Arsenal, Villa and Palace eye unique European treble for England

Arsenal, Villa and Palace eye unique European treble for England

With the European finals now confirmed, an interesting pattern has emerged. Three of the six finalists come from the Premier League - Arsenal, Aston Villa and Crystal Palace - meaning English clubs could make history by winning all three UEFA competitions in the same season.

That naturally raises the question: has one country ever completed a clean sweep of European trophies before?

The answer is yes, although there are a few important caveats. This does not include the period between 1998/99 and 2021/22, when only the Champions League and UEFA Cup or Europa League existed. It also excludes competitions such as the UEFA Super Cup, Intertoto Cup and the old Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, which later became the UEFA Cup under UEFA control.

To find the last and only example, you have to go back to the 1989/90 season, when the now-defunct Cup Winners’ Cup was still part of UEFA’s club competitions.

That year, Italian clubs swept the board. AC Milan lifted the European Cup after beating Benfica in the final, while Juventus defeated Fiorentina in an all-Italian UEFA Cup final. Sampdoria completed the clean sweep by beating Anderlecht in the Cup Winners’ Cup final.

Since the Conference League was introduced in 2021, no country has managed to win all three UEFA competitions in the same season. won the first edition, before , and followed in subsequent years.