Carlo Ancelotti has now officially joined Brazil Where he will become the director of the national team before the 2026 World Cup. Real Madrid is about to face one of the greatest changes in their recent history, while Encelotti leaves the Spanish club after having become the most successful coach in the history of Real Madrid with 15 trophies won, including three trophies in the Champions League. With Xabi Alonso ready to take care of European giants before the FIFA club World Cup in summer, it is now time to take a step back and recognize the Ancelotti cycle at the club for what he did in Madrid. Where is it in terms of the best managers who have ever managed the Spanish club? Let’s classify the five best coaches in the history of Real Madrid:
5. Jose Mourinho (2010-2013)
This can be strange, but most of Real Madrid fans consider Portuguese manager Jose Mourinho among the best coaches in the history of the Spanish club. This is mainly due to the fact that Mourinho was able to win the La Liga title during the 2011-12 season, the first manager to beat Barcelona by Pep Guardiola during these magical years for the Blaugrana. After his appointment in the summer of 2010, just a few days after winning the triple with Inter, Florentino Perez chose the special to bring Real Madrid back to glory and try to stop the Domination of Barcelona of these years. During his first year, he won the Copa del Rey by beating Barcelona in the final, while the year that followed was able to succeed in a sensational league.
4. Vicente del Bosque (1994, 1996, 1999-2003)
The legendary Spanish manager was one of the most emblematic coaches in the history of European football. At Real Madrid, Del Bosque won two Laliga titles and in particular two Champions League trophies, including the 2001 edition with a 2-1 victory against Bayer Leverkusen thanks to the winning goal of Zinedine Zidane in the second period. Del Bosque was also an emblematic player from Real Madrid where he won five Liga titles from 1974 to 1980. Del Bosque resulted in Real Madrid three times during his career, twice as the goalkeeper’s manager before 1999, when he returned and started one of the most successful chapters in the history of the team. As Florentino Perez was elected in 2000 for the first time, he also became the first manager of his legendary presidency.
3. Miguel Munoz (1960-1974)
It was probably one of the most emblematic figures of 20th century Spanish football. Munoz played for Real Madrid from 1948 to 1958 and won three Champions League titles as a player before becoming the team manager in 1960, where he started one of the most successful chapters of the team. As a coach, he won two champions leagues in 1960 and 1966 and nine titles La Liga, among other trophies. With 601 games managed as Real Madrid coach, he is still the coach with the most trained matches in the history of the club, and has marked one of the most dominant cycles in the history of the game.
2. Zinedine Zidane (2016-2018, 2019-2021)
The French manager was an icon as a player, then as a manager of the Spanish giants. When Florentino Perez appointed him to become the new coach in 2016, there was doubts after replacing Rafa Benitez on the Spanish bench because it was his first experience as a head coach of the first team, after winning the Champions League two years earlier as Deputy Director of Carlo Ancelotti. Zidane resulted in Real Madrid from 2016 to 2016, then again from 2019 to 2021, and during his fate, he won the Champions League for three years in a row from 2016 to 2018, becoming the first manager in the history of the game to get there. To date, Real Madrid has been the first and the only club it has led to in his career.
1. Carlo Ancelotti (2013-2015, 2021-2025)
And then, of course, Ancelotti. The Italian manager is one of the most efficient managers in the history of football, because he has won 31 major trophies in his career in Italy, France, Germany, Spain and England. He is the only manager to win league titles in the five major European leagues and holds the record for the Plus titles from the Champions League (five) and UEFA Super Cup (five) titles as a trainer. During his two spells in Real Madrid, he was able to win the Champions League three times, the first in 2014 when Real Madrid won Atletico Madrid in the final for “Decima”, the tenth title of the Champions League teams. He then won in 2022 against Liverpool, then last year against Borussia Dortmund in London. With 15 trophies won at the club, Ancelotti has become the most decorated manager in the history of Real Madrid.