Highlights

• The football clubs who have put together the longest unbeaten runs since 2000.
• Xabi Alonso's Bayer Leverkusen are on a long unbeaten run and could soon make the list.
• Arsenal's 'Invincibles' are one of the teams that feature following their 49-game unbeaten run but are still nowhere near the top of the list.

Racking up an unbeaten run in top-flight football is one of the hardest things a club can do. Showing the steel to refuse to know when you're defeated is a quality that only the very best teams possess.

Arsenal's unbeaten run is one of the more famous examples of a run without tasting defeat as the Gunners are, to this day, the only club to have ever gone an entire Premier League campaign without losing a single game. This then begs the question: what other unbeaten runs exist in the 21st century?

The result? Well, the International Federation of Football History and Statistics (IFFHS) previously revealed the longest unbeaten streaks from national leagues across the world since the turn of the 21st century, leading to the remarkable result where Arsenal only actually placed in 32nd position.

Xabi Alonso's Bayer Leverkusen are on a remarkable run in Germany and have exceeded Bayern Munich's all-time German football record of 32 games without defeat, reaching 43 at the time of writing. However, there are still six games to go before the newly-crowned Bundesliga champions can make their way into the below list of the longest unbeaten runs in football history. Those are the levels being discussed here.

So, to find out which teams managed to maintain an unblemished record in the league for even longer than the 'Invincibles', be sure to check out every side to go at least 49 games unbeaten since 2000 below:

49 games

Teams: Arsenal, Juventus, Nepal Police Club, Al-Sadd

Despite being at the lower end of this list, Arsene Wenger's 'Invincible' Arsenal side of the 2003/04 season is perhaps the most well-known of all teams to feature. The Gunners are still the only side to have lifted a Golden Premier League trophy after going an entire campaign without tasting defeat.

GIVEMESPORT Key Statistic: Arsenal's 2003/04 team are the only side to ever go a full 38-game Premier League season without losing.

Three other clubs have matched the length of the north London club's unbeaten run, which was ended by Manchester United at Old Trafford. Juventus spent the majority of the 2010s as the dominant force in Italian football and the 'Old Lady' went 49 games without losing in a run that spanned across 2011 and 2012.

Nepal Police Club and Al-Saad are two lesser-known clubs that can boast the exact same record, with the latter being one of the most recent unbeaten runs to make the list. The Qatar club finally lost a game in 2022 after going without defeat since 2020.

50 games

Teams: Dinamo Zagreb, APR

The majority of European football fans won't have heard much about APR, but the side from Rwanda joined Al-Saad with one of the more recent unbeaten stretches. Not only that, but they even went one game further before finally being conquered in 2022.

Dinamo Zagreb also racked up a half-century of undefeated matches in the mid-2010s. The Croatian outfit were a Champions League side at the time, and this was due to their imperious domestic form that left every other side in the division looking for ways to beat the reigning champions. Marcelo Brozovic was among the ranks in that side, and the midfielder would go on to become a household name in European football.

51 games

Teams: Al-Merreikh, Bunyodkor, Hekari United, Al Ahly, Istiqlol, Mbabane Swallows, PAOK, Crvena Zvezda

A whole host of clubs went one better than Dinamo Zagreb and APR, and the majority will be unfamiliar names for many fans. Al Ahly of Egypt are perhaps the biggest club of the bunch as they have a long and storied history of dominating their domestic competition.

Al-Merreikh, Bunyodkor, Heraki United, Istiqlol, Mbabane Swallows, PAOK and Crvena Zvezda (also known as Red Star Belgrade) are the other names that compile the biggest entries on this list. The latter two clubs are better-known to European fans as they pop up in the Champions League and Europa League most years due to the stranglehold they still have on their divisions.

52 games

Teams: Zamalek, Stade Malien

European football fans could be forgiven for not being overly familiar with either Zamalek or Stade Malien. The former are one of the top sides in Egypt alongside Al Ahly, while the latter are a huge name in Mali. Both teams went 52 games without losing in their respective divisions.

Stade Malien's run came a lot more recently as they kicked off their sequence of being unbeaten in 2019, with their first defeat coming in 2021. Zamalek's stretch came in the early 2000s, meaning they only just sneak onto their list. The Egyptian side are unfortunate to have missed out on many trophies due to Al Ahly's sheer dominance in their country.

53 games

Teams: Pakhtakor, FC Porto, Bayern Munich

This is only the first of three appearances on the list of Portuguese royalty in the form of Porto. It is still an impressive feat as the league in Portugal has a number of very good sides, including Benfica, Sporting Lisbon and Braga.

Bayern Munich are the most notable name and, surprisingly, it's the only time we will see the German giants on this list. The Bundesliga - unlike the Portuguese league - is largely seen as a one-team division, but Bayern have only managed 53 successive unbeaten games in the 21st century once, proving how hard an achievement it is. Pep Guardiola was at the helm for the majority of the streak, no wonder he's classed as one of the greats. Pakhtakor of Uzbekistan also went 53 games without losing in the league.

54 games

Team: Slavia Prague

The standalone side with a 54-game run is Slavia Prague of the Czech Republic. The poetry in this story came as the streak was brought to a halt at the hands of local rivals, Sparta, in the 300th Prague derby in 2021.

This was the first time Slavia Prague had been beaten by their biggest rivals since March 2016. It proves all good things come to an end, and all Slavia's dreams were brought crashing back down to earth in a single game. Losing to any side would have been painful, but to do so against their biggest rivals is a tough pill to swallow.

55 games

Teams: FC Porto, Real Esteli

In a run that started in 2010, Andre Villas-Boas' entire stint as Porto manager saw the Portuguese club go without being beaten in the league. The likes of Hulk, Joao Moutinho and a very youthful James Rodriguez were brilliant for the Liga Portuguesa team around this time.

The club weren't only successful domestically, either. Porto would lift the UEFA Europa League in 2011, showing just how impressive they were. Vitor Pereira was the manager who unfortunately led the side to their first defeat in two years. The previous record held by the club was 53 games without losing, so they set a new precedent. More on that shortly.

56 games

Team: Celtic

Rangers may have won the Scottish Premiership under Steven Gerrard in the 2020/21 campaign, but it's their fierce Glasgow rivals Celtic who hold the longest unbeaten streak in Scotland. Brendan Rodgers won almost every trophy in sight during his time with the club, and the Northern Irish boss guided his team to an impressive 56-game run without being beaten.

This streak came in the midst of Celtic's incredible run to nine successive league titles. Scott Brown was at his brilliant best for the iconic green and white hoops as The Bhoys demolished all competition put in front of them. Despite the domestic dominance, there was very little to write home about in terms of European success.

57 games

Teams: Al-Hilal Omdurman, Crvena Zvezda, Primeiro Agosto

Crvena Zvezda are also known as Red Star Belgrade, and they boast one of the most intimidating home atmospheres in Europe. Many top Champions League teams have visited the Serbian outfit and struggled to maintain their composure.

This may have been a decisive factor in this remarkable unbeaten streak, which they share with Al-Hilal Omdurman and Primeiro Agosto. Having a strong home record is the easier part, however, and maintaining that form on the road is the real challenge, a task that these three sides clearly conquered for a long time.

58 games

Teams: Vita Club, FC Porto

As mentioned, Porto set their new record at 55 games unbeaten in 2012. The Portuguese giants managed to better that haul a decade later as the side went 58 league games before tasting defeat once again. Fans of the club would be forgiven for forgetting what losing felt like by that point.

Vita Club of DR Congo weren't beaten for 58 successive league matches, either, but are another one of the clubs to make the list that are less-known to a large section of European fans. Incredibly, Vita Club aren't the highest-ranked African side on the list, however.

59 games

Team: Pyunik

Armenia's record for the longest unbeaten run was originally set by Shirak from 1993 to 1995. The club had the same number of undefeated games as Pyunik, but miss out on the rankings here due to the fact the period of success came before 2000.

Pyunik had three different managers during their sensational run in the early 2000s. Oscar Lopez, Mihai Stoichita and Vardan Minasyan were the three men to carry on the good form between them respectively. Pyunik are a team many won't have heard much of, but they have competed in European competitions a number of times over their history.

60 games

Teams: Al-Hilal Omdurman

Al-Hilal Omdurman can boast the best undefeated run of all African sides in the 21st century, as the Sudan-based outfit reached 60 matches without being beaten in their domestic league in 2018. That period of dominance began in 2016 and was ended two years later.

This is their second entry on the list after their 57-game stretch a few years prior. There are only four clubs in the world to have a better run of successive games without losing, and this goes to show just how impressive Al-Hilal Omdurman's reign of superiority was.

61 games

Team: Levadia

The first side to better the 60-game mark is Levadia. The fact there aren't too many incredible sides from Estonia may play a part in this run, but the same could be said for a lot of the teams and leagues on this list.

Igor Prins led the side to their impressive stretch of games between 2008 and 2009. They actually only tasted their first defeat of the season in the second to last game, meaning they narrowly missed out on an almost flawless campaign. Trans Narva were the side to finally put Levadia to the sword in November 2009.

63 games

Team: Sheriff Tiraspol

No team in the entirety of Moldova could touch Sheriff Tiraspol in the 2000s as the club romped to 10 consecutive league titles. Amid that wonderful reign, they went through this brilliant period without even losing a single game.

The 2006/07 season saw Sheriff go the entire campaign unbeaten, a feat few clubs in the world can boast. It was Zibmru that brought their streak to a grinding halt in 2008 as Leonid Kuchuk's side were finally defeated. One of the more recent impressive feats by the club came when they defeated Real Madrid in their own backyard during the 2021/22 Champions League group stages.

71 games

Team: Al Ahly

The most decorated team in world football make their second appearance on the list as Al Ahly of Egypt still manage to fall 17 games short of the top team on this list. There has been little competition domestically over the years as the club have secured well over 100 trophies in their history.

This unbelievable 71-game run was spread across three different years as it began in 2004 and didn't taste defeat until 2007. Some of the top European leagues come in for criticism for being extremely one-sided, but this is proof that Egyptian football has one dominant force.

88 games

Team: Lincoln Red Imps

Goodness gracious me. Just imagine going five years without a single league defeat - madness. According to the BBC, Lincoln's astonishing 1,959-day streak - completed during a period of winning the Gibraltar Premier Division 14 times in a row - is considered to be Europe's longest chronological unbeaten league run.

However, even their head-spinning achievement still pales in comparison to the all-time European record with UEFA confirming Steaua Bucharest went a barely-believable 104 league games without losing between 1986 and 1989. It does, however, remain the record for the 21st century.