Unofficial Champions of England: Southampton 4-3 Tottenham Hotspur, 02/04/1995

Since winning the Unofficial English Championship, Tottenham Hotspur had seen off challenges from Manchester United and Leicester as well as a rematch with former champions Liverpool. It would all end at The Dell however against relegation battlers Southampton.

The Saints were after a bit of revenge, having been dumped out of the FA Cup 2-6 a few weeks earlier by Spurs.

Saints took the lead early on when Neil Heaney headed in from a corner but the lead lasted just a few minutes, a terrible blunder from Saints keeper Bruce Grobbelaar allowing Teddy Sheringham in for Tottenham's equaliser. Grobbelaar was under investigation for match-fixing at the time and this would not have helped his public perception.
Tottenham went in front when Ronny Rosenthal (who had scored a hat-trick in the FA Cup game) released Jurgen Klinsmann who put the ball beyond Grobbelaar. However, Southampton would be level before half-time, Matt Le Tissier adding another effort to his own personal great goals collection.

Shortly after half-time, Southampton took the lead again when Le Tissier got his second of the game but the lead only lasted a minute as Sheringham got a second goal of his own.
62 mins and for a third time Southampton took the lead, this time Jim Magilton lashing home from the edge of the box.
Amazingly, there were no more goals in this game.

Cheer for Southampton in their battle against relegation and now English Champions.

Highlights:

Unofficial Champions of England: Liverpool 1-2 Tottenham Hotspur, 11/03/1995

Liverpool had done well to hold on to their title with wins against Newcastle United and Crystal Palace but came unstuck in the 6th Round of the FA Cup at Anfield.

Liverpool may feel slightly aggrieved. At the start of the season, Tottenham Hotspur were barred from the FA Cup due to 'financial irregularities'. Eventually, the FA rescinded on the ban.

Robbie Fowler put the Reds ahead in the 38th minute with a header from Mark Walters' cross.
However, Spurs equalised when Teddy Sheringham was set up by Jurgen Klinsmann on the edge of the box and he stroked the ball into the goal in his almost effortless style.

It took until the 88th minute for the winner. Liverpool failed to clear their lines from a throw, Darren Anderton played it forward, Sheringham flicked it on and Klinsmann came running in to put the ball beyond David James.

A place in the semi-finals and a second Unofficial English Championship for Spurs.

Unofficial Champions of England: Wimbledon 0-2 Liverpool, 28/02/1995

Wimbledon's time at the top was to be short-lived. Three days after securing the Unofficial English Championship, an FA Cup 5th Round Replay brought Liverpool to Selhurst Park.

Liverpool's youngsters were getting all the coverage at this time but it was two veterans who would make the headlines.

First, John Barnes gave Liverpool the lead with a header in the 10th minute.
Then it was Ian Rush's moment. An instinctive poke from Barnes' cross and Rush made himself joint record goalscorer in the FA Cup.

Liverpool were the first team to collect a hat-trick of Unofficial English Championships.

Unofficial Champions of England: Tottenham Hotspur 1-2 Wimbledon, 25/02/1995

Unofficial English Champions Tottenham Hotspur had managed to hold on to their title with draws against Chelsea and Southampton but would need to be on their toes for the visit of 'the Crazy Gang' from Wimbledon.

There is actually a debate around who constitutes the Crazy Gang. In wider culture, it was a nickname for Wimbledon in general. Some say it only applies to the 1988 FA Cup winning team. There are some further who say it applies only to the trio of Dennis Wise, Vinnie Jones and John Fashanu. Either way, Wimbledon were not a side anyone took lightly.

Details are sparse for this game but all that really needs to be known is Efan Ekoku scored two for Wimbledon and Jurgen Klinsmann pulled one back for Spurs.

Never considered fashionable but Wimbledon were now English Champions.

Unofficial Champions of England: Tottenham Hotspur 3-1 Blackburn Rovers, 05/02/1995

Jurgen Klinsmann scores for Spurs

Blackburn Rovers managed one solitary defence with a 1-1 draw at Leeds United before surrendering their title.

Tottenham Hotspur had started the season with their fondly remembered 'Five-Man Attack' of Darren Anderton, Nick Barmby, Ilie Dumitrescu, Teddy Sheringham and international legend Jurgen Klinsmann. However, focusing all on attack had left Tottenham weak in defence and the results hadn't been what had been hoped for. Manager Ossie Ardiles was sacked and Gerry Francis brought in as Tottenham reverted to a more traditional shape.

Klinsmann opened the scoring for Tottenham in the 18th minute, running onto Barmby's through-ball before putting the ball between Rovers keeper Bobby Mimms legs.
Spurs went 2-0 up 10 minutes later, Anderton's deflected effort wrong-footing the Rovers keeper.

Blackburn did pull one back after half-time when future Spurs manager Tim Sherwood latched onto Alan Shearer's knock-down in the penalty area.
Tottenham made it safe though when Barmby headed in from Anderton's cross ten minutes from time.

Some small consolation for Blackburn, they would win the Premier League title a few months later.

Highlights:

Unofficial Champions of England: Blackburn Rovers 4-1 Ipswich Town, 28/01/1995

Alan Shearer completes his hat-trick

Ipswich Town's reign as Unofficial English Champions was to prove short, though they did manage one successful defence with a creditable 2-2 draw against Chelsea.

An away visit to table-topping Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park was next up for Ipswich but Alan Shearer was on deadly form that day.

Shearer got his first after just three minutes, linking up with SAS partner Chris Sutton before firing low across the goal.
His second came with a curling effort from outside the box on the half hour.

Five minutes into the second half, Sutton hit the post but Tim Sherwood was on hand to score from the rebound.
Ipswich got one back from the penalty spot through veteran John Wark but right on full time, Blackburn got a penalty of their own and Shearer was able to get his hat-trick.

Blackburn were top of the table and two-times Unofficial English Champions.

Highlights:

Unofficial Champions of England: Liverpool 0-1 Ipswich Town, 14/01/1995

Liverpool were in good form heading into the 10th defence of their English Championship. They were unbeaten in 11 games overall and had picked up wins against Leeds United and Arsenal in the process.
So it was a surprise when they surrendered their title to relegation battling Ipswich Town.

Liverpool had more than their fair share of chances in the game but a solitary strike from Ipswich midfielder Adam Tanner was enough to win the game for the Tractor Boys.

Renewed hope for Ipswich in their relegation battle and now the English Champions.

Highlights:

Unofficial Champions of England: Blackburn Rovers 1-3 Liverpool, 30/11/1994

Ian Rush gets his second goal.

Blackburn Rovers were on a roll. Since claiming the UEC, they had victories against Sheffield Wednesday, Tottenham Hotspur, Ipswich Town and Queens Park Rangers. They had won six games in a row in all competitions and their SAS (Sutton and Shearer) strike partnership was sweeping aside all before them.

Their toughest challenge yet came against Liverpool in the Coca-Cola Cup. Liverpool were a revitalised side under manager Roy Evans, with great young talents Steve McMannaman, Jamie Redknapp and Robbie Fowler. But they still had some veteran talents, including iconic striker Ian Rush.

By 1994, Ian Rush had passed his peak but could still provide an occasional reminder of how good he had been.

Rush opened the scoring after 19 minutes with an exquisite strike from outside the box into the top corner.
Shortly after half-time, Rush used his strength to open up a one-on-one situation to make it 2-0 to Liverpool.
Rush got his third and the match-ball on 71 minutes, a typical poachers goal after a mistake in the Blackburn defence.

Chris Sutton did get one back for Rovers but it was all too little too late as Liverpool claimed their second Unofficial English Championship.

Highlights:

Unofficial Champions of England: Nottingham Forest 0-2 Blackburn Rovers, 29/10/1994

Chris Sutton scores Blackburn's second

Though Nottingham Forest missed out on being promoted as Division One Champions, avoiding defeat in their last three games did mean they were promoted as Unofficial English Champions.

Their first 14 games in the 1994/95 season, saw them successfully defend their crown against the likes of Manchester United, Everton, Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa.
Game 15 brought Blackburn Rovers to the City Ground with their newly formed SAS strike partnership, Chris Sutton and Alan Shearer. Sutton's £5m transfer from Norwich City was the highest transfer fee in British football at the time while Shearer would go on to be the Premier League's all time leading goalscorer.

It took just 6 minutes for Blackburn to get off the mark. Chris Sutton received the ball with his back to goal and from 25 yards out, swiveled and shot just beyond the reach of Forest keeper Mark Crossley.

Blackburn had to wait until 68 minutes for their second but it was a sign of the developing SAS partnership. Shearer won the ball from a corner and nodded it into the path of an unmarked Sutton who was able to sweep it into the goal.

This was Blackburn's golden era and what better way to celebrate than by becoming the English Champions.

Goals:

Unofficial Champions of England: Derby County 0-2 Nottingham Forest, 27/04/1994

Colin Cooper lines up a free-kick

English Champions Derby County kept up their promotion push with wins against Stoke City and Charlton Athletic as well as useful draws against former Champions Leicester City, Notts County and Grimsby Town.

Unfortunately, it all came to an end with the visit of bitter rivals Nottingham Forest to the Baseball Ground.

Colin Cooper opened the scoring for Forest with a free-kick the Derby keeper may feel he should have done better with.

Derby didn't go down without a fight but Forest's win was sealed when Derby's former Forest defender Gary Charles attempted a very risky back-pass with the keeper out of position and it deflected off Steve Stone into the unguarded net.

On the plus side for the Rams, despite losing their Championship, they would go on to the Division One play-offs final. Unfortunately, they would lose to Leicester City.

Highlights:

Unofficial Champions of England: Derby County 2-0 Barnsley, 02/04/1994

Tommy Johnson scores Derby's first.

Barnsley didn't have long to enjoy their time as English Champions, as they were soon back on the road in Division One. They arrived at the Baseball Ground to take on promotion-chasing Derby County.

Derby took a first half lead when Tommy Johnson found himself in acres of space before placing the ball past the Barnsley goalkeeper.
In the second half, USA international John Harkes was left the simplest of tap-ins to make the game safe for the Rams.

Derby took another step toward promotion but more importantly, they were now the English Champions.

Goals:

Unofficial Champions of England: Barnsley 4-0 Sunderland, 29/03/1994

Nicky Eaden sends Barnsley on their way

Champions Sunderland had seen off challenges from Watford and Peterborough United, so a trip to Oakwell to play strugglers Barnsley should have held little fear for them.

Barnsley, always in the shadow of their more famous Yorkshire neighbours, were to show them how wrong they were.
First, when Nicky Eaden arrived at the back post to head in the first.
Then a mis-kick in defence left Andy Liddell one-on-one with the goalkeeper and he coolly slotted home to make it 2-0 before half-time.
In the second half, Andy Payton finished off a fine team move for 3-0.
Finally, it was a hat-trick of Andy's as Andy Rammell curled in an effort from the edge of the box to make it 4-0 to Barnsley.

It was Barnsley's moment to shine.

Highlights:

Unofficial Champions of England: Sunderland 1-0 Crystal Palace, 16/03/1994

Sunderland, the first two time Unofficial Champions

Since winning the Unofficial English Championship, promotion chasing Crystal Palace had seen off challenges of Bolton Wanderers, Portsmouth and West Bromwich Albion.

All was good until Palace made the long trip north to Roker Park for a Division One encounter. A solitary goal from Phil Gray was enough for Sunderland to reclaim the UEC title.

Sunderland had become the first two time Unofficial Champions.

Unofficial Champions of England: Crystal Palace 4-1 Bristol City, 22/02/1994

Dean Gordon equalises for Crystal Palace

Since winning the Unofficial English Championship from Liverpool, Bristol City had retained it for four matches in games against Tranmere Rovers, Stockport County, Sunderland and Charlton Athletic.

Game 5 brought them to a swamped Selhurst Park to play table-topping Crystal Palace. It started well enough for City when Mark Shail nodded them ahead on 21 minutes. The joy was short-lived however as Palace equalised through a Dean Gordon penalty just a few minutes later.

Crystal Palace took the lead in the second-half when the Bristol goalkeeper made a bodge of trying to clear the ball outside the area and John Salako had an empty net to lob the ball into.
Then Chris Armstrong got a brace to seal the game for the Eagles.

Palace already looked good bets for promotion from Division One and now they were the English Champions as well.

Highlights:

Unofficial Champions of England: Liverpool 0-1 Bristol City, 25/01/1994

Brian Tinnion scores the upset goal

Liverpool were Champions but this was mid-90's Liverpool, always straddling that line between brilliant and awful.

This FA Cup Third Round tie was the third time these sides had met. The first had been abandoned due to floodlight failure and the rearranged game had ended in a 1-1 draw. Still, the replay at Anfield was expected to be a formality for the Super Reds.

Bristol City had other ideas though. Liverpool largely dominated the game but couldn't find a way through the City defence. Then in the 65th minute, the ball broke loose on the edge of the Liverpool area and Brian Tinnion was on hand to sweep the ball past Bruce Grobbelaar into the Liverpool goal.

Bristol City would hold on for the win which would have deep consequences as Liverpool manager Graeme Souness would resign following the defeat.

Bristol City were the new champions and were bringing the title back to Division One.

Match Hightlights:

Unofficial Champions of England: Liverpool 2-1 Manchester City, 22/01/1994

Ian Rush equalises for Liverpool

Liverpool may not have won the league since 1990 but that doesn't mean they haven't been champions since then.

Since winning the Unofficial English Championship, Manchester City had managed to retain their title with a 0-0 draw against Arsenal.

Things looked good for City when Carl Griffiths gave them the lead after four minutes. But it was to be Liverpool and in particular, Ian Rush's day. The veteran striker was perhaps past his peak but could still give a reminder of his glory days on occasion.
First, he was the first to react to Jamie Redknapp's rebounded shot and then in the second half he rose above all the City defenders to head the winners.

A great day for Liverpool.

Match highlights:

Unofficial Champions of England: Manchester City 4-1 Leicester City, 08/01/1994

Leicester City only had a week to enjoy their time as England's Champions before they were off to Maine Road in the FA Cup.

There was to be no giant-killing heroics here. Kåre Ingebrigtsen who only ever made 6 appearances over two years for Manchester City scored a hat-trick and Alan Kernaghan added a fourth.
David Oldfield would get one back for Leicester but it was mere consolation.

Manchester City, who were struggling in the league at the time, were the new Champions of England.

Some highlights:

Unofficial Champions of England: Leicester City 2-1 Sunderland 01/01/1994

Julian Joachim makes it 2-0 to Leicester

Sunderland had barely three days to enjoy their time as Unofficial Champions of England before they were defending their title again.

On New Years day, the Rokerites travelled to promotion-hunting Leicester City at Filbert Street.
Veteran striker David Speedie opened the scoring with a cross-come-shot from the edge of the box.
Highly rated Julian Joachim weaved his way through the Sunderland defence to make it 2-0.

Sunderland did pull one back with a penalty from Phil Gray but it was too little, too late as Leicester took their place as Champions of England.

Match highlights:

Unofficial Champions of England: Sunderland 2-1 Millwall 28/12/1993

Sunderland 1993/94, Champions of England (unofficial)

Since Millwall won the Unofficial English Championship in November, they had successfully retained it on eight occasions (all in Division One games): against Oxford United (twice), Bristol City, Tranmere Rovers, Grimsby Town, Notts County, Stoke City and Portsmouth.

Millwall were pushing for promotion that year but game 9 of their UEC reign was a bridge too far when they made the near 300 mile trip to Roker Park.

Sunderland won 2-1 to begin their first reign as Champions of England.

Unofficial Champions of England: Nottingham Forest 1-3 Millwall, 03/11/1993

Millwall 1993/94

Having won the Unofficial English Championship, Nottingham Forest did not have long to rest on their laurels.

For the first time, the UEC would be defended in a Division One match (now known as The Championship).

Forest and Millwall would meet at the City Ground in a match of big significance as both sides battled for promotion.
It was to be Millwall's day as they ran out 1-3 winners and the unfashionable south London club became Champions of England.

Unofficial Champions of England: Nottingham Forest 2-1 West Ham United, 27/10/1993

Kingsley Black volleys Nottingham Forest ahead

Since becoming England's Unofficial Champions, West Ham United had held on to their title by earning respectable draws with Aston Villa and Norwich City and a 2-0 win over the mighty Chesterfield.

The League Cup (or Coca-Cola Cup as it was called at the time) brought the Hammers to the City Ground in Nottingham to play Nottingham Forest.

Forest had fallen on hard times since losing their legendary manager Brian Clough and being relegated from the Premier League the previous season. Still, they took a two goal lead here thanks to a sumptuous volley from Kingsley Black and a header from Stan Collymore.

Trevor Morley pulled one back but it wasn't enough for West Ham.

Nottingham Forest became the first Champions of England from outside the top division.

Unofficial Champions of England: West Ham United 1-0 Chelsea, 02/10/1993

Trevor Morley strikes for West Ham

Having dethroned Manchester United as England's Unofficial Champions, Chelsea had defended their crown on three occasions including a 1-0 home win against Liverpool.

A trip to Upton Park for a London derby with West Ham United was to prove too much for the Blues however.

Trevor Morley gave West Ham United the lead on 43 minutes with a fine effort from outside the box.

It would get worse for Chelsea just a minute later when Dennis Wise was sent off for a reckless challenge.

West Ham might have got more but one goal was enough to make the Hammers champions.

The First Unofficial Champions of England

This was an idea I had that was inspired (i.e. ripped off from) the Unofficial Football World Championships ( https://www.ufwc.co.uk/ ). Their idea is simple: using boxing's model, they traced back right to the very first international and worked out the 'World Champion' from there. When you lose a match, the title changes to the other team who hold it until they are defeated and so forth.
The champions at time of writing are Peru.

I wanted to work out who the unofficial English Champions would be but I needed a starting point.
As much as I would love to be able to go all the way back right to the formation of Sheffield FC in 1855, it's just not realistic. I don't have a team of researchers to trawl through newspaper reports from 1895, I am just one guy. So, I have taken the Sky approach of imagining football started in 1992 with the foundation of the Premier League. So, that 1992-93 season was a race to see who would be crowned the first Unofficial (but at the same time Official) English champions. So, it's no surprise than, that our first champions are Manchester United.

Some may say it should start with Leeds United who had begun the season as Division One Champions but there's no way for me to tell they were genuine Unofficial Champions of England, so using Man United gives me a more definitive starting point.

Some rules to clarify:
1) League Cup and FA Cup matches count meaning it is possible for teams from lower divisions to become Unofficial Champions of England
2) Only English (and a few Welsh) teams can challenge for the title. So, AC Milan and Barcelona can never be English champions but if a European fixture does throw up an all English affair, the title will be put on the line as well.

So, Manchester United are the first champions and their first 10 games brought successful defences against the likes of Blackburn Rovers, Arsenal, Norwich City and Newcastle United.

Which brings us to...

Chelsea 1-0 Manchester United 11/09/1993

Manchester United had started the 1993-94 season like a house on fire, they looked unstoppable.
Chelsea were not nearly so assured with only one win so far.

So when Gavin Peacock popped up in the 17th minute to put Chelsea ahead with a little dink over Peter Schmeichel, United were still expected to make another of their trademark comebacks.

Eric Cantona almost scored with an audacious effort from the half-way line. But huff and puff as they might, United could not break down the Chelsea door and they held on to become the second Unofficial Champions of England.

Match Highlights: