Atletico Madrid in the Europa League: Three Wins and the Super Cups

Three Europa League titles in nine seasons, each one followed by a UEFA Super Cup. It is the most successful sustained run in Atletico Madrid’s European history, and it happened in the competition the club’s supporters would least have chosen, which is precisely why it mattered.

2010: Fulham in Hamburg

The first arrived in 2009–10, under Quique Sánchez Flores, and it broke a drought that had run since 1962.

The run included beating Liverpool in the semi-finals. In the final in Hamburg, Atletico beat Fulham 2–1 after extra time, with Diego Forlán scoring both, the second in the 116th minute.

The context is what gives it weight. The club had been relegated a decade earlier, had gone thirty-three years without a European trophy of any kind, and had not won a major honour since the 1996 Double. The club history treats 2010 as the point the modern club begins.

2012: Athletic Bilbao in Bucharest

Two seasons later Atletico won it again, beating Athletic Bilbao 3–0 in Bucharest.

There is a symmetry to the opponent that is easy to miss: Atletico were founded in 1903 as a Madrid branch of Athletic Bilbao, and the two clubs have worn near-identical shirts ever since. A European final between them was a first, and the shared origin is the reason the two teams looked so alike on the night.

This was the last trophy before Diego Simeone’s first full season.

2018: Marseille in Lyon

The third came in 2017–18, a 3–0 win over Marseille in Lyon, with Simeone’s side winning the competition in the same season they finished runners-up in La Liga.

Three wins in nine seasons, from a club that had gone forty-eight years between its first European trophy and its second.

The Three Super Cups

Each Europa League win carried an automatic fixture against the Champions League holders, and Atletico won all three: the UEFA Super Cup in 2010, 2012 and 2018.

The 2018 edition is the one supporters cite. Atletico beat Real Madrid 4–2 after extra time in Tallinn, a European final won against the neighbours, two years after the Champions League finals had gone the other way twice.

Three Super Cups from three attempts is a perfect record in a competition the club has only ever entered by winning something else first.

What the Europa League Record Means

Six European trophies sit in the cabinet, three Europa Leagues and three Super Cups, and every one of them was won between 2010 and 2018. Add the 1962 Cup Winners’ Cup and the 1974 Intercontinental Cup and the club’s entire European haul is eight, of which six came in a nine-year window.

That concentration is the single clearest statistic about the modern club. Atletico Madrid did not gradually become a European side; they became one in 2010 and stayed one. The honours list shows how unevenly the rest of the record is distributed by comparison.

How many Europa League titles have Atletico Madrid won?

Three: 2009–10 (beating Fulham 2–1 after extra time in Hamburg), 2011–12 (beating Athletic Bilbao 3–0 in Bucharest) and 2017–18 (beating Marseille 3–0 in Lyon).

Who scored in the 2010 Europa League final?

Diego Forlán scored both Atletico goals against Fulham, the second an extra-time winner in the 116th minute. Atletico had beaten Liverpool in the semi-finals.

How many UEFA Super Cups have Atletico won?

Three, from three attempts, in 2010, 2012 and 2018. Each followed a Europa League win. The 2018 edition was a 4–2 win over Real Madrid after extra time in Tallinn.

Why was the 2012 final against Athletic Bilbao unusual?

Because Atletico were founded in 1903 as a Madrid branch of Athletic Bilbao and the two clubs have worn near-identical red-and-white striped shirts ever since. It was their first European final against each other.

How many European trophies have Atletico Madrid won in total?

Eight: three Europa Leagues, three UEFA Super Cups, the 1962 Cup Winners' Cup and the 1974 Intercontinental Cup. Six of the eight were won between 2010 and 2018.