The Liverpool F.C.–Manchester United F.C. rivalry, sometimes referred to as the Northwest derby, is a high-profile inter-city rivalry between English professional association football clubs Liverpool and Manchester United. It is considered one of the biggest fixtures in English football and one of the biggest and fiercest rivalries in world football. Players, fans and the media consider the fixture between the two clubs to be their biggest rivalry, above even their own local derbies, with Everton and Manchester City respectively.
The rivalry has been fuelled by the proximity of the two major cities that they represent, their historic economic and industrial rivalry, significant periods of domestic footballing dominance and European success, and their popularity at home and abroad, as two of the biggest-earning and widely supported football clubs in the world.
The two clubs are the most successful in the history of English football and among the most decorated in the world; between them they have won 40 league titles, 21 FA Cups, 16 League Cups, 37 FA Community Shields, nine European Cups/UEFA Champions Leagues, four UEFA Cups, one UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, five UEFA Super Cups, one Intercontinental Cup and two FIFA Club World Cups. As of 3 May 2026, Liverpool lead in terms of number of trophies won with 69 to United's 68, while United lead in the head-to-head record between the two teams with 85 wins to Liverpool's 72; the remaining 61 matches have finished as draws.
Neither of the two, as well as Arsenal, Chelsea, Everton, and Tottenham, have been relegated from the Premier League, the current top-tier league serving as the highest level of the English football pyramid.
Inter-city rivals
The cities of Liverpool and Manchester are located in the north west of England, apart. Since the Industrial Revolution, there has been a consistent rivalry between the two cities based on economic and industrial competition. Manchester through to the 18th century was the far more populous city and was considered representative of the north. By the late 18th century, Liverpool had grown as a major seaport – critical to the growth and success of the northern cotton mills. Over the next century, Liverpool grew to supersede Manchester and throughout the late 19th and early 20th century was often described as the British Empire's second city. The links between the two cities were strengthened with the construction of the Bridgewater Canal, the Mersey and Irwell Navigation and the world's first inter-city railway, the Liverpool and Manchester Railway, for the transport of raw materials inland.
The construction of the Manchester Ship Canal, funded by Manchester merchants, was opposed by Liverpool politicians and bred resentment between the two cities. Tensions between working-class Liverpool dockers and labourers in Manchester was heightened after its completion in 1894, just three months before the first meeting between Liverpool and Newton Heath (as United were called at the time) in a play-off match that would see Newton Heath relegated to the Second Division.
Today, the crests of both the city of Manchester and Manchester United include stylised ships representing the Manchester Ship Canal and Manchester's trade roots. The ship is also included on the crest of many other Mancunian institutions such as the Manchester City Council.
Post-war shifts in economic ties, reliance on regional coal and shifts in transatlantic trade patterns caused by the growth of Asian labour markets caused the gradual decline of British manufacturing. Both Liverpool and Manchester suffered the loss of their primary sources of income. With Liverpool, the switch from North American to continental European and Asian shipping routes tended to benefit southern English ports, while Manchester suffered from the expansion of the Asian textile industry. This reversal of fortunes happened against the backdrop of shifting political backgrounds and significant events in British culture and society in the second half of the 20th century.
Both cities were part of the county of Lancashire until 1974, with the enactment of the Local Government Act 1972. Since then, Liverpool and Manchester respectively anchor the neighbouring metropolitan counties of Merseyside and Greater Manchester.
The two cities continue to be strong regional rivals. Their continued importance to the UK economy has been reflected with the awarding of the 2002 Commonwealth Games to Manchester, while Liverpool was awarded the title of 2008 European Capital of Culture as part of its regeneration.
More recent projects by Peel Ports have sought to re-establish the economic links between the Port of Liverpool and Port of Manchester, including re-developing trade links via the Manchester Ship Canal.
Football rivals
Formation to 1945
Manchester United F.C. was formed in Newton Heath in 1878 as Newton Heath LYR F.C., and played their first competitive match in October 1886, when they entered the first round of the 1886–87 FA Cup.Barnes et al. (2001), p. 8.
Liverpool F.C. was formed in 1892 following a disagreement between the board of Everton and club president John Houlding, who owned the club's ground, Anfield. The disagreement between the two parties over rent resulted in Everton moving to Goodison Park from Anfield, and Houlding founded Liverpool F.C. to play in the vacated stadium. Liverpool supporters often sing the chant 'You should have paid the rent' to Everton fans during matches between the two sides, to reflect this.
Liverpool's first season was in the Second Division in 1893. The team went undefeated all season, winning the title and being put up for election to the First Division, which would see them play a one-off test match against the bottom side of the First Division for their place. The team that Liverpool were to face was Newton Heath, whom they beat 2–0 to take their place in the first tier.
Liverpool won their first Football League Championship trophy in 1901 and followed it up in 1906, the same season that saw the newly renamed Manchester United promoted to the top flight after finishing as Second Division runners-up behind Bristol City. Two seasons later, by which time Liverpool had fallen into mid-table, Manchester United secured their first league title, winning the 1907–08 Football League nine points clear of Aston Villa and Manchester City. They followed this up by winning the first-ever FA Charity Shield match when they defeated Queens Park Rangers over two legs in 1908. The following season, they won the 1909 FA Cup Final, and followed this up with another league title and Charity Shield in 1911.
The outbreak of World War I disrupted domestic football, and following the resumption of competitions in 1919 Liverpool asserted themselves on domestic football with a brace of league Championships while United found themselves in steep decline that saw them relegated in 1923. Between 1923 and the outbreak of World War II, neither team won any more competitive trophies other than regional trophies, with Manchester United spending three separate periods in the Second Division.
1945 to 1992
After the Second World War, Liverpool again became English champions in 1947 before the clubs' roles reversed once more, with Manchester United finding stability under the management of former Liverpool captain Matt Busby, winning the FA Cup in 1948 and then three league titles and Charity Shields apiece in the 1950s, while the Merseysiders dropped into the second tier in 1954. During this time, future Liverpool manager Bill Shankly was approached by then Liverpool chairman Tom Williams and asked, "How would you like to manage the best club in the country?", to which Shankly replied, "Why? Is Matt Busby packing it in?"
Following Liverpool's promotion under Shankly in 1962, the two clubs found themselves in direct competition with each other for the first time, sharing four league titles between 1964 and 1967, as well as the 1965 FA Charity Shield. Following this period however, the two sides began to drift in opposite directions once more. United's title victory of 1967 would be their last for 26 years, while Liverpool would enjoy 19 years of sustained success, winning 11 league titles, 19 domestic cups and seven European trophies from 1973 to 1992. United's main reprieves during this time came through cup competitions, such as their triumphs over the Merseysiders in the 1977 FA Cup final and the 1979 FA Cup semi-final replay at Goodison Park. It was during this period, in the late 1970s and early 1980s, that the modern-day rivalry between the two clubs truly began to develop. According to football sociologist John Williams, Manchester United had developed a "glamour and media profile" but didn't have the success to match it, while Liverpool fans felt the Red Devils were "media darlings who got far too much publicity". There was a perception in Liverpool that their hugely successful but "professional" and "workmanlike" teams were always somehow in the shadow of the stars at Old Trafford. This led to a derisory nickname for United in Liverpool: "The Glams".
1992–present Manchester United's 26-year spell without a league title was replicated and exceeded by Liverpool from 1990 to 2020, during which time United dominated English football and won 13 league titles, 23 domestic cups and five European trophies. Liverpool's success in domestic competitions such as the 2003 League Cup and 2006 FA Cup, as well as European competitions like the 2005 and 2019 Champions Leagues, allowed them some consolation during their league title dry spell, which finally ended in 2020.
Despite their contrasting fortunes, only eight times since 1972 have neither Liverpool nor United finished in the top two of the league table – in 1980–81, 2003–04, 2004–05, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2022–23 and 2023–24 – and in seven of those eight campaigns, silverware was still taken home by one of the two clubs; Liverpool paraded the European Cup and League Cup in 1981, while Manchester United lifted the FA Community Shield and FA Cup in the 2004 season and Liverpool claimed the Champions League in 2005. United brought home the FA Cup again in 2016, won a treble of trophies consisting of the Community Shield, League Cup and UEFA Europa League in 2016–17, won the League Cup again in 2023 and brought back the FA Cup in 2024.
Managers
Notable managers
While Liverpool and Manchester United's successes are almost identical in number, their systems of achieving these successes vary considerably. Liverpool built their dominance on a dynasty known as the Anfield Boot Room. The boot room itself was where strategy for future matches was planned, however, it became a breeding ground for future Liverpool managers following the arrival of Bill Shankly in 1959. The original members were Shankly himself, Bob Paisley, Joe Fagan and Reuben Bennett, although the likes of Kenny Dalglish joined later on. Shankly laid down principles which subsequent Boot Room graduates retained and developed: the club adopted a back four sooner than most and played a game based on possession, pushing high and pressing.