Liverpool FC Doubles and Trebles

Liverpool Football Club are one of the most successful teams in the world and certainly the best in England. The Reds have lifted trophy after trophy, with it being more common for there to be a year with silverware than for there to be one without. Supporters grew so used to heading to Wembley at one point that it began to be known as ‘Anfield South’.

Jordan Henderson, before he decided to turn his back on the LGBTQ+ community that he purported to be in support of by taking money from Saudi Arabia, lifted that many he had his own way of lifting them.

See you next month , anfield south 🔴🔴 pic.twitter.com/0hoJ2yNyo4

— BenB (@BenBLFC) February 7, 2025

In other words, being a Liverpool fan has been great more often than not. What has made that extra special on some occasions has been the club’s ability to lift not one trophy but two and sometimes three different ones in the same season. It is not common for clubs to be able to win silverware in twos and threes, which is why Doubles and Trebles are seen as such an important addition to the trophy cabinet. For supporters of the club, heading out to see the team doing an open-top bus parade with several trophies on board is the best.

Thanks to the club’s success both domestically and in Europe, Liverpool have won domestic and intercontinental trebles at one point or another. They might well have been considered to have won more if not for the fact that competitions that are won over just one or two matches tend not to be considered as part of a Double or Treble conversation. In other words, the likes of the Community Shield (are you watching, Manchester City?), the European Super Cup and the Club World Cup tend to be discounted during any Double or Treble chat.

Liverpool’s Doubles

Taking a Closer Look at Liverpool’s Double-Winning Seasons

As you can see from the table above, there have been more than a few occasions in which Liverpool supporters have had reason to celebrate the success of their football club thanks to the on-field exploits of the players. Here is a closer look at each of those double-winning seasons:

1972-1973: First Division & UEFA Cup Double

It is fair to say that Bill Shankly had completely changed Liverpool Football Club for the better by the time the 1972-1973 season came around. The Scottish manager had taken the club from the Second Division to being First Division champions, with the campaign that got underway in the autumn of 1972 arguably being the culmination of his achievement. The Reds were knocked out of the FA Cup in the Fourth Round and the League Cup in the fifth round, which were see as disappointments at the time.

@ballercentral__ Match of the day back in 1970. Wonder how that pitch passed it’s 10am inspection 🧐 Man City v West Ham Enjoy! Let us know which team you’d like to see playing back in the day! #fyp #football #archives #mancity #westham #ballercentral ♬ original sound – BallerCentral

What it meant, though, was that the players had more in their legs to be able to cope with the simultaneous demands of the First Division and the UEFA Cup. The former ended up being quite a close-run thing, finishing just three points clear of Arsenal in second, albeit in the era of two points for a win. They won 25 games and drew ten, losing just seven. In the UEFA Cup, meanwhile, the Reds made it past the likes of Eintracht Frankfurt and Dynamo Dresden to defeat Borussia Mönchengladbach over two legs in the final, winning 3-2 on aggregate.

1975-1976: First Division & UEFA Cup

Bob Paisley took over from Bill Shankly ahead of the 1974-1975 season, winning the Charity Shield but little else. If Liverpool supporters were worried about whether he had what it takes to succeed in the manager’s role then those fears were allayed the following season when Paisley repeated Shankly’s trick from a few years earlier. This time they departed the League Cup in the third round and the FA Cup in the fourth and were pushed to the limit in the First Division, winning it by a single point from Queens Park Rangers.

Liverpool v Slask Wroclaw UEFA Cup Football Programme 1975/76
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@LFC @LivEchonews @LivEchoLFC @liverpoolfans @SlaskWroclawPl

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— bobsprogrammes.bsky.social (@bobsprogrammes.bsky.social) December 30, 2024 at 6:18 PM

Things got off to a rocky start in the UEFA Cup, losing the first round first-leg against Hibernian 1-0 but winning the second 3-1. They then went on to not lose another match, defeating Real Sociedad, Śląsk Wrocław, Dynamo Dresden and Barcelona on their way to a final against Club Brugge. The Reds won the first-leg 3-2 at Anfield thanks to goals from Ray Kennedy, Jimmy Case and Kevin Keegan, heading out to Belgium with a slender advantage. When the second-leg finished 1-1, the Reds had picked up their second Double in the space of a few years.

1976-1977: First Division & European Cup

The quiet and understated manner of Bob Paisley is such that some people might well have been surprised at just how ruthless he was when it came to winning trophies for Liverpool. The 1976-1977 season was the first time that the Reds won the big one, taking home the European Cup at the end of the campaign. Some clubs from elsewhere in the north might even have had the temerity to suggest it was a Treble, given the fact that Liverpool had won the Charity Shield at the start of the season.

The 1976/77 and 1977/78 Liverpool squads

Entering as UEFA Cup winners and ending with a further 2 European Cups

Iconic Reds ❤️ pic.twitter.com/uwajlwE76O

— David Holmes (@davidholmes73) September 18, 2024

In fact, it might have been a genuine Treble if not for the fact that Manchester United beat them in the FA Cup final. In the First Division, it was another one point win in what remained the two points for a victory era, finishing on 57 compared to Manchester City’s 56. Wins over clubs such as Crusaders, Saint-Étienne and FC Zurich sent the Reds to the European Cup final, which took place at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome and witness a 3-1 win to Liverpool, with goals from Terry McDermott, Tommy Smith and Phil Neal.

1980-1981: League Cup & European Cup

Liverpool had won the European Cup again in 1977 but it wasn’t part of a Double or a Treble as that was all they won that year. The end of the 1980-1981 season saw them win it for the third time, however, thanks to a victory over Real Madrid in the final; something that seems impossible to achieve in the modern era. The First Division itself was a disappointment, with the Reds ending up fifth. They more than made up for it elsewhere, however, even if they did face FA Cup disappointment when knocked out by Everton.

Nowadays people are quick to dismiss the League Cup, in spite of the fact that it is one of only three trophies that a team can win domestically. For Liverpool, they had never won it prior to the 1980-1981 campaign, so beating West Ham 2-1 in a replay after the original game ended 1-1 was all the sweeter. In the European Cup they had had to defeat Aberdeen and Bayern Munich, amongst others, on their way to the final in the Parc des Princes. A goal from Alan Kennedy after 82 minutes was enough to secure the trophy.

1981-1982: First Division & League Cup

The League Cup win the year before kick-started a love affair with the League Cup that is still continuing today. It was yet another season with silverware for Bob Paisley, who was on his way to proving himself to be the best English manager of all time and arguably the best British one too. The Reds suffered a decisive defeat in the Intercontinental Cup, losing to Flamengo, and were knocked out of the European Cup in the quarter-finals by CSKA Sofia. Add the fifth round exit of the FA Cup to Second Division Chelsea and it could’ve been a disappointing campaign.

Liverpool are the first side in EFL Cup history to reach the final 15 times.

🥈 1978
🏆1981
🏆1982
🏆1983
🏆1984
🥈1987
🏆1995
🏆2001
🏆2003
🥈2005
🏆2012
🥈2016
🏆2022
🏆2024
❓2025

They’re 90 minutes away from a record 11th League Cup trophy. 👌💪

— JJLIVERBIRD (@jjliverbird.bsky.social) February 7, 2025 at 9:54 AM

Liverpool rarely did such things in the 1980s, however, and they won the First Division by four points, ending up with 87 points compared to the 83 accumulated by Ipswich Town. A run of 13 wins in their last 16 games, with the other three being draws, was enough to secure the club’s 13th top-flight title. In the League Cup, Liverpool knocked out sides like Exeter City, Middlesbrough and Arsenal as well as Ipswich Town themselves, resulting in a final against Tottenham Hotspur. That finished 1-1 in normal time before the Reds won 3-1 after extra-time.

1982-1983: First Division & League Cup

In the 1980s, Liverpool were not just winning on a regular basis but also consistent with it. Having won the First Division and the League Cup a year earlier, they repeated the trick in 1983. They even went as far as to be knocked out of the European Cup in the quarter-final, albeit this time at the hands of Widzew Łódź. In the FA Cup, it was another fifth round exit, with Brighton & Hove Albion being the team that inflicted the defeat. It was to be Bob Paisley’s final season in charge of the Reds, leaving with an incredible trophy haul to his name.

@thefootballhistorian Combined XI 1971 vs 2024 #LFC #liverpool #Anfield #georgesephton #thefootballhistorianpodcast #footballpodcast #podcast #football #footballquotes #Soccer #footy #footballhistory #footballhistorian ♬ original sound – The-Football-Historian

The First Division win at the end of the 1982-1983 campaign was arguably his finest of those, finishing nine points clear of Watford thanks to 24 wins and ten draws. The League Cup win wasn’t bad either, considering who the opposition was. Defeating Ipswich Town, Rotherham United, Norwich City, West Ham and Burnley on their way to the final, they faced fierce rivals Manchester United at Wembley and fell a goal behind after 12 minutes. They weren’t going to stand for that, though, and won 2-1 thanks to Alan Kennedy and Ronnie Whelan.

1985-1986: First Division & FA Cup

There are definitely some people who would play down the idea of a League Cup and First Division double, even if the reasoning behind that is idiotic at best. If that were the case, however, such people would have nothing to say about Kenny Dalglish’s first season in charge, with the Reds winning the First Division and the FA Cup. Having been banned from Europe as a result of the disgusting scenes at Heysel Stadium that resulted in the deaths of 39 Juventus supporters, Liverpool couldn’t try to win a fifth European Cup.

On this day in 1986 Liverpool clinched the First Division title with a 1-0 win at Chelsea, thanks to this goal from player-manager Kenny Dalglish.#CFC #LFC #OnThisDay pic.twitter.com/YJqwmU8Ml3

— 1980s TV Football Heaven (@1980sHeaven) May 3, 2019

They made it to the semi-finals of the League Cup but lost to Queens Park Rangers. The good news was that the Reds had something up their sleeve at the hands of their city rivals Everton, pipping them to the First Division title by two points. To rub salt into the wounds, Liverpool also defeated the Blues in the FA Cup final. They had beaten Norwich City, Chelsea, York City, Watford and Southampton on their way there, overturning a Gary Lineker goal with two from Ian Rush and one from Craig Johnston to win 3-1.

2021-2022: FA Cup & League Cup

The 2021-2022 season was one that took Liverpool to the very brink of eternal glory. The Reds came closer than any side has ever done to winning the Quadruple, pushing Manchester City, a team that had 130 charges of financial impropriety against its name, all the way in the Premier League whilst also making it to the final of the Champions League. In the end, the Reds got 92 points in the top-flight but missed out by one, which definitely stung. They also somehow lost to the Spanish side in the final, despite utterly dominating them for the 90 minutes.

That final was overshadowed by the appalling treatment of Liverpool fans by the French authorities outside the Parc des Princes. There was some glory for the Reds, however, thanks to success in both the League Cup and the FA Cup. The former required Liverpool to win against Norwich City, Preston North End, Leicester City and Arsenal, making it to the final and winning on penalties after the game finished 0-0. It was the same opponent in the FA Cup final, with the game also going to a penalty shoot-out that Liverpool won 6-5.

Liverpool’s Trebles

Taking a Closer Look at Liverpool’s Treble-Winning Seasons

It is fair to say that Liverpool’s dominance throughout the 1980s was absolute, so it says something about how incredibly difficult an achievement it is that the Reds only won one Treble during that period. That no club has won the Quadruple, at the time of writing at least, is proof of just how remarkable Liverpool’s 2021-2022 campaign was, even if they didn’t end up walking away with either of the big pots. Here is a look at the times that Liverpool have won a Treble:

1983-1984: First Division, European Cup & League Cup

It was Joe Fagan’s turn to enjoy some success in the 1983-1984 season, having taken over from Bob Paisley but ensured that Liverpool carried on where his predecessor had left off. The Reds were knocked out of the FA Cup in the fourth round, losing 2-0 to Brighton & Hove Albion in an away game after defeating Newcastle United 4-0 in the third round. They had also lost in the Charity Shield, but they were to be the only competitions that Liverpool took part in that they didn’t end up as winners of in a Treble-winning season.

8. Liverpool (1982-85)
Manager: Bob Paisley, Joe Fagan
Div 1: 1983 🏆, 1984 🏆, 1985 🏆
EC: 1984 🏆, 1985 🥈
League Cup: 1983 🏆, 1984 🏆, 1985 🏆
Combination between Rush and Dalglish in attack was among the most devastating in history. Part of a much longer dynasty than other sides who just kept winning.

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— Rob Fielder (@robfielder.bsky.social) February 15, 2025 at 10:18 AM

Although Liverpool loved winning the League Cup in the 1980s, it isn’t unfair to suggest that that was the lesser of the three competitions that they won. They defeated Everton in the final after a replay, winning 1-0 thanks to a Graeme Souness goal. In the League, they pipped Southampton to the title by three points, ending up with 22 wins and 14 draws. That they were able to win their first Treble came courtesy of a win against AS Roma in the final, winning on penalties. It was an even more impressive win thanks to the fact that it was played in the Stadio Olimpico in Rome.

2000-2001: UEFA Cup, FA Cup & League Cup

There was certainly a degree of consternation around Liverpool when Gérard Houllier was brought in to be joint-manager alongside Roy Evans, which only grew in volume when the Frenchman was given the job permanently. He etched himself into Liverpool folklore in the 2000-2001 season, however, when his team won the Treble. It was also a decent season in the league, ending up third behind Manchester United and Arsenal. It seemed like a season that would prove to be a springboard to greater things but, like so many others, didn’t.

@thatvintagefootballshirt Chelsea 04/05 🔵🏆 #football #soccer #footballtiktok #soccertiktok #chelsea #chelseafc #premierleague #prem #mourinho #drogba #ucl #lampard ♬ original sound – thatvintagefootballshirt

Not that that does anything to diminish what the Reds were able to achieve in the season itself, of course. The League Cup was the first one added to the board, with a screamer of a goal from Robbie Fowler helping them to extra-time against Birmingham City, winning 5-4 on penalties. The FA Cup was the footballing equivalent to daylight robbery, being battered from pillar to post by Arsenal before a Michael Owen brace saw us win 2-1. In the UEFA Cup, it ended 4-4 in normal time before a Golden Goal in extra-time gave us the win over Alavés.