How many times have Man Utd won the Europa League?
By Euan Burns
Manchester United are a club steeped in European history and some of their finest moments have come in the Europa League.
While the Red Devils prefer to play in the Champions League - a competition they've won three times - Europe's secondary club competition has its perks and has provided United fans with some wonderful memories over the years.
It's a trophy Erik ten Hag is looking to add to his United collection which began with the Carabao Cup triumph, so here is a look at how many times they have won it and their other records in the Europa League.
When did Man Utd win the Europa League?
Unlike most competitions in football, Manchester United have only won the Europa League once. It was the only major trophy that the club was yet to win, although the introduction of the Europa Conference League means they are now missing one more.
The success came in the 2016/17 season under Jose Mourinho when the team also managed to win the Community Shield and the Carabao Cup. United entered the tournament in the group stage rather than dropping down from the Champions League, like in 2022/23.
They were drawn in a group containing Fenerbahce, Feyenoord and Zorya Luhansk. Interestingly, they actually finished second in the group behind Fenerbahce. The round of 32 saw United face Saint-Etienne who they beat 3-0 with a Zlatan Ibrahimovic hat-trick at Old Trafford and then 1-0 in France.
The round of 16 tie was against Russian side Rostov and after a 1-1 draw in Russia, it took Juan Mata's 70th-minute winner at Old Trafford to secure safe passage into the quarter-final. That's where Anderlecht were waiting and United needed a Marcus Rashford goal in extra time at Old Trafford to win 3-2 on aggregate.
A dramatic semi-final against Celta Vigo was next. Rashford's free-kick meant it was 1-0 in Spain and United were 1-0 up at Old Trafford until the 85th minute when Celta scored. The last five minutes were incredibly nervy as one more Celta goal would have seen them progress on away goals.
There was much less drama in the final as goals in either half from Paul Pogba and Henrikh Mkhitaryan at the Friends Arena meant United beat Ajax 2-0.
Man Utd's Europa League final record
Date | Venue | Scoreline |
|---|---|---|
2016/17 | Friends Arena, Stockholm | Ajax 0-2 Man Utd |
2020/21 | Polsat Plus Arena, Gdansk | Villarreal 1-1 Man Utd (Villarreal 11-10 on pens) |
Man Utd's Europa League record
Manchester United have more often than not across their history been in the European Cup or Champions League rather than the UEFA Cup orEuropa League. Involvement has ramped up since Sir Alex Ferguson retired, though.
Since 1976, United have participated in Europe's secondary competition 12 times if you include the current 2022/23 campaign. The table below shows where they got to each time.
Season | Stage reached | Aggregate scores |
|---|---|---|
1976/77 | Second Round | Man Utd 1-3 Juventus |
1980/81 | First Round | Man Utd 1-1 Widzew Lodz (Lodz won on away goals) |
1982/83 | First Round | Man Utd 1-2 Valencia |
1984/85 | Quarter-finals | Man Utd 1-1 Videoton (4-5p) |
1992/93 | First Round | Man Utd 0-0 Torpedo Moscow (3-4p) |
1995/96 | First Round | Man Utd 2-2 Rotor Volgograd (Volgograd won on away goals) |
2011/12 | Round of 16 | Man Utd 3-5 Athletic Club |
2015/16 | Round of 16 | Man Utd 1-3 Liverpool |
2016/17 | Winners | Man Utd 2-0 Ajax |
2019/20 | Semi-finals | Man Utd 1-2 Sevilla |
2020/21 | Final | Man Utd 1-1 Villarreal (10-11p) |
United have only managed to reach the final on two occasions and have got a 50% record thanks to the mammoth penalty shoot-out against Villarreal which went the way of the Spanish side.
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Who has the most Europa League goals for Man Utd?
Given Man Utd's last three involvements in the Europa League have ended in either a final or a semi-final appearance and they are currently in the quarter-finals of the 2022/23 edition, the top scorers are all pretty contemporary players.
The current top scorer by a decent margin is Marcus Rashford who has netted 13 times in the tournament for the Red Devils. Rashford got his big break in the Europa League when a surprise start against FC Midtjylland in 2016 yielded two goals and he's not looked back since.
Man Utd's Europa League top scorers
Player | Goals |
|---|---|
Marcus Rashford | 13 |
Bruno Fernandes | 9 |
Anthony Martial | 7 |
Henrikh Mkhitaryan | 6 |
Mason Greenwood | 6 |
Edinson Cavani | 6 |
Who has the made the most Europa League appearances for Man Utd?
The same logic applies to appearances given many of United's Europa League games have come in recent years. It is an ever-evolving table given all but two of those involved are still at the club. There is a familiar name at the top.
Rashford will not want to be known as 'Mr Europa League' but there is no getting away from the fact that he has been a prominent player in the tournament during his career.
Player* | Appearances |
|---|---|
Marcus Rashford | 35 |
Juan Mata | 30 |
David De Gea | 26 |
Fred | 25 |
Paul Pogba | 25 |
Bruno Fernandes | 24 |
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