15 of the Best Teams to have Gone Unbeaten in a Single League Campaign

The 2025/26 season has reached the halfway point in most leagues, mainly in Europe, with some teams on track to break records in their respective leagues. One record is going unbeaten in a single league campaign, as four big teams could potentially finish this season without losing a league game.

Those four are Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga, FC Porto and Benfica in Liga Portugal and Al-Hilal in the Saudi Professional League. Whilst some of these sides have already obtained the rare achievement, and their respective leagues have experienced a team going unbeaten in a single campaign, there is still a chance to take the record further.

So, this had us thinking, what are some of the best teams to have finished a single league season unbeaten? Therefore, we answer the question by ranking 15 of the best teams to have gone unbeaten in a single league campaign.

Ajax 1994/95

Head Coach:

• Louis van Gaal

Notable Players:

• Edwin van der Sar (Goalkeeper)
• Frank de Boer (Defender)
• Frank Rijkaard (Midfielder)
• Clarence Seedorf (Midfielder)
• Jari Litmanen (Midfielder)
• Patrick Kluivert (Forward)

Arguably, the best team to have gone unbeaten in the league is Ajax during the 1994/95 season, which saw the most successful Dutch football club lift the Eredivisie, UEFA Champions League and KNVB Cup. Winning the league and Europe’s greatest competition is quite an achievement, but Ajax in 1994/95 did so in style by going unbeaten in both campaigns.

In the Eredivisie, Ajax won 27 out of 34 games, collecting 61 points and scoring 106 goals, a remarkable record. In the UCL, Ajax did not lose a single game, beating AC Milan home and away in the group stage, Bayern Munich in the semi-finals and then meeting AC Milan again in the final, winning 1-0 thanks to a late goal from Patrick Kluivert in the 85th minute to lift the trophy.

What was even more impressive about this squad was how young and upcoming many players were, with an average age of 24 years old. Three key youngsters were 19-year-old Clarence Seedorf, 18-year-old Patrick Kluivert and 22-year-old Marc Overmars, who all made over 35 appearances across every competition.

Managed by Louis Van Gaal, this Ajax side was truly mesmerising all around, featuring the beautiful game’s most iconic players like Edwin van der Sar, Frank de Boer, Frank Rijkaard, Jari Litmanen and the three youngsters who we mentioned above in Seedorf, Kluivert and Overmars. As we know, all of them went on to have exceptional careers, solidifying their legendary status in football.

AC Milan 1991/92

Head Coach:

• Fabio Capello

Notable Players:

• Franco Baresi (Defender)
• Paolo Maldini (Defender)
• Alessandro Costacurta (Defender)
• Frank Rijkaard (Midfielder)
• Marco Van Basten (Forward)
• Ruud Gullit (Forward)

In second place, we have placed AC Milan for their unbeaten league season in the 1991/92 Serie A season. Despite solely winning the Serie A, this I Rossoneri side is placed second in this list because of the immense quality within this team. Also, it can be argued that this season set AC Milan up for the years of dominance in Italy and the UCL title in 1993/94.

Due to being banned from European competition, AC Milan participated in the Serie A and the Coppa Italia, in which they, of course, lifted the league trophy but exited the semi-finals of the Coppa Italia to Juventus. Had they been part of the European Cup, we might have seen AC Milan also lift the continent’s greatest title.

In the Serie A, AC Milan won 22 and drew 12 out of the 34 league games, accumulating a total of 56 points with a goal difference of 53, scoring 74, and only conceding 21 goals. No other Italian side got close to I Rossoneri’s 74 goals in Serie A, with the legendary Dutch striker Marco Van Basten leading the way, tallying 25 goals in the league.

Defensively, AC Milan conceded the fewest goals in the Serie A 1991/92 season, featuring two of the greatest centre-backs to have played the beautiful game: Franco Baresi and Paolo Maldini, as well as the underrated and versatile Alessandro Costacurta. Like the Ajax side, this AC Milan squad was an all-around amazing team, managed by the great Fabio Capello, who went on to collect three more Serie A titles with I Rossoneri.

Arsenal 2003/04

Head Coach:

• Arsène Wenger

Notable Players:

• Jens Lehmann (Goalkeeper)
• Sol Campbell (Defender)
• Ashley Cole (Defender)
• Patrick Vieira (Midfielder)
• Thierry Henry (Forward)
• Robert Pires (Forward)

Arsenal’s 2003/04 Premier League season is one of, if not the most well-known, unbeaten league wins in football history, known as “The Invincibles”. Similar to the unbeaten AC Milan side, Arsenal only won their league, but the Gunners are still ranked highly regarding the best unbeaten teams. This is because of the immense quality within the squad and the tough competition in the EPL.

Coached by Arsène Wenger, this Arsenal side won 26 out of 38 games, but many pundits, fans and journalists have criticised the Gunners’ unbeaten 2003/04 EPL campaign due to the 12 draws they obtained. Unlike other leagues at the time, the EPL involved a 38-game season, which was higher than the majority of other European leagues. In addition, the EPL is one of, if not the most competitive league in the world. So this record was much harder to achieve.

Arsenal were competing in three other major competitions: the UEFA Champions League, the FA Cup and the Carling Cup. In the UCL, Arsenal reached the quarter-finals, but were knocked out by rival London club Chelsea. Domestically, the Gunners made it to the semi-finals of the FA Cup and Carling Cup (now called the EFL Cup), losing to Manchester United and Middlesbrough, respectively, who both were the eventual winners of each competition.

Part of Wenger’s squad included some of the greatest footballers to have ever played, such as Thierry Henry, Ashley Cole and Patrick Vieira, all of whom have been inducted into the Premier League Hall of Fame. Also in the squad list were Dennis Bergkamp and Cesc Fàbregas, but in this season, Bergkamp did not feature as much, and Fàbregas only played twice all season. However, we must praise the pair for their fantastic careers.

Bayer Leverkusen 2023/24

Head Coach:

• Xabi Alonso

Notable Players:

• Jeremie Frimpong (Defender)
• Álex Grimaldo (Defender)
• Granit Xhaka (Midfielder)
• Florian Wirtz (Midfielder)
• Victor Boniface (Forward)

Next is one of the most recent unbeaten league sides, the most recent team in our list, Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen, in the 2023/24 Bundesliga season. Ahead of the 2023/24 season, football enthusiasts were excited for Alonso’s first proper managerial job, as he became one of the latest icons at the time to take up a head coach role. Didn’t he start in such style…

Bayer Leverkusen became the first team to finish an entire Bundesliga campaign unbeaten in the 2023/24 season, winning 28 out of 34 games. Leverkusen collected 90 points, an extremely impressive total, nearly matching the record of 91 set by Bayern Munich in the 2012/12 season. Alonso’s side scored 144 goals across all competitions, the majority of which came from the Bundesliga, where they scored 89!

Leverkusen also participated in the DFB Pokal and the UEFA Europa League, two competitions that Alonso’s side reached the finals of. Chronologically, the UEL final came first on 22 May 2024, where Leverkusen lost to Atalanta in Dublin, but the celebrations could resume, as in the DFB Pokal, Xabi Alonso lifted his second trophy of the season on 25 May 2024 after beating 1. FC Kaiserslautern by one goal to nil.

Part of Alonso’s squad was a great mix of experience and youth. Captaining the team was 34-year-old Lukas Hradecky, with Jonathan Tah as the vice captain, with extra key leaders being Granit Xhaka and Alejandro Grimaldo. Youngsters Jeremie Frimpong, Florian Wirtz and Victor Boniface put themselves on the map after impressive individual seasons, with Frimpong and Wirtz currently playing together at their new club Liverpool, after leaving Leverkusen in the 2025/26 summer transfer window. This squad was unbelievable, losing just one game all season deserves a spot high up in our list. What a team!

Juventus 2011/12

Head Coach:

• Antonio Conte

Notable Players:

• Gianluigi Buffon (Goalkeeper)
• Giorgio Chiellini (Defender)
• Andrea Barzagli (Defender)
• Andrea Pirlo (Midfielder)
• Claudio Marchisio (Midfielder)

In the 2010/11 Serie A, Juventus finished 7th, resulting in head coach Luigi Delneri being sacked in May 2011, requiring someone to take the vacant role. After impressing in the 2010/11 Serie B with Bari, Antonio Conte was hired as Juventus head coach, succeeding Delneri. Conte arrived with anticipation and big expectations because of his fan-favourite status, having appeared 296 times for the Old Lady during his playing career. No one would have believed what the Italian would achieve in his first season at the club…

Conte won the Serie A unbeaten in his first season at Juventus, leading the club to the league trophy, which had been absent for nine years. This I Bianconeri side won 23 out of 38 games, drawing a total of 15, including a huge goalfest 3-3 with Napoli on 29 November 2011! Notably, Conte won the league by just four points, narrowly avoiding second-place AC Milan, who finished on 80 points.

Similar to Arsenal’s Invincibles, Juventus’ unbeaten 2011/12 Serie A campaign is criticised because of the number of draws the Old Lady picked up. However, for the same reasons, the praise is met due to Conte’s side being the only team in Italy to have been unbeaten in a 38-game league season. Also, in the Coppa Italia, which was the only other competition Juventus were participating in, they were runners-up after losing 2-0 to Napoli, which was almost equally as successful as their Serie A campaign.

In Juventus’ 2011/12 squad were some of Italy's and football’s greatest ever players to have graced the pitch. Consisting of goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon, centre-backs Giorgio Chiellini and Andrea Barzagli, with midfielder Andrea Pirlo, this Juventus side was solid and certainly set the foundations for the nine seasons of domination in Italy.

FC Porto 2010/11

Head Coach:

• André Villas-Boas

Notable Players:

• Nicolás Otamendi (Defender)
• João Moutinho (Midfielder)
• Hulk (Attacker)
• Radamel Falcao (Attacker)

FC Porto enters this list at number six for the 2011/12 season, where head coach André Villas-Boas guided FC Porto to four trophies: the Primeira Liga, UEFA Europa League, Taça de Portugal and Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira.

Porto won the league in some fashion, winning 27 out of 30 games, scoring 73 and conceding just 16. As highlighted, Porto also won the UEL, a journey which involved dominating the group stage, beating Sevilla in the Round of 32, dismantling Russian sides CSKA and Spartak Moscow, thrashing Villarreal in the semi-finals, and lastly beating fellow Portuguese side SC Braga 1-0 in Dublin.

Villas-Boas’ squad consisted of some of the world’s most exciting stars, like Radamel Falcao, Hulk and João Moutinho, along with talented youngster James Rodríguez, who was just 19 years old. Most notably, Falcao tallied 39 goals in 42 appearances across all competitions, which saw the Colombian striker get a move to Atlético Madrid ahead of the 2012/13 season.

Yes, the Portuguese league is not as competitive as other leagues, mainly dominated by the country’s “Big Three”, also known as Os Três Grandes, of FC Porto, Benfica and Sporting CP. However, FC Porto’s 2010/11 season is definitely one of the best sides to have won the league unbeaten, showing dominance in Portugal and even in Europe.

Benfica 1972/73

Head Coach:

• Jimmy Hagan

Notable Players:

• Adolfo Calisto (Defender)
• Toni (Midfielder)
• Eusébio (Forward)
• Nené (Forward)

We are heading back in time by over 50 years to the 1972/73 season, where Portuguese side Benfica went unbeaten in the Primeira Divisão. Managed by Jimmy Hagan, the Englishman led Benfica to its 20th league title, doing so in some fashion.

In the 1972/73 Primeira Divisão season, when the league awarded two points for winning a game, As Águias (the Eagles) picked up 58 points out of a possible 60, winning 28 and drawing two, meaning they were extremely close to a perfect season. In both the Taça de Portugal and the European Cup, Benfica failed to win or get anywhere close to the final, which is why they fall below FC Porto’s 2010/11 unbeaten league side.

Most notably, this Benfica squad featured one of Portugal’s greatest and most iconic, respected players, Eusébio, who scored 42 goals in 33 games during the 1972/73 season and won the Portuguese Player of the Year award. Throughout his entire career, he scored an astounding 733 goals in 745 games and specifically during his time at Benfica, he won 11 league titles, a European Cup and five Taça de Portugal trophies. Individually, he won the Ballon d’Or in 1965, the prestigious award for which he finished runner-up twice and was nominated an extra eight times.

Unfortunately, Eusébio’s pull isn’t enough to place Benfica higher than 7th in our list, but the Portuguese legend is undoubtedly one of the greatest players to have played the beautiful game. Also part of this Benfica side was Adolfo Calisto and Nené, both picking up the Portuguese Player of the Year award.

FC Steaua București 1988/89

Head Coach:

• Angel Iordǎnescu

Notable Players:

• Silviu Lung (Goalkeeper)
• Ştefan Iovan (Defender)
• Georghe Hagi (Midfielder)
• Marius Lǎcǎtuş (Forward)

Over to Eastern Europe, in 8th place is FC Steaua București, who went unbeaten in Divizia A during the 1988/89 season. FC Steaua București were a huge side during the 1980s, an era that was huge for the club, as the Romanian side lifted the European Cup in the 1985/86 season. Following the European Cup was three consecutive Divisia A titles, all three of them being unbeaten league campaigns! But the 1988/89 season was the most impressive.

FC Steaua București won the 1988/89 Divizia A rather emphatically, winning 31 out of 34 games, finishing on 65 points. Like Benfica’s 1972/73 Primeira Divisão, FC Steaua București were so close to a perfect season. The Romanian side scored 121 goals in the Divizia A, with over a quarter of them coming from Georghe Hagi, who is widely considered Romania’s greatest ever player.

Also in the 1988/89 season, FC Steaua București lifted the Cupa României in the Eternal Derby with Dinamo București, beating their local fierce rivals 1-0 thanks to Hagi. Moreover, Angel Iordǎnescu’s side were runners-up in the European Cup, almost adding a second continental title to their trophy cabinet. This FC Steaua București side is one of the most underrated teams of all time.

Dynamo Kyiv 2014/15

Head Coach:

• Serhii Rebrov

Notable Players:

• Aleksandar Dragović (Defender)
• Serhiy Sydorchuk (Midfielder)
• Artem Kravets (Forward)
• Andriy Yarmolenko (Forward)

From Romania to Ukraine, in 9th place is Dynamo Kyiv for their unbeaten Ukrainian Premier League campaign in the 2014/15 season. Interestingly, this was the second time Dynamo Kyiv went unbeaten in the league, first doing so in the 2006/07 season, but we have chosen the 2014/15 side as they had a greater season overall.

In the Ukrainian Premier League, Dynamo won 20 out of 26 games, only conceding 12 goals, which is extremely impressive. As well as winning the league, Dynamo lifted the Ukrainian Cup over their rivals Shakhtar Donetsk on penalties. Also, Dynamo competed in the UEL, in which they topped their group with 15 points, beat Gunigamp and Everton to reach the quarter-finals, where they lost to Fiorentina 3-1 on aggregate.

Nevertheless, this was still a strong overall season from Dynamo Kyiv, who were managed by the current Ukraine head coach, Serhii Rebrov. In Rebrov’s squad were some great players, the main man being the talented and skilful Andriy Yarmolenko, who was known for his flair and creativity.

Al-Hilal 2023/24

Head Coach:

• Jorge Jesus

Notable Players:

• Rúben Neves (Midfielder)
• Sergej Milinković-Savić (Midfielder)
• Malcom (Forward)
• Aleksandar Mitrović (Forward)

In the 2023/24 season, Saudi Arabian side Al-Hilal went unbeaten in the Saudi Pro League to pick up their 19th league title. Like Dynamo Kyiv, this was not the first time Al-Hilal went unbeaten in a single league campaign, achieving the record in the 2010/11 season. But for similar reasons as Dynamo, Al-Za-eem’s 2023/24 unbeaten campaign was more successful, winning three trophies overall.

After Cristiano Ronaldo joined Al-Nassr on 30 December 2022, many believed the legend possessed the ability to carry the Saudi side to the Saudi Pro League title. Instead, Al-Hilal had alternative plans, as in Ronaldo’s first full league campaign, the Blue Waves lifted the league trophy, completely dominating the competition with 31 wins out of 34 games. Moreover, Al-Hilal won the King Cup and the Saudi Super Cup, also finishing runners-up in the Arab Club Champions Cup and reaching the semi-finals of the AFC Champions League.

Led by the Portuguese managerial legend Jorge Jesus, Al-Hilal’s 2023/24 squad featured some big names who played a key role that season, like Rúben Neves, Sergej Milinković-Savić, Malcom and Aleksandar Mitrović. Mitrović scored 40 goals in 43 games, almost averaging a goal a game, and his fellow international companion, Sergej Milinković-Savić, tallied 30 goal contributions in all competitions.

Celtic 2016/17

Head Coach:

• Brendan Rodgers

Notable Players:

• Craig Gordon (Goalkeeper)
• Scott Brown (Midfielder)
• Scott Sinclair ( Forward)
• Moussa Dembélé (Forward)

Celtic were the first ever Scottish team to have gone unbeaten in a single league campaign, all the way back in the 1898/99 season. Flashforward 118 years, to the 2016/17 Scottish Premiership, Celtic achieved their 48th league title, going unbeaten in a single campaign for the second time.

In the Scottish Premiership, the Bhoys won 34 out of 38 games, scoring 106 goals and conceding 25! No other side came close to the 104 points tally; in fact, no other side came close to any stat, not to mention Celtic also won the Scottish Cup and Scottish League Cup. It was destruction from Brendan Rodgers’ side.

This Celtic side had it all: a solid goalkeeper in Craig Gordon, a strong defence with the likes of Jozo Šimunović and Mikael Lustig, an experienced midfield including captain Scott Brown and a goalfest attack of Moussa Dembélé, Scott Sinclair and Leigh Griffiths. The attacking trio scored 75 goals collectively, with the Frenchman Dembélé leading as the club’s top scorer in 2023/24, tallying 32 goals in all competitions.

FK Crvena Zvezda 2021/21

Head Coach:

• Dejan Stankovic

Notable Players:

• Milan Borjan (Goalkeeper)
• Mirko Ivanić (Midfielder)
• Aleksandar Katai (Midfielder)

Serbia’s most successful football club, FC Crvena Zvezda (Red Star Belgrade), recorded the club’s second unbeaten league campaign in 2020/21; this time, Belgrade won the title, having finished second in their first unbeaten campaign in the 2007/08 season.

In the 2020/21 SuperLiga, Belgrade completely dismantled the competition, winning 35 out of 38 games, obtaining a total of 108 points, which is the current record for the most points won in a single season of Serbia’s top-flight football. In addition to the SuperLiga title, Belgrade lifted the Serbian Cup for the fourth time, a competition they have consecutively won since then.

Rangers 2020/21

Head Coach:

• Steven Gerrard

Notable Players:

• James Tavernier (Defender)
• Glen Kamara (Midfielder)
• Alfredo Morelos (Forward)

History repeated itself when Rangers achieved their second unbeaten league season in the 2020/21 Scottish Premiership, as when rivals Celtic became the nation’s first side to finish unbeaten in a single league campaign during 1897/98, Rangers took the record one step further by achieving a perfect season the following year. After Celtic went unbeaten for the second time in the 2016/17 season, Rangers completed their second time too on 15 May 2021.

Guiding Rangers to their 55th league title was football legend Steven Gerrard, who departed at the end of the 2020/21 season for Premier League side Aston Villa. Rangers won 32 out of 38 games, collecting 102 points, but they were unable to win the Scottish Cup and Scottish League Cup.

PAOK Thessaloniki 2018/19

Head Coach:

• Rǎzvan Lucescu

Notable Players:

• Fernando Varela (Defender)
• José Ángel Crespo (Defender)
• Diego Biseswar (Midfielder)

In the 2018/19 season, PAOK Thessaloniki became the third Greek side to win a single league campaign unbeaten, but the first and only to win the Super League. PAOK won 26 out of 30 games, finishing the season with 80 points, conceding just 14 goals, thanks to a strong centre-back partnership of Fernando Varela and José Ángel Crespo. In the same season, PAOK lifted the Greek Football Cup after beating the country’s capital side AEK Athens by one goal to nil.

Slavia Prague 2020/21

Head Coach:

• Jindřich Trpišovský

Notable Players:

• Tomáš Holeš (Defender)
• Nicolae Stanciu (Midfielder)
• Abdallah Sima (Forward)

In the 2020/21 Czech First League, Slavia Prague became the nation’s second side to record a single unbeaten league campaign. Slavia won 26 out of 34 games, scored 85 and collected 86 points, all of which hold the current record for most wins, goals scored and points in a single Czech First League season. With the league title, Slavia lifted the Czech Cup after a narrow 1-0 victory over Viktoria Plzeň.

Could this list change?

Absolutely. As highlighted in the introduction of this article, four huge clubs of Bayern Munich, FC Porto, Benfica and Al-Hilal are on track to finish the season unbeaten in their leagues. Both Portuguese sides and Al-Hilal have already achieved the record, but that isn’t to say they can all outperform their own record by adding a few extra trophies.

So, get behind your team for the remainder of the season, with tickets available from 1BoxOffice across multiple leagues, including the Bundesliga, Liga Portugal and Saudi Pro League.