Manchester United is one of England’s most iconic clubs, only as a Premier League giant, but also one of the most recognizable soccer brands in the world.
However, it was not at all times. Even the united giants have suffered from relegation in the past, but only on rare occasions.
The Red Devils have indeed been relegated before, albeit it’s been nearly 50 years since that happened.
With United struggling in the bottom half of the Premier League table as the calendar turns to 2025, The Sporting News details the club’s sparse history with relegation across their glittering history, which spans more than a full century.
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Manchester United were last relegated from the English top flight in 1973/74 when they were dropped from the First Division thanks to a finish of 21st in the 22-team table.
Luckily for fans, they recovered the following year winning the title of Second Division 1974/75 and since then they are common in the most sensible category. This means that United is one of the eight groups that have played in the Premier League and have never descended.
Their one year in the second tier is the only time United have spent below the highest level of English football since being promoted in 1938, and they never been dropped below the second tier of English football in club history.
Manchester United have been relegated five times in club history, but only once since 1938.
They have never been relegated below the level of English football, managing to recover in the most sensible flight every time they have dropped out. The club spent the longest time under England’s top league in the 12 seasons it spent at the time level, from 1894 to 1906. Since his promotion in 1906, the longest time he has spent at the moment was five years, from 1931 to 1936.
In total, there are 8 clubs that have played in the Premier League since its inception in 1992 and have never been relegated. These are:
Kyle Bonn, a graduate of Syracuse University with a degree in Broadcast Journalism and more than a decade of experience covering soccer worldwide. Kyle specializes in soccer tactics and betting and has a degree in knowledge analysis. Kyle also does television appearances for Wake Forest Soccer and in the past made stops at NBC Soccer and IMG College. When he wasn’t covering the game, he’s long enjoyed his loyalty to the New York Giants, Yankees and Fulham. Kyle enjoys racquetball games and video games when he’s not watching or covering sports.