15 Best Players in Football History Never to Have Won a Trophy

Trophies are everything in football. When footballers look back on their career, they will look at their winners’ medals and everything they’ve achieved in the game. They might not remember how many goals they’ve scored or how well they played in certain games. Instead, the trophies they lifted will be remembered above everything else.

Some of the world’s greatest players have won trophies galore. If you play for one of Europe’s biggest clubs, it’s almost impossible not to get your hands on some silverware each season.

But we’re not here to celebrate successful players. Instead, we want to look to the other side of the spectrum. That’s because we want to find out who are the very best players to have never got their hands on a piece of silverare? You might be surprised at some of the prestigious names on the list.

The 15 best players to never win a trophy

Player
Nationality
Notable Club(s)

Antonio Di Natale
Italian
Udinese

Giuseppe Signori
Italian
Lazio, Sampdoria, Bologna

Bernd Schneider
German
Bayer Leverkusen

Leighton Baines
English
Everton

Matthew Le Tissier
English
Southampton

Yildiray Basturk
Turkish
Bayer Leverkusen, Hertha Berlin

Rob Lee
English
Charlton Athletic, Newcastle, West Ham

Stan Collymore
English
Nottingham Forest, Liverpool

Luigi Di Biagio
Italian
Roma, Inter Milan

Joseba Etxeberria
Spanish
Athletic Bilbao

Steve Bull
English
Wolves

Cristiano Doni
Italian
Atalanta

Jonny Haynes
English
Fulham

Socrates
Brazilian
Corinthians, Fiorentina

Harry Kane
English
Tottenham, Bayern Munich

Antonio Di Natale

A true icon of Italian football

Antonio Di Natale was a proper goalscorer, bagging 227 goals in 446 matches for Udinese. He also represented Italy on 42 occasions, scoring 11 times. But with only two permanent clubs – Empoli and Udinese – he didn’t stand much chance of winning a club honour while he missed out on a place at the 2006 World Cup.

He did play in the Euro 2012 final but lost 4-0 to Spain. On a personal level, Di Natale won Italy’s Football of the Year in 2010 while he won Serie A’s Golden Boot in 2009/10 and 2010/11 with 29 and 28 goals respectively.

Giuseppe Signori

He turned down a move to Man Utd to stay in Italy

From one brilliant Italian striker to another. Giuseppe Signori scored more than 250 goals during his career at the likes of Lazio and Bologna. If he had stayed at Lazio for three more years, he’d have won the Coppa Italia, Cup Winners’ Cup, UEFA Super Cup and Serie A title.

Like Di Natale, he also won the Serie A Golden Boot but on three occasions – the 1992/93, 1993/94 and 1995/96 seasons for Lazio. During his career, Signori admitted that Premier League clubs were interested in him, telling Corriere dello Sport in January 1997, per the Independent:

“Arsenal and Newcastle have made the best offers but I can’t deny that Manchester United and Chelsea have also made advances. They offered me a contract of five billion lire a year [£2m]. It’s a mind-boggling amount.”

However, Signori stayed in Italy – a decision he may regret to this day without a trophy to his name. On the international stage, he scored seven times and was an unused substitute in the 1994 World Cup final against Brazil, where Italy lost on penalties.

Bernd Schneider

One of the more unlucky players on the list

Bernd Schneider might just be one of the unluckiest players in football history. The German came second in the Bundesliga on two occasions, was a losing finalist in the German Cup twice and was a runner-up in the Champions League. The midfielder played 81 times for Germany but somehow managed to avoid winning anything.

Most notably, Schneider was named in Germany’s squad for the World Cup in 2002 in South Korea and Japan. Die Mannschaft were one of the best teams at the tournament and reached the final, only to lose to Brazil thanks to a Ronaldo Nazario masterclass.

Leighton Baines

His magical left peg failed to inspire Everton to a title

During his time in the Premier League, you could argue that he was one of the best full-backs in England – and he finished his career as one of the players with the highest penalty tallies in Premier League history. Between 2009 and 2015, Leighton Baines’ left boot caused havoc for opposing sides, but it was never enough to inspire them to a trophy. After joining the Toffees in 2007, he became an instant fan-favourite at Goodison Park.

The closest they came to a trophy during his time with the Merseyside outfit was when they reached the FA Cup final in 2009. Despite taking a shock early lead against Chelsea, the London giants would go on to turn the game around and clinch the cup with a 2-1 win. Baines spent most of his career with Everton before retiring from the sport in 2020 without a single honour to his name.

Matt Le Tissier

Another Premier League icon who failed to touch silverware

The Southampton legend once said: “I knew I probably wouldn’t win any honours, but when you’re at a club that size, staying in the Premier League for 16 years gave me as much pleasure as winning a medal if I’d gone somewhere else.” You can’t quite put that in a trophy cabinet, can you?

Le Tissier was a sensational player and has a list of personal accolades as long as his arm. They include PFA Young Player of the Year, Southampton’s Player of the Year on three occasions, most assists in a Premier League season, Goal of the Season and an entry into the PFA Team of the Year. If you’re unsure about quite how good Matt Le Tissier was, Xavi once admitted his household was ‘obsessed’ with him. Xavi said:

“In Catalonia there used to be a half-hour programme every Monday where they’d show the best goals from the Premier League. Every week, Matt Le Tissier would be on the show. I’m talking outrageous, sickening goals. Straight in the top corner, left-foot flick and then right over a defender and score against Newcastle. We used to say: ‘This guy, Le Tissier, is outrageous and he never goes to a big team. He stays at Southampton. It’s incredible. He could play for anyone.’ Our whole house was obsessed with him.”

Yildiray Basturk

His time in Germany proved unsuccessful

Like Schneider, Yildiray Basturk was part of the ‘Bayer Neverkusen’ curse. The midfielder faced Real Madrid in the 2002 Champions League final with the German club but could do nothing to stop Zinedine Zidane being Zinedine Zidane. Spells at Bochum, Hertha and Stuttgart in Germany didn’t bring him any closer to a trophy.

During the early 2000s, Basturk was part of the Turkey side that established itself as one of the dark horses at every major tournament. The former attacking midfielder was named in the national team’s squad for the World Cup in 2002. Turkey were one of the teams to watch that year, but just fell short, losing to eventual champions Brazil in the semi-final.

Rob Lee

He was part of the England 1998 side that suffered heartache in France

Okay, Rob Lee did win the First Division with Newcastle United, but that’s not a major trophy. It wasn’t for a lack of trying at St James’ Park, though. Between 1996 and 1999, Lee twice finished second in the Premier League and was twice a losing finalist in the FA Cup. He was also named in the 1995/96 PFA Team of the Year.

For England, Lee 21 times and was in the squad for the 1998 World Cup. After finishing second in the group behind Romania, the Three Lions faced a tough test in the round of 16 in Argentina. In typical England fashion, they eventually suffered heartache via a penalty shootout.

Stan Collymore

A gifted player who came up short when it mattered

Stan Collymore was once the most exciting prospect in English football, but he finished his career without a major trophy to his name – that’s despite 28 goals in 64 league games for Liverpool. He did help Nottingham Forest earn promotion to the Premier League earlier in his career with a second-placed finish. He then led Forest to third place in the top flight, which saw him become one of the hottest properties in the country.

Collymore did play for a club during a time when they won a trophy. However, he was cup-tied for Leicester’s League Cup triumph in 2000 and failed to get a medal. He also only managed three appearances for England and was never named in a squad for a major tournament.

Luigi Di Biagio

He suffered many heartbreaks on the pitch

If Schneider is the unluckiest player in football history, then Luigi Di Biagio is a very close second. If you took a swift look at Di Biagio’s career, which shows he played for Roma for four years in the 90s, Inter for four years in the early noughties and represented Italy 31 times, you’d guess that he picked up a number of trophies.

However, thanks to a lot of heartbreak, he somehow didn’t. He was a runner-up in Serie A in 2002-03, a runner-up in the Coppa Italia in 1999-00, a runner-up in the Suppercoppa in 2000, a runner-up in the European Championship with Italy in 2000, as well as losing in the semi-finals of the Champions League and UEFA Cup.

Joseba Etxeberria

He peaked just before Spain came good

Despite playing well over 400 times for Athletic Bilbao and representing Spain on 53 occasions, Joseba Etxeberria actually never managed to win a major trophy, much to the surprise of many. Etxeberria will go down as one of the best players to represent Bilbao and scored 96 times for the club, according to Transfermarkt.

With over 50 appearances for his national team, Spain, you’d assume that Etxeberria was at least part of a successful Spanish team at a major tournament. Well, think again. After making his debut in 1997, he played at the 1998 World Cup in France, but the team were knocked out in the group stage. He then played at Euro 2000 and Euro 2004, again, failing to win anything before retiring from international duty in 2004.

Steve Bull

One of the best players to play for Wolves

Steve Bull was good enough to score four England goals in 13 matches, but his desire to stay at Wolverhampton Wanderers for basically the entirety of his whole career limited his chances of winning a major trophy tenfold. Despite becoming a cult hero among Molineux circles, his affinity to the club prevented him from becoming a man who picked up many trophies.

During his time with the Midlands side, his 300+ goals for the club did help them win the Third Division, Fourth Division and the Football League Trophy, though. Unfortunately, while he will go down as one of the best players to put on a Wolves shirt, his success in the lower division doesn’t count.

Cristiano Doni

Another won had some success in the lower levels

Doni played most of his career at Atalanta and was a well-known player in Italian football, proving to be a real nuisance for defenders. Despite failing to win anything major, he did, however, win a Serie C1 title with Bologna and three Serie B titles with Bologna, Brescia and Atalanta. No, they don’t count.

He was also capped seven times by Italy, between 2001 and 2002. The midfielder was most notably named in their squad for the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan. With a talented squad, the national side were expected to go far in the tournament. However, Italy suffered a shock exit against South Korea in the round of 16, a game which will go down as one of the biggest upsets in the history of the tournament.

Jonny Haynes

Becoming the first player to be paid £100 a week was as good as it got

We’re going way back for this one. Jonny Haynes played for Fulham between 1952–1970, scoring just shy of a whopping 150 league goals – but his potency was not enough to see him pick up silverware. He also played 56 times for England, including 22 as captain, but trophies also evaded his grasp on the international stage.

However, he played his final match for his country in 1962 – four years before the Three Lions won the World Cup. Despite not winning a trophy, he did become the first player to be paid £100 a week and finished third in the Ballon d’Or in 1961.

Socrates

His right boot proved too much for defenders at times

Wait? How did Socrates not win a trophy during his career? Socrates is one of the greatest players in Brazilian history, playing 60 times over seven years and scoring 22 goals. He represented his country in two World Cups and even captained them in 1982. While the national team didn’t have as stacked of a squad compared with previous years, the team was still capable enough of going all the way.

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But alas, they suffered an agonising defeat to Italy in the group stage to send them packing. However, other than a couple of regional titles at Botafogo, Corinthians and Flamengo in his native country, Socrates failed to lift a major trophy during his illustrious career.

Harry Kane

It looks like the Kane curse will go on

And so, we end with Harry Kane. He may be one of the greatest strikers the Premier League has ever seen, but Kane has suffered heartbreak in his career when it comes to winning trophies. He’s finished runner-up in two League Cup finals, a Champions League final and twice in the European Championships. He even came third in the Premier League title race when it looked as though Spurs would pip Leicester to the league.

But many believed the former Tottenham Hotspur ace wouldn’t remain on this list for too much longer following his move to Bayern Munich. The German club had won 11 Bundesliga titles in a row, but amid their struggles for form this season, handed Bundesliga gold to Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen.

Thomas Tuchel’s side also suffered a shock defeat to FC Saarbrücken in the German Cup and crashed out of the Champions League after Real Madrid’s Joselu-inspired 2-1 win over the Bavarians shocked them to the core.