Manchester United Most Successful Managers
Manchester United most successful managers? Who is the most successful manager in Manchester United history? Which manager is the most successful manager in Manchester United? Is Sir Alex Ferguson the best ever manager for Manchester United? Here, we look at all Manchester United football managers. This includes the Manchester United past managers and all Manchester United managers list. We will look at the top 15 Manchester United most successful managers.
Manchester United Football Club is a football club based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England. The club was found in Newton Heath in 1878, initially known as Newton Heath LYR F.C. They played their first competitive match in October 1886 in the first round of the 1886/87 FA Cup. The club was renamed Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.
Manchester United have so far employed 22 full-time managers. Their current manager is Ole Gunnar Solskjær, who took over from Jose Mourinho in December 2018 as caretaker manager, before being appointed permanently in March 2019.
Most successful manager in Manchester United history? Which Manchester United managers are Manchester United most successful managers ever? This list will show who the top 15 Manchester United managers are based on stats such as Manchester United managers with the highest win percentage and Manchester United managers with the most titles and honours.
Full List Of Manchester United Head Coaches
| Name | Nationality | From | To | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | Win% |
| A. H. Albut | England | 1892 | 1900 | (n/a) | (n/a) | (n/a) | (n/a) | (n/a) | (n/a) | (n/a) |
| James West | England | 1900 | Sep-03 | 113 | 46 | 20 | 47 | 159 | 147 | 40.7 |
| Ernest Mangnall | England | 10-Oct-03 | 09-Sep-12 | 373 | 202 | 76 | 95 | 700 | 476 | 54.2 |
| T. J. Wallworth | England | 09-Sep-12 | 20-Oct-12 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 11 | 7 | 50 |
| John Bentley | England | 28-Oct-12 | 28-Dec-14 | 82 | 36 | 16 | 30 | 127 | 110 | 43.9 |
| Jack Robson | England | 28-Dec-14 | 31-Oct-21 | 139 | 41 | 42 | 56 | 183 | 207 | 29.5 |
| John Chapman | Scotland | 31-Oct-21 | 08-Oct-26 | 221 | 86 | 58 | 77 | 287 | 274 | 38.9 |
| Lal Hilditchp | England | 08-Oct-26 | 13-Apr-27 | 33 | 10 | 10 | 13 | 38 | 47 | 30.3 |
| Herbert Bamlett | England | 13-Apr-27 | 09-Nov-31 | 183 | 57 | 42 | 84 | 280 | 374 | 31.2 |
| Walter Crickmer | England | 09-Nov-31 | 13-Jul-32 | 43 | 17 | 8 | 18 | 72 | 76 | 39.5 |
| Scott Duncan | Scotland | 13-Jul-32 | 07-Nov-37 | 235 | 92 | 53 | 90 | 371 | 362 | 39.2 |
| Walter Crickmer | England | 09-Nov-37 | 15-Feb-45 | 76 | 30 | 24 | 22 | 131 | 112 | 39.5 |
| Matt Busby | Scotland | 01-Oct-45 | 04-Jun-69 | 1,120 | 565 | 263 | 292 | 2,286 | 1,536 | 50.5 |
| Jimmy Murphy(caretaker) | Wales | Feb-58 | Jun-58 | 22 | 5 | 7 | 10 | 27 | 42 | 22.7 |
| Wilf McGuinness | England | 04-Jun-69 | 29-Dec-70 | 87 | 32 | 32 | 23 | 127 | 111 | 36.8 |
| Matt Busby | Scotland | 29-Dec-70 | 08-Jun-71 | 21 | 11 | 3 | 7 | 38 | 30 | 52.4 |
| Frank O’Farrell | Ireland | 08-Jun-71 | 19-Dec-72 | 81 | 30 | 24 | 27 | 115 | 111 | 37 |
| Tommy Docherty | Scotland | 22-Dec-72 | 04-Jul-77 | 228 | 107 | 56 | 65 | 333 | 252 | 46.9 |
| Dave Sexton | England | 14-Jul-77 | 30-Apr-81 | 201 | 81 | 64 | 56 | 290 | 240 | 40.3 |
| Ron Atkinson | England | 09-Jun-81 | 06-Nov-86 | 292 | 146 | 79 | 67 | 461 | 266 | 50 |
| Alex Ferguson | Scotland | 06-Nov-86 | 19-May-13 | 1,500 | 895 | 338 | 267 | 2,769 | 1,365 | 59.7 |
| David Moyes | Scotland | 01-Jul-13 | 22-Apr-14 | 51 | 27 | 9 | 15 | 86 | 54 | 52.9 |
| Ryan Giggs (caretaker) | Wales | 22-Apr-14 | 11-May-14 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 3 | 50 |
| Louis van Gaal | Netherlands | 16-Jul-14 | 23-May-16 | 103 | 54 | 25 | 24 | 158 | 98 | 52.4 |
| José Mourinho | Portugal | 27-May-16 | 18-Dec-18 | 144 | 84 | 32 | 28 | 244 | 121 | 58.3 |
| Ole Gunnar Solskjær | Norway | 19-Dec-18 | Present | 30 | 17 | 4 | 9 | 51 | 35 | 56.7 |
Top 15 Manchester United Most Successful Managers With The Best Win Percentage
| Name | From | To | Win% |
| Alex Ferguson | 06-Nov-86 | 19-May-13 | 59.7 |
| José Mourinho | 27-May-16 | 18-Dec-18 | 58.3 |
| Ole Gunnar Solskjær | 19-Dec-18 | Present | 56.7 |
| Ernest Mangnall | 10-Oct-03 | 09-Sep-12 | 54.2 |
| David Moyes | 01-Jul-13 | 22-Apr-14 | 52.9 |
| Matt Busby | 29-Dec-70 | 08-Jun-71 | 52.4 |
| Louis van Gaal | 16-Jul-14 | 23-May-16 | 52.4 |
| Matt Busby | 01-Oct-45 | 04-Jun-69 | 50.5 |
| T. J. Wallworth | 09-Sep-12 | 20-Oct-12 | 50 |
| Ron Atkinson | 09-Jun-81 | 06-Nov-86 | 50 |
| Ryan Giggs (caretaker) | 22-Apr-14 | 11-May-14 | 50 |
| Tommy Docherty | 22-Dec-72 | 04-Jul-77 | 46.9 |
| John Bentley | 28-Oct-12 | 28-Dec-14 | 43.9 |
| James West | 1900 | Sep-03 | 40.7 |
| Dave Sexton | 14-Jul-77 | 30-Apr-81 | 40.3 |
Manchester United Most Successful Managers In Terms Of Trophies
This list has been assembled by no order of appointment only.
| Name | Nationality | From | To | Win% | Honours |
| Ernest Mangnall | England | 10-Oct-03 | 09-Sep-12 | 54.16 | 2 First Division titles |
| 1 FA Cup | |||||
| 2 Charity Shields | |||||
| Scott Duncan | Scotland | 13-Jul-32 | 07-Nov-37 | 39.15 | 1 Second Division title |
| Matt Busby | Scotland | 01-Oct-45 | 04-Jun-69 | 50.45 | 5 First Division titles |
| 2 FA Cups | |||||
| 5 Charity Shields (inc. 2 shared) | |||||
| 1 European Cup | |||||
| Jimmy Murphy(caretaker) | Wales | Feb-58 | Jun-58 | 22.73 | |
| Wilf McGuinness | England | 04-Jun-69 | 29-Dec-70 | 36.78 | |
| Matt Busby | Scotland | 29-Dec-70 | 08-Jun-71 | 52.38 | |
| Frank O’Farrell | Ireland | 08-Jun-71 | 19-Dec-72 | 37.04 | |
| Tommy Docherty | Scotland | 22-Dec-72 | 04-Jul-77 | 46.93 | 1 FA Cup |
| 1 Second Division title | |||||
| Dave Sexton | England | 14-Jul-77 | 30-Apr-81 | 40.3 | 1 Charity Shield (shared) |
| Ron Atkinson | England | 09-Jun-81 | 06-Nov-86 | 50 | 2 FA Cups |
| 1 Charity Shield | |||||
| Alex Ferguson | Scotland | 06-Nov-86 | 19-May-13 | 59.67 | 13 Premier League titles |
| 5 FA Cups | |||||
| 4 League Cups | |||||
| 10 Community Shields (inc. 1 shared) | |||||
| 2 UEFA Champions Leagues | |||||
| 1 European Cup Winners’ Cup | |||||
| 1 European Super Cup | |||||
| 1 Intercontinental Cup | |||||
| 1 FIFA Club World Cup | |||||
| David Moyes | Scotland | 01-Jul-13 | 22-Apr-14 | 52.94 | 1 Community Shield |
| Ryan Giggs (caretaker) | Wales | 22-Apr-14 | 11-May-14 | 50 | |
| Louis van Gaal | Netherlands | 16-Jul-14 | 23-May-16 | 52.43 | 1 FA Cup |
| José Mourinho | Portugal | 27-May-16 | 18-Dec-18 | 58.33 | 1 UEFA Europa League |
| 1 League Cup | |||||
| 1 Community Shield |
Manchester United Most Successful Managers
Sir Alex Ferguson
When you think of long-serving or the most successful Manchester United football managers, you automatically think of Sir Alex Ferguson. Well, that is because he definitely is the most successful manager in English history and among the top 10 longest-serving managers in all of Europe. No one has managed a club longer or more successfully in the Premier League than the Scotsman. The only person who gave him some competition in longevity was Arsene Wenger with Arsenal.
Here is a list of all the trophies he won with Manchester United –
- Premier League: 1992–93, 1993–94, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1998–99, 1999–2000, 2000–01, 2002–03, 2006–07, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2010–11, 2012–13
- FA Cup: 1989–90, 1993–94, 1995–96, 1998–99, 2003–04
- Football League Cup: 1991–92, 2005–06, 2008–09, 2009–10
- FA Charity/Community Shield: 1990 (shared), 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 2003, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011
- UEFA Champions League: 1998–99, 2007–08
- European Cup Winners’ Cup: 1990–91
- European Super Cup: 1991
- Intercontinental Cup: 1999
- FIFA Club World Cup: 2008
Sir Alex Ferguson made himself absolutely indispensable to the Red Devils up until the very day he chose to retire. You might never find a second manager like him in the history of this beautiful sport!
Matt Busby
Matt Busby was called upon to manage Manchester United and he oversaw the club through their most trying times in the entire history of the organization. Right before the end of the Second World War, the Red Devils approached Busby for the position after he turned down Liverpool.
Busby wanted more responsibility at Merseyside but his demands were met by the Old Trafford chiefs. He guided the club back to the first division and won their first-ever title in 1952, in five year’s time. He took on the initiative to change the working structure of the club, replacing ageing players with young and hungry prospects, who came to be known as the “Busby Babes”.
That rebuilt side went on to win two more consecutive league titles in 1956 and 1957 along with two FA Cup final appearances. Unfortunately, that was when the Munich disaster occurred which took the lives of so many players and club officials. Busby survived the crash but he was left fighting for his life at the hospital.
While he recovered, Jimmy Murphy served as a caretaker boss. Miraculously, Busby got back on his feet and he immediately thrust himself into the rebuilding process. Within just five years, he delivered the FA Cup in 1963 and then two league titles. The greatest achievement to top it all was the European Cup in 1968. After that season he left the managerial duties to Wilf McGuiness.
See Also:
- Top 5 Most Overrated Manchester United Players
- Manchester United fixtures 2019/2020
- Manchester United Top Goal Scorers Of All Time
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