Arsenal Crowned Premier League Champions After 22-Year Wait

Arsenal F.C. end 22 years jinx and became the Premier League champions after two decades of heartbreak. After Manchester City F.C. were held to a 1-1 draw by AFC Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium on Wednesday, as confirmed by the Premier League website. The triumph marks the first Premier League title for manager Mikel Arteta. The Gunners last lifted the Premier League trophy during the 2003/04 season under legendary manager Arsène Wenger, with Patrick Vieira captaining the side through their historic unbeaten campaign. Led by skipper Martin Ødegaard, Arsenal finally ended years of near misses after finishing runners-up in each of the previous three seasons. Their closest heartbreak came in 2023/24, when Manchester City clinched the title by just two points. With this success, Arsenal have now won four Premier League titles, moving ahead of Liverpool F.C. and sitting just one behind Chelsea F.C. in the Premier League-era honours list. Manchester United F.C. remain the competition’s most successful club with 13 Premier League crowns, while Manchester City have won eight. Blackburn Rovers F.C. and Leicester City F.C. are the only other clubs to have lifted the trophy once each. In the broader history of English top-flight football, Arsenal’s latest success takes their overall league title tally to 14, behind only Liverpool and Manchester United, who have each won 20 championships. Arsenal’s title-winning run was powered by contributions across the squad. Summer signing Viktor Gyökeres led the scoring charts with 14 goals, while Bukayo Saka, Eberechi Eze, Leandro Trossard, Martín Zubimendi, Declan Rice and Mikel Merino all chipped in with key performances throughout the campaign. Creativity was equally shared around the team, with Trossard, Ødegaard, Rice, Saka, Jurrien Timber and Gabriel Magalhães all registering at least four assists during the season. Manchester City’s draw against Bournemouth left them four points adrift of Arsenal with only one game remaining, confirming that Pep Guardiola’s side can no longer catch the league leaders.