all at the top of their game.
Ending as runners-up to Manchester United the previous season and losing out to Liverpool in the 2001 FA Cup final spurred Arsene Wenger’s men on to have a glorious next few years. This period began with their 30-game unbeaten streak during the 2001 and 2002 seasons.
It was a hugely competitive league at the time, with Leeds, Liverpool and Manchester United all on the hunt for Premier League success, but Arsenal experienced just three defeats during the campaign.
In their last 21 fixtures, the Gunners went unbeaten – winning each of their last 13 – and Sylvain Wiltord’s goal at Old Trafford added the League title to their trophy cabinet, following their FA Cup success at Wembley over Chelsea four days prior.
30
2-1 v Liverpool (23rd December 2001)
3-1 v Sunderland (6th October 2002)
Everton (L 1-2, 19th October 2002)
7 Man City 2017-2018 30 games
Surprisingly, Pep Guardiola’s side feature just once on the list of the longest unbeaten runs in top-flight English football, but Manchester City fans will remember the 2017/18 season for entirely different reasons.
Gabriel Jesus’ 94th-minute winner at Southampton in May 2018 secured the Premier League champions 100 points, a feat no team had ever achieved before.
The centurions were formidable during the entire campaign, winning 32 games and losing just two – they clocked exactly 50 points at home and 50 points away, scoring 106 goals, which averages out at 2.79 per game.
Heavy investment in the summer with the additions of Bernardo Silva, Ederson and Kyle Walker, and a club record £57m on Aymeric Laporte in January, meant Pep Guardiola had a plethora of talent at his disposal.
Their 30-game unbeaten run started with a 3-1 win at home to Hull City in April 2017 and ended in a Premier League classic: a 4-3 defeat to Liverpool at Anfield in January 2018.
City then went on to lift their third Premier League title at the end of the season.
30
3-1 v Hull (8th April 2017)
3-1 v Watford (2nd January 2018)
Liverpool (L 3-4, 14th January 2018)
6 Liverpool 1987-1988 31 games
Liverpool achieved unprecedented success throughout the 1970s and 80s. They were dominant in all areas of the pitch, developing football icons such as Kenny Dalglish, Ian Rush and John Barnes along the way.
With Dalglish at the helm, the Reds needed to refocus ahead of the 1987/88 season after winning the club’s first-ever league and FA Cup double.
Top goalscorer Ian Rush had also been sold to Juventus for a then-British-record fee of £3.2m, which subsequently led to a rebuild, with Barnes, Peter Beardsley, Nigel Spackman and John Aldridge all signed.
Liverpool got the season off to a flying start, winning nine of their first 10 games and remained unbeaten in the league until March 1988.
It was Everton who handed Liverpool their first defeat, but the Reds ultimately had the last laugh, as they proceeded to lift their 17th English title in a season when they scored 87 goals.
Liverpool had also equalled Leeds United’s record of 29 games unbeaten in a single league campaign.
31
1-0 v Watford (4th May 1987)
1-1 v Derby (16th March 1988)
Everton (L 0-1, 20th March 1988)
5 Leeds 1968-1969 34 games
Don Revie spearheaded the beginning of an English record during the 1968/69 season, as Leeds would go on to lift the First Division trophy.
His side got off to a great start, winning seven of their opening nine games, before losing to Manchester City 3-1 away from home.
After experiencing a humiliating 5-1 defeat at Burnley – which would turn out to be their last of the season – Leeds then went 28 games unbeaten in the top flight of English football.
In the penultimate game of the season, Leeds secured the title in a 0-0 draw at Anfield against Liverpool. Revie’s men smashed numerous English records along the way, including the most points (67), most wins (27) and fewest defeats (2) in a single campaign.
Their unbeaten run would come to an end at the hands of a familiar team on this list, as they lost 3-2 to Everton the following season in August 1969.
34
0-0 v West Brom (26th October 1968)
1-1 v Burnley (26th August 1969)
Everton (L 2-3, 30th August 1969)
4 Chelsea 2004-2005 40 games
The 2004-05 season was a major turning point in the Roman Abramovich era, as Chelsea welcomed Jose Mourinho to Stamford Bridge.
That same summer, Abramovich signed Didier Drogba, Ricardo Carvalho, Paulo Ferreira, Petr Cech and Arjen Robben – so massive change was underway.
Only 41 at the time, Mourinho was brought into Chelsea to win trophies, and that’s exactly what he did in his first season.
Not only did Mourinho win the Premier League – a feat that hadn’t been achieved in 50 years at the club – in his first season, but he also smashed numerous records along the way, especially in the defensive department.
The Blues’ first defeat of the season came away at Manchester City in October 2004, and that would be the final time they would drop three points in a game for the rest of the campaign.
Mourinho’s defensive stability was key to the 29-game unbeaten run that Chelsea embarked on for the rest of the season, breaking the record for the most points in a Premier League season with 95.
Chelsea also broke the record for the fewest goals conceded in a season (15), while goalkeeper Cech clocked the most clean sheets the Premier League had ever seen in a season (24).
Mourinho’s side would carry their unbeaten run into the following season, right up until November 2005 when they lost to Manchester United, ending on an admirable 40 without defeat.
40
4-0 v Blackburn (23rd October 2004)
4-2 v Blackburn (29th October 2005)
Man Utd (L 0-1, 6th November 2005)
3 Nottingham Forest 1977-1978 42 games
Nottingham Forest conquered English and European football in the 1970s under iconic manager Brian Clough.
The club’s second-tier status didn’t last long when Clough took over as manager in 1975, as they were promoted two years later. Under Clough’s leadership, alongside assistant manager Peter Taylor, Forest quickly established themselves as a formidable force in the English top flight.
Following a third-place finish in the Second Division the previous season, Clough led Forest to the pinnacle of English football, as they went on to win the league, edging Liverpool by seven points to the title.
Their unbeaten streak began in November 1977 after an away loss to Leeds United, and they proceeded to go 26 games unbeaten to lift the trophy.
Forest didn’t experience their first loss until the following season in December 1978, when they lost out to the eventual champions Liverpool, despite setting a new English record for unbeaten matches.
If all of that wasn’t enough, Forest also went on to win the European Cup back-to-back in 1979 and 1980, cementing their legacy in the football history books forever.
42
0-0 v West Brom (26th November 1977)
1-0 v Bolton (25th November 1978)
Liverpool (L 0-2, 9th December 1978)
2 Liverpool 2019-2020 44 games
Jurgen Klopp was a god-like figure for Liverpool fans during his trophy-laden tenure at the club, as he brought so many iconic moments on and off the pitch.
During the 2019/20 season, the Reds were fierce at Anfield and it was seen as arguably the toughest fixture of the season for any Premier League side.
The season before, Liverpool had gone unbeaten 20 games and 17 games respectively – either side of a Manchester City defeat in January 2019 – but their 97 points total wasn’t enough to edge City’s 98.
And after bringing a sixth Champions League trophy back to the Anfield trophy cabinet in June 2019, Reds fans and players were desperate for domestic league success.
Liverpool’s momentous Premier League run without defeat lasted for 422 days, until the Reds travelled to Watford in February 2020 to be dealt their first loss of the season.
Klopp’s side were one victory away from the longest winning run in the English top flight, having won their past 18 league games. However, Liverpool would go on to claim their first Premier League title after 30 years in June 2020.
44
1-0 v Brighton (12th January 2019)
3-2 v West Ham (24th February 2020)
Watford (L 0-3, 29th February 2020)
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