Browsing The Chelsea Trophy Cabinet Throughout The Years
Chelsea is a team that has risen to the top of the metaphorical food chain over the years, this of course was due to heavy investment - paving the way for football today. With this in mind, we will be browsing the Chelsea trophy cabinet throughout the years to see just how much of a dominant force Chelsea has been - and will most likely continue to be.
First Division/Premier League Trophies:
The first league title came during the 1954-55 football league season, marking the 56th time this competition took place. This was especially memorable given that this marked the 50th anniversary of when the club first formed. Resulting in a memorable end to celebrate with loved ones.
This was especially impressive considering the side finished four points above runners-ups and winners the prior year - Wolverhampton Wanderers. This wasn’t a great season for some teams however as Leicester City and Sheffield Wednesday was relegated to the Second Division.
Fans were expecting follow-up success, although lifting a first-division title would not come until the 2004-05 season following the takeover by Roman Abramovic. This win was especially noteworthy considering Chelsea was able to dethrone reigning champions Arsenal who managed to undergo the season unbeaten - to find out more about the invincible season, take a look at our blog highlighting that unforgettable season. Throughout this campaign, Chelsea was able to maintain both the longest winning run and unbeaten run with 8 and 29 games respectively.
With this in mind, the following season was just as spectacular given Chelsea and Jose Mourinho was able to lift back-to-back Premier League titles having obtained another 90+ season. Similar to the 04-05 season, Chelsea obtained the longest winning run (joint with Liverpool) as well as the longest winning streak of 13 games. Additionally, both Frank Lampard and John Terry won the PFA (Player of the Year Award) for both these Premier League seasons.
Following their back-to-back Premier League titles, their next league win wouldn’t come until the 2009-10 season in which Chelsea was able to unsettle Manchester United’s hopes of winning four consecutive league titles. Additionally, this was the first time in Premier League history in which a side was able to score more than 100 goals (Chelsea scored 103 goals that campaign).
The main contributing factor to this achievement are down to the partnership between Didier Drogba and Frank Lampard. Together, they scored 29 and 22 goals respectively as well as contributing to 14 and 10 assists - combining a total of 75 goals. This has rightfully put the pair as one of the best duos of all time.
Their last two Premier League wins came in the 2014-15 and 2016-17 seasons respectively.
Champions League Success:
Ever since Chelsea’s inception, one trophy that always escaped them was the Champions League. This was until the 2011-12 Champions League campaign against Bayern Munich. This was one of the most memorable games for Chelsea fans as it wasn’t just their first Champions League victory - but how it was achieved will always be remembered. Given that the stage was set for Bayern Munich to lift the cup in their home stadium of the Allianz Arena in Munich, the German side took a late lead thanks to Thomas Muller in the 83rd minute - leaving the Munich supporters optimistic about lifting the illustrious trophy once more. However, in the 88th minute - Didier Drogba managed to get his head on a terrific cross smashing the roof of the net.
This resulted in them going into extra time and ultimately to a penalty shootout. Chelsea fans’ hearts were heartbroken when Juan Mata missed the first penalty - ultimately two misses by Olic and Schweinsteiger resulted in the team from Stamford Bridge lifting their first Champions League trophy.
Their next Champions League-winning season came during the 2021 campaign in which Chelsea managed to beat Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City 1-0. This win came at the brink of half-time thanks to a Kai Havertz goal. Following this victory, Chelsea was able to win the UEFA Super Cup - besting Villarreal in a penalty shootout.
FA Cup Success:
Despite not being the team with the most FA Cup success (this goes to Arsenal Football Club with the most FA Cup wins), Chelsea has amassed an impressive 8 FA Cup victories at the time of writing. This started back in the 1969-70 season following an FA Cup Final Replay against Leeds which ended 2-1 after extra time.
Additionally, Chelsea was able to win back-to-back FA Cups in 2008-09/2009-10 respectively. The 2008/2009 final win came whilst defeating Everton Football Club. Louis Saha took the lead for Everton after a minute following kick-off. Alas, the always-dependable Didier Drogba equalised in the 21st minute. Going into the second half, the score was level until the 72nd minute when Frank Lampard scored the winning goal. The 2010 FA Cup was against Portsmouth, which saw the Chelsea side beat the Portsmouth side 1-0, once again thanks to Didier Drogba.
Their most recent FA Cup win came during the 2017-18 season in which Chelsea defeated Manchester United thanks to a penalty in the 22nd minute by Eden Hazard. Resulting in Chelsea’s 8th FA Cup.
Conclusion:
To conclude, Chelsea has become a dominant force over the years. Amassing an unbelievable trophy cabinet that most teams will be envious of. Like all teams, Chelsea will continue their efforts to lift even more trophies and the Stamford Bridge faithful will be behind the side across every step. Be part of that success by watching Chelsea live home and away.