Manchester United are in mid-table in terms of the longest prize droughts the 20 latest Premier League clubs have ever experienced.
For the purpose of this ranking we are counting only major trophies and not including league titles from the second tier and below. And not the development, but the spaces are calculated from the club’s first flatware. That would be a little tough.
Fulham ( 146 years and counting )
Aside from a Division One title in 2001, a handful of Division Two and Division Three ( South ) crowns and the 2002 Intertoto Cup, Fulham have a bare trophy cabinet to show after almost a century and a half of existence. West Ham ( 1975 FA Cup ) and Atletico Madrid ( 2010 Europa League ) have lost two significant finals in their history, with slightly different opposition. Their previous boss did so much to advance to the quarter-finals before Marco Silva.
Brentford ( 135 years and counting )
Even if we counted the Football League Trophy, Brentford have failed three times to win the darned thing despite reaching the final. Even though the team has spent the majority of its time playing in the lower or non-leagues, they were teased by us before losing to Tottenham Hotspur in the semi-finals of the Carabao Cup two years ago.
Bournemouth ( 126 years and counting )
The Cherries have at least won a Football League trophy, but the Cherries have not even been closely watching for the majority of their existence. Yet under Eddie Howe, they not advanced more than a quarter-final. Andoni Iraola’s area playing at Wembley in a FA Cup semi-final will face Manchester City. Brighton ( 1993 ), the three-time third-tier, two-time fourth-tier, and one-time Southern Football League champion, have otherwise rarely been threatened with significant silverware. There was a 1910 Charity Shield win over Aston Villa when it was apparently considered to be significantly more than a pre-season Curtain Raiser. Although the Seagulls did approach the 1983 FA Cup final and perhaps held Manchester United to a pull at Wembley, Jimmy Melia, the confined side’s one-game captain, watched his part sluggishly clinch a 4-0 battle in the record. In the 2019 season’s first game, Manchester City defeated them 1-0 in the semi-finals to earn a special regional trophy. And no, those 14 Sussex Senior Challenge Cups depend for everything here, boy.
Crystal Palace ( 119 years and counting )
By default, Crystal Palace have a slight advantage over bitter rivals. Although any Selhurst Park patron is legally required to refer to themselves as Zenith Data Systems ultra, the Full Members Cup was a valiant effort, so the 4-1 victory over Everton in the 1991 last should not be taken lightly should it be said. Other than that, Palace reached the 1990 FA Cup final but could not really put the final nails in Alex Fergusons Manchester United tenure, while Alan Pardew put a Bela Guttman-style wire on them always with that sodding party in 2016. In the final eight games of this years ‘ FA Cup, Palace travel to Fulham, while Brighton travel to Nottingham Forest. One of these three’s greatest chances of winning a prize.
READ MORE:  , Ranking Premier League clubs by how much they should give a damn about the FA Cup
Nottingham Forest (61 years )
There were two world wars between Forests first FA Cup triumph in 1898 over rivals Derby County and their second in 1959 v Luton. Strangely, despite winning four League Cups, one category name, and two true European Cups, there haven’t been any more FA Cups. 35 years have passed since their last silverware, but Billy Walker, the just manager to get FA Cups on either side of the conflict, ended that drought.
Newcastle United ( 56 years )
Over five decades from winning the 1969 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup which Newcastle lifted by beating Ujpest to end what was then a 14-year drought since their last FA Cup victory the Magpies are celebrating again. They defeated Liverpool in the 2025 final after the disappointment of the Carabao Cup final in 2023 .
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Southampton ( 49 years and counting )
Lawrie McMenemy chose to deliver Southampton’s only silverware to date. The second-division Faithful sunk Manchester United in one of the finest Wembley surprises in history, the 1976 showcase even being the last FA Cup final attended by the Queen. We are the leaders, etc. Wolves ( 45 years and counting ) won the 1908 FA Cup, but they had to wait until the 1949 edition for such a gimmick, with their current barren spell dating back to Nottingham Forest’s victory in the 1980 League Cup.
Ipswich Town ( 44 years and counting )
Ipswich have not won a major trophy since the UEFA Cup in 1981. Because, also for them, it is there for the taking in this years FA Cup, they will be ruining a penalty battle to Nottingham Forest. West Ham ( 1943 years )
West Ham was undoubtedly West Ham’s last team outside of the top flight to win the FA Cup. Arsenal always saw Trevor Brooking coming in 1980. The Hammers actually won the Second Division and came out on top of that competition a year later, closing that gap by and winning the Intertoto Cup against Metz in 1999. In the 2006 FA Cup final, Steven Gerrard took their place. But then Jarrod Bowen came along and scored a pretty big goalagainst Fiorentina in 2023. Aston Villa ( 37 years old ) won the last medal Aston Villa had ever won outside of the play-offs or the terrible Interto Cup with the resounding victory over Yorkshire in the 1996 League Cup final. They spent 37 times wishing for glory after the 1920 FA Cup final, but those 27 clean years are insignificant. A Peter McParland twice in the same opposition in 1957 pipped Matt Busbys leaders and Western Cup semi-finalists.
Manchester United ( 37 years )
It was Busby who, after the same amount of time, put an end to Manchester United’s own wait. A part who was attempting to finish second for three straight First Division seasons at Wembley outclassed Blackpool. The Red Devils had spent a decent amount of time in the next level since Ernest Mangnall took them to their next name in 1911. With the mocking banner at the Stretford End that first appeared in 2002 and showed 26 years on the clock,
Manchester City ( 35 years )
Manchester United had handily reminded them of how long it had been since their bitter neighbours had won a pot. When Yaya Toure scored the just goals in the 2011 FA Cup’s 1-0 semi-final and last, laying the groundwork for a membership that would eventually rule the domestic scene, the score had increased to 35.
Leicester ( 33 years )
There was a time around the late 1990s when Leicester just decided that the League Cup was where it was at. In 1997, 1999, and 2000, the Foxes defeated Middlesbrough, Tottenham, and Tranmere, both, to reach the final of the contest. In fact, the same event resulted in Leicester winning the first major championship against Stoke in a two-legged knot in 1964.
Tottenham Hotspur ( 30 years )
The current drought is 17 years and counting. Their longest stretch of silverware-free time occurred between the 1951 First Division name and the 1921 FA Cup. And it would be unfair to place too much blame on World War II on Heels.
Everton ( 30 years and counting )
Evertons post-1995 FA Cup win work has included a single finalized in which they scored after 25 hours and also lost. That’s awful. Chelsea ( 19659040 )
Managers will change, but Chelsea will undoubtedly never finish its 26 years without winning any silverware. Their final 16 prizes have been won by seven various professionals and Enzo Maresca will certainly bring home the Europa Conference League, thus making the Blues the first team to get all three major European trophies. Between Dave Sexton winning the 1971 Cup Winners Cup and Ruud Gullit winning the 1997 FA Cup, the team had 13 mentors. You can see why Liverpool are generally fairly good at playing the football when a third of their longest trophy drought actually was ended by the Second World War. That was certainly the case when they beat Sunderland to their second division championship in 1923, as well as when they pipped Manchester United to their fifth in 1947. Imagine a name drought lasting 24 years. How embarrassingly embarrassing.
Arsenal ( 17 years )
It seemed like a lifetime had passed when Arsene Wenger finally ended his personal nine-year dry spell by eventually winning the 2014 FA Cup final in ridiculous yet typical circumstances. Arsenal themselves had nearly twice as many games to play before, winning the 1953 First Division name with a somewhat better aim regular over Preston and then coming back from a 3-1 first-leg deficit to defeat Anderlecht in the 1970 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup final. Read more aboutread more
