England on 61
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Paris Saint-Germain’s victory over Arsenal in the Champions League final on Saturday evening won the Ligue 1 side their second successive trophy and French football only its third-ever European Cup. Although the Parisian giants look like a formidable force in Europe at this moment in time, France’s top-flight still lags behind the rest of Europe’s top leagues, with Italy claiming five titles, England seven and Spain far out in front with no less than 13 since the European Cup was rebranded to the Champions League in 1992. But which nations lead the way in terms of having the most players to lift the famous trophy? Looking back through Transfermarkt’s extensive database, we can today reveal some interesting numbers.
Spain stands head and shoulders above every other nation when it comes to producing Champions League-winning players in the competition’s modern era, having contributed a remarkable 113 players to title-winning squads since 1992. This commanding lead reflects the extraordinary success of Real Madrid and Barcelona on the European stage, with Spanish footballers consistently forming the backbone of the continent’s most decorated clubs over the past three decades. In this regard, former Madrid players Daniel Carvajal and Nacho Fernández have won more titles than any other Spanish player, with six each.
Germany, Italy and France are tightly clustered in second, third and fourth place, with 69, 68 and 65 winning players respectively. Among the three nations, the serial winners are once again former Madrid players in the form of German midfielder Toni Kroos and French striker Karim Benzema, who have won six and five Champions Leagues respectively. The Italian players to win more than any other of their compatriots are former AC Milan defensive stars Alessandro Costacurta and Paolo Maldini, who both have three titles each. England sit fifth with 61 players lifting the trophy, a figure that may surprise some given the Premier League’s global dominance in recent years, though it reflects the fact that English clubs have relied heavily on foreign players during their Champions League campaigns. Seven English players share the title of winning the most Champions League trophies with two each.
The rest of the top 10 is made up of smaller nations with some exceptional players who have undoubtedly thrived in the European competition in the modern era. For example, Brazil sit sixth in the list and can call on legends of the tournament such as Marcelo (five titles), Casemiro (five) and Dani Alves (3), while Portugal sits seventh with Cristiano Ronaldo claiming no less than five on his own. In eighth place is the Netherlands, where Clarence Seedorf’s five European titles are more than twice that of the next most successful Dutchman, with Lionel Messi (four) and Luka Modric (six) representing Argentina and Croatia respectively.
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