Sir Alex Ferguson didn’t achieve this title on a silver platter. He is the coach with the most official titles in the history of football. Come and learn a bit about Sir Alex’s story and his triumphs.
More Titles: Sir Alex Ferguson (50 titles)
Sir Alex Ferguson was born in Glasgow, Scotland, right at the turn of the year, on December 31, 1941.
Few know that Sir Alex was a player before becoming a coach.
He began his career at Queen’s Park, a Scottish amateur team, making his debut at just 16 years old, playing as a forward, and he scored one of the goals in the team’s victory over Stranraer. Despite this, Sir Alex described his debut as a nightmare.
As an amateur footballer at that time, the young Ferguson had to juggle his playing career with an apprenticeship as a toolmaker. However, much greater things were yet to come.
Sir Alex Ferguson did have a career as a professional player, but he would truly make his mark in the history of world football and earn his royal title as a coach.
The globally renowned Scot began his coaching career at the modest East Stirlingshire in 1974. In the same year, he was hired by St. Mirren, where he achieved his first title, becoming the champion of the Scottish Second Division in the 1976-1977 season.
The following year, he experienced his first and only dismissal, which turned out to be of utmost importance for the course of his career.
In 1978, he moved to Aberdeen, where he developed a taste for winning titles.
At the Scottish club, he made history, including winning the Scottish League title in 1979-1980, breaking the dominance of Rangers and Celtic as the only champions of the National League for over 15 years.
The remarkable disciplinarian also won the European Cup Winners’ Cup in 1982-1983. In total, he won 11 titles with Aberdeen and is considered one of the greatest legends in the club’s history.
After an explosive start as a coach in Scotland, Alex was hired to manage Manchester United in 1986, at a time when the Red Devils were not in good shape and were suffering from various disciplinary problems involving players.
The beginning in Manchester was not the easiest, but with his firm leadership combined with a pure understanding of football, Sir Alex Ferguson managed to apply and develop his method, eventually winning everything with the Red Devils, becoming the greatest coach in the history of Manchester United and one of the greatest in the world.
In total, he spent 29 years with Manchester United, winning 38 titles, including 13 Premier League titles, 2 Champions League titles, and 2 Club World Cups.
Image: Getty Images
Sir Alex’s success was so significant that it led him to write a book titled “Leading.” There, he explains the reasons that brought him to this level, as well as his methods, which were not always conventional, that placed football clubs as institutions to be respected.
The collective titles speak for themselves, but the former coach’s individual awards are also impressive.
He received a total of 20 individual awards, being elected the best Premier League coach 11 times, the best coach in England 4 times, the best coach in the world by World Soccer 4 times, and the best coach in the world by UEFA once.
Furthermore, in the list of the 50 greatest coaches of all time, he holds the 2nd position, behind only Rinus Michels, the legendary coach of Ajax and Barcelona.
List of coaches with the most titles in the history of football:
- Alex Ferguson (SCO): 50
- Mircea Lucescu (ROM): 35
- Pep Guardiola (ESP): 34
- Valery Lobanovsky (UKR): 29
- Luiz Felipe Scolari (BRA): 27
- Jock Stein (SCO) and José Mourinho (POR): 26
And what about you? Do you think Sir Alex Ferguson really lives up to all that we mentioned here? Comment on what you think about this legend!
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Written by João Felipe Miller and Vitor F L Miller.
