‘History Tradition Class’ is often used on Arsenal banners (particularly when they play City it seems; there was one at Wembley) and with the two sides meeting on Sunday (19 April 2026) it seems like the same lines will be trotted out again. So for today’s feature I’ve decided to have a look at the history of the two clubs to compare successes. It seems to me that if a club claims that their club has something that another does not then it’s only fair to test that idea. Anyway here goes….
What do we mean by history? Is it success? Is it a ‘first’ that predates the rest. Is it more trophies? Is it longevity? Is it just nonsense? (probably!). So here are a few comparisons of achievements just to get the ball rolling:
Major trophies won or achievements made:
| Trophy/Achievement | Year & team | Other Team |
| Joined the League | 1892 (City as Ardwick AFC) | 1893 (Woolwich Arsenal) |
| Promotion | 1899 (City) | 1904 (Arsenal) |
| Second Division Champions | 1899 (City) | Never |
| Major Trophy | 1904 (City) | 1930 (Arsenal) |
| FA Cup | 1904 (City) | 1930 (Arsenal) |
| League | 1931 (Arsenal) | 1937 (City) |
| League Cup | 1970 (City) | 1987 (Arsenal) |
| ECWC | 1970 (City) | 1994 (Arsenal) |
| Fairs Cup | 1970 (Arsenal) | Never |
| Domestic Treble | 2019 (City) | Never |
| Traditional Treble | 2023 (City) | Never |
| European Cup | 2023 (City) | Never |
| Super Cup | 2023 (City) | Never |
| Club World Cup | 2023 (City) | Never |
| Community Shield | 1930 (Arsenal) | 1937 (City) |
I’ll show more comparisons on success in a moment but first how about attendance comparisons?
The highest home attendance by either club is: 84,569 (City). Arsenal’s record attendance is over 10,000 lower at 73,707, achieved at a European game at Wembley.
Record League attendance: 79,491 (City); 73,295 (Arsenal).
The first time either side were the best supported team in the League: 1910-11 (City). Arsenal first achieved this feat almost 20 years later in 1929-30.
Okay, what about first and most recent successes? Here’s a list of the major trophies won by these sides listed with the first time one of the team’s achieved that success and the most recent time:
| Trophy/Achievement | First | Team | Most Recent | Team |
| Major Trophy | 1904 | City | 2026 | City |
| FA Cup | 1904 | City | 2023 | City |
| League | 1931 | Arsenal | 2024 | City |
| League Cup | 1970 | City | 2026 | City |
| ECWC | 1970 | City | 1994 | Arsenal |
| Fairs Cup | 1970 | Arsenal | 1970 | Arsenal |
| European Cup | 2023 | City | 2023 | City |
| Super Cup | 2023 | City | 2023 | City |
| Club World Cup | 2023 | City | 2023 | City |
| Community Shield | 1930 | Arsenal | 2024 | City |
| Domnestic Treble | 2019 | City | 2019 | City |
| Traditional Treble | 2023 | City | 2023 | City |
Interesting stats but what about most trophies won? Surely there’s a big difference? Err, well not really:
| MOST TROPHIES WON | ||
| Trophy | Number & Team | Other Team |
| FA Cup | 14 (Arsenal) | 7 (City) |
| League | 13 (Arsenal) | 10 (City) |
| League Cup | 9 (City) | 2 (Arsenal) |
| Club World Cup | 1 (City) | |
| Super Cup | 1 (City) | |
| European Cup | 1 (City) | |
| ECWC | 1 (both City & Arsenal) | |
| Fairs Cup | 1 (Arsenal) | |
| Total | 31 (Arsenal) | 30 (City) |
I’m sure someone will say ‘but take the Super Cup off as it’s like the Community Shield’. Okay but that still means that after all these decades there are only 2 major trophies separating City and Arsenal. Also, there are some sports historians who would say ‘remove the Fairs Cup’ as that wasn’t a UEFA tournament and the rules of entry meant that often teams finishing in a position that should allow entry couldn’t enter as only one team per city could enter. In 1969 Everton finished above Arsenal and were denied entry into the Fairs Cup because Liverpool had already qualified. Similarly Chelsea, Spurs and West Ham were denied entry due to Arsenal qualifying. The same was true across Europe. In earlier years ‘London’ had entered the competition.
I’m not going to say that Manchester City’s history is greater than any other club, nor should any other person say that about their club. Each club has its own successes and failures; reasons to be proud and moments to forget. However, when a club or its fans try to claim superiority over another because of their ‘history’ or ‘tradition’ or ‘class’ (maybe I’ll do that another day) then it’s only fair to highlight the history and tradition of success other clubs have enjoyed.
Gary James' Football Archive 
A thought I always have when Arsenal’s top flight titles are mentioned is that although they’ve never been relegated from that status, they didn’t gain it by sporting merit on the field.
LikeLike