English football in 2024 served up a bit of everything: stunning strikes, comical own goals, baffling errors, refereeing controversies, promotions, relegations, trophies lifted, CVs sifted and much more besides.
So as 2024 draws to a close, we have decided ignore those opposed to calendar-year stats and unify all 94 teams (yes, Sutton United and Forest Green Rovers, you may no longer be in the EFL but we haven’t forgotten your efforts between January and May), even if it is only for a few hours before yet more football gets under way on New Year’s Day.
You can sort the main table by games played (which includes play-off games), wins, defeats, win percentage and points per game (the latter excludes play-off games, for obvious reasons). Click on a column header to sort by that category.
|
Team
|
Games
|
Wins
|
Defeats
|
Pts/game ▼ |
Win%
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Arsenal |
36 |
26 |
3 |
2.36 |
72.2 |
|
Liverpool |
37 |
26 |
4 |
2.30 |
70.3 |
|
Manchester City |
38 |
25 |
6 |
2.16 |
65.8 |
|
Leeds United |
48 |
30 |
8 |
2.13 |
62.5 |
|
Wrexham |
45 |
27 |
9 |
2.00 |
60.0 |
|
Wycombe Wanderers |
45 |
25 |
8 |
1.93 |
55.6 |
|
Chelsea |
37 |
20 |
7 |
1.89 |
54.1 |
|
Doncaster Rovers |
47 |
25 |
11 |
1.84 |
53.2 |
|
Walsall |
44 |
24 |
11 |
1.84 |
54.5 |
|
Stockport County |
44 |
22 |
10 |
1.77 |
50.0 |
|
Birmingham City |
42 |
21 |
13 |
1.69 |
50.0 |
|
Bolton Wanderers |
47 |
21 |
13 |
1.66 |
44.7 |
|
Newcastle |
38 |
18 |
11 |
1.66 |
47.4 |
|
Lincoln City |
44 |
20 |
11 |
1.66 |
45.5 |
|
Reading |
44 |
21 |
14 |
1.64 |
47.7 |
|
Mansfield Town |
44 |
21 |
15 |
1.61 |
47.7 |
|
Milton Keynes |
46 |
21 |
18 |
1.59 |
45.7 |
|
Crewe Alexandra |
47 |
19 |
13 |
1.57 |
40.4 |
|
Bradford City |
44 |
19 |
13 |
1.57 |
43.2 |
|
Middlesbrough |
45 |
19 |
13 |
1.56 |
42.2 |
|
Derby County |
47 |
21 |
16 |
1.55 |
44.7 |
|
West Brom |
47 |
17 |
11 |
1.53 |
36.2 |
|
Norwich City |
47 |
18 |
13 |
1.53 |
38.3 |
|
Exeter City |
45 |
20 |
16 |
1.53 |
44.4 |
|
Barnsley |
48 |
20 |
15 |
1.52 |
41.7 |
|
Portsmouth |
44 |
18 |
13 |
1.52 |
40.9 |
|
Leyton Orient |
44 |
20 |
17 |
1.52 |
45.5 |
|
Blackpool |
43 |
18 |
14 |
1.51 |
41.9 |
|
Sheffield Wednesday |
45 |
19 |
16 |
1.49 |
42.2 |
|
Aston Villa |
37 |
15 |
12 |
1.49 |
40.5 |
|
Chesterfield |
23 |
9 |
7 |
1.48 |
39.1 |
|
Huddersfield Town |
43 |
17 |
14 |
1.47 |
39.5 |
|
AFC Wimbledon |
44 |
18 |
16 |
1.45 |
40.9 |
|
Burnley |
42 |
15 |
11 |
1.45 |
35.7 |
|
Salford City |
44 |
17 |
14 |
1.45 |
38.6 |
|
Ipswich |
40 |
15 |
13 |
1.43 |
37.5 |
|
Wigan Athletic |
44 |
17 |
15 |
1.43 |
38.6 |
|
Nottm Forest |
37 |
15 |
14 |
1.43 |
40.5 |
|
Peterborough United |
46 |
19 |
21 |
1.41 |
41.3 |
|
Fulham |
37 |
13 |
11 |
1.41 |
35.1 |
|
Bromley |
22 |
7 |
5 |
1.41 |
31.8 |
|
Sunderland |
45 |
17 |
16 |
1.40 |
37.8 |
|
Bournemouth |
38 |
14 |
13 |
1.39 |
36.8 |
|
Tottenham |
37 |
15 |
16 |
1.38 |
40.5 |
|
Sheffield United |
42 |
16 |
16 |
1.38 |
38.1 |
|
Manchester United |
37 |
14 |
14 |
1.38 |
37.8 |
|
QPR |
45 |
15 |
14 |
1.36 |
33.3 |
|
Swansea City |
45 |
17 |
18 |
1.36 |
37.8 |
|
Blackburn Rovers |
44 |
15 |
14 |
1.36 |
34.1 |
|
Millwall |
44 |
16 |
17 |
1.34 |
36.4 |
|
Grimsby Town |
44 |
17 |
19 |
1.34 |
38.6 |
|
Gillingham |
44 |
16 |
16 |
1.34 |
36.3 |
|
Stevenage |
43 |
15 |
16 |
1.33 |
34.9 |
|
Watford |
44 |
15 |
16 |
1.32 |
34.1 |
|
Bristol City |
45 |
15 |
16 |
1.31 |
33.3 |
|
Crystal Palace |
37 |
12 |
13 |
1.30 |
32.4 |
|
Notts County |
43 |
15 |
17 |
1.30 |
34.9 |
|
Crawley Town |
47 |
19 |
19 |
1.30 |
40.4 |
|
Coventry City |
45 |
16 |
19 |
1.29 |
35.6 |
|
Oxford United |
48 |
17 |
17 |
1.29 |
35.4 |
|
Charlton Athletic |
45 |
13 |
14 |
1.27 |
28.9 |
|
Preston North End |
45 |
14 |
16 |
1.27 |
31.1 |
|
Leicester |
40 |
14 |
19 |
1.23 |
35.0 |
|
Newport County |
43 |
15 |
22 |
1.19 |
34.9 |
|
Brentford |
37 |
12 |
17 |
1.19 |
32.4 |
|
Hull City |
45 |
13 |
18 |
1.18 |
28.9 |
|
Stoke City |
45 |
14 |
20 |
1.18 |
31.1 |
|
Fleetwood Town |
44 |
12 |
16 |
1.18 |
27.3 |
|
Brighton |
38 |
10 |
13 |
1.18 |
26.3 |
|
Tranmere Rovers |
42 |
13 |
19 |
1.17 |
31.0 |
|
Cheltenham Town |
46 |
15 |
22 |
1.17 |
32.6 |
|
Harrogate Town |
45 |
13 |
19 |
1.16 |
28.9 |
|
Barrow |
44 |
13 |
19 |
1.16 |
29.5 |
|
Sutton United |
22 |
5 |
7 |
1.14 |
22.7 |
|
Colchester United |
43 |
9 |
12 |
1.14 |
20.9 |
|
Forest Green Rovers |
23 |
7 |
11 |
1.13 |
30.4 |
|
West Ham |
38 |
10 |
16 |
1.11 |
26.3 |
|
Cardiff City |
44 |
14 |
23 |
1.11 |
31.8 |
|
Northampton Town |
45 |
12 |
20 |
1.09 |
26.7 |
|
Everton |
36 |
8 |
13 |
1.08 |
22.2 |
|
Port Vale |
46 |
12 |
21 |
1.07 |
26.1 |
|
Southampton |
43 |
14 |
22 |
1.05 |
32.6 |
|
Morecambe |
46 |
12 |
24 |
1.00 |
26.1 |
|
Bristol Rovers |
45 |
13 |
26 |
1.00 |
28.9 |
|
Accrington Stanley |
42 |
10 |
21 |
0.98 |
23.8 |
|
Swindon Town |
44 |
9 |
20 |
0.95 |
20.5 |
|
Plymouth Argyle |
44 |
10 |
23 |
0.93 |
22.7 |
|
Wolves |
37 |
9 |
21 |
0.92 |
24.3 |
|
Shrewsbury Town |
43 |
9 |
24 |
0.86 |
20.9 |
|
Luton Town |
43 |
9 |
25 |
0.84 |
20.9 |
|
Cambridge United |
45 |
9 |
25 |
0.84 |
20.0 |
|
Rotherham United |
42 |
8 |
24 |
0.81 |
19.0 |
|
Burton Albion |
44 |
7 |
26 |
0.73 |
15.9 |
|
Carlisle United |
44 |
8 |
29 |
0.70 |
18.2 |
Barnsley, Leeds United, and Oxford United were the busiest sides, all playing 48 times, with Leeds and Oxford reaching the Championship and League One play-off finals respectively.
Leeds led England for wins in 2024, with 30 (Cameron Smith/Getty Images)
Leeds also picked up the most wins with 30, though their win rate of 62.5 per cent was only fourth-best behind Arsenal (72.2), Liverpool (70.3) and recent strugglers Manchester City (65.8). Arsenal lost the fewest matches, with three out of 36, closely followed by Liverpool (four in 37), Bromley (five in 22 since being promoted to League Two), Manchester City (six in 38) and Chelsea (seven in 36). Carlisle United lead the table in losses with 29 from 44 matches, with Bristol Rovers and Burton Albion (26 each) just behind them.
Wrexham’s excellent form in both League Two and League One, meanwhile, was reflected with their total of 27 wins — second only to Leeds.
Wrexham tasted victory 27 times in the EFL in 2024 (Cody Froggatt/PA Images via Getty Images)
Arsenal’s 2.36 points per game was the highest across the four divisions, with Liverpool (2.30), Manchester City (2.16), Leeds (2.13) and Wrexham (2.00) making up the top five. At the other end, Carlisle and Burton Albion averaged just 0.70 and 0.73 points per game, with Rotherham United, Luton Town and Cambridge United rounding out the bottom five. Will fans of those five clubs one day look back and reminisce about 2024? Probably not.
But, like Carlisle’s league position, you can always go deeper. So here we’ve ranked all 94 teams across eight other categories, including goals scored, passing accuracy, points after falling behind, and more.
Arsenal and Liverpool picked up more points per game than any other side in the Premier League or EFL in 2024 (Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
Goals scored
The Premier League averaged 3.2 goals per game across 2024. Unsurprisingly, top-flight teams take the top six spots in these charts. The averages stood at 2.5 in the Championship, 2.6 in League One and 2.7 in League Two.
| Team | Games | Goals per Game |
|---|---|---|
|
37 |
2.49 |
|
|
36 |
2.47 |
|
|
37 |
2.19 |
|
|
38 |
2.18 |
|
|
38 |
2.11 |
Leeds (1.84 goals per game) are the first non-Premier League team on the list, level with Wycombe Wanderers, Peterborough United and Stockport County also in the top 10. Manchester United were 27th with 1.51 goals per game, stuck between Leicester City and Crawley Town.
Everton were the lowest-ranked Premier League side, ranking third from bottom with just 31 goals from 36 matches.
| Team | Games | Goals per Game |
|---|---|---|
|
Rotherham United |
42 |
0.83 |
|
Burton Albion |
44 |
0.84 |
|
Everton |
36 |
0.86 |
|
Cambridge United |
45 |
0.87 |
|
Bristol Rovers |
45 |
0.87 |
Alexander Isak led Newcastle’s attack throughout 2024 (Stu Forster/Getty Images)
xG over and under-performance
Fifty-six of the 94 teams from the top four divisions overperformed their xG (the number of goals a team is expected to score based on the quality of chances created) by at least 1.0, while 24 underperformed by 1.0 or more.
Reading — a club with plenty of off-field issues in 2024 — ranked best here, just ahead of Wrexham. Arsenal are the only Premier League team in the top 10, with the next, Wolverhampton Wanderers, all the way down in 15th (+11.1).
| Team | Games | Goals For | xG | Goals – xG |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Reading |
44 |
73 |
53.1 |
19.9 |
|
Wrexham |
45 |
76 |
56.3 |
19.7 |
|
Wycombe Wanderers |
45 |
82 |
65.5 |
16.5 |
|
Arsenal |
36 |
89 |
72.6 |
16.4 |
|
Newport County |
43 |
54 |
38.5 |
15.6 |
If you like teams performing as close to average in front of goal as it’s possible to get, then why not head to the city of Sheffield in South Yorkshire? Because if Sheffield Wednesday (+0.1) came close to doing it in 2024 then Sheffield United did indeed crack the code by scoring 53 goals from precisely 53.0 xG.
Sheffield: a city that respects the expected goals model (Ed Sykes/Getty Images)
The Premier League put some space between themselves and the lower leagues when it came to underperforming xG, with Bournemouth , Everton, and Brighton & Hove Albion (-6.1) forming three of the bottom 10.
| Team | Games | Goals For | xG | Goals – xG |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Bournemouth |
38 |
55 |
67.5 |
-12.5 |
|
Everton |
36 |
31 |
42.1 |
-11.1 |
|
Swansea City |
45 |
54 |
64.3 |
-10.3 |
|
Rotherham United |
42 |
35 |
42.7 |
-7.7 |
|
Stoke City |
45 |
48 |
55.3 |
-7.3 |
GO DEEPER
xG, xA and a battle for hearts and minds – a friendly debate between a fan and The Athletic’s data expert
Passing accuracy
Pass masters Manchester City are top of this metric — the only team to complete more than 90 per cent of their passes. The increased impetus on passing across divisions is evident as 74 of the 94 teams (and all 22 teams that played in the Premier League) attempted 350 or more passes per game on average, with 93 averaging more than 300 per game (kudos to Bromley for bucking the trend).
| Team | Games | Passes per Game | Pass Success % |
|---|---|---|---|
|
38 |
665.3 |
90.5 |
|
|
43 |
581.1 |
88.6 |
|
|
37 |
550.4 |
87.6 |
|
|
37 |
556.6 |
87.2 |
|
|
37 |
562.2 |
86.7 |
| Team | Games | Passes per Game | Pass Success % |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Cheltenham Town |
46 |
318.9 |
59.8 |
|
Bromley |
22 |
263.1 |
62.2 |
|
Sutton United |
22 |
313.9 |
62.6 |
|
Accrington Stanley |
42 |
323.8 |
64.6 |
|
Shrewsbury Town |
43 |
311.7 |
65.1 |
Bromley have not brought a pass-heavy approach to the EFL (Tom Dulat/Getty Images)
Aerial duel success
EFL sides would always back themselves to compete in their air, so it’s no surprise to see Stockport County take this one, averaging a 57 per cent success with aerial duels across their 44 matches. Fellow Merseyside clubs (yes, Edgeley Park is the closest league football ground to the River Mersey) account for two more of the top five, with Liverpool manager Arne Slot and Everton boss Sean Dyche both laying emphasis on winning duels within contrasting tactical approaches. Brentford, Ipswich, Stevenage, Bromley, and Birmingham City (all on 54 per cent) made the top 10.
| Team | Games | Aerial Duel Success % |
|---|---|---|
|
Stockport County |
44 |
57.3 |
|
Liverpool |
37 |
55.8 |
|
Wrexham |
45 |
55.3 |
|
Barnsley |
48 |
54.9 |
|
Everton |
36 |
54.1 |
Swansea struggled the most aerially, while Aston Villa and Wolves (both 46 per cent) were the only Premier League teams in the bottom 10.
| Team | Games | Aerial Duel Success % |
|---|---|---|
|
Swansea City |
45 |
42.1 |
|
Plymouth Argyle |
44 |
43.1 |
|
Burnley |
42 |
44.4 |
|
Crawley Town |
47 |
44.7 |
|
Cambridge United |
45 |
45.1 |
An aerial duel won is still guaranteed to make Sean Dyche smile (Carl Recine/Getty Images)
Penalties won
Wycombe Wanderers lead this one, winning 13 penalties across 45 matches. Six teams were awarded eight penalties, including Chelsea, Bournemouth, Newport County, Stockport, and Accrington Stanley.
Richard Kone scores one of the 13 penalties Wycombe were awarded in the league during 2024 (MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Among the other Premier League teams, Manchester City and Newcastle received seven each, while Manchester United and Arsenal were awarded six. Tottenham Hotspur received two, one of which was missed by Son Heung-min in their final match of the year against Wolves. They were one of seven Premier League teams (Villa, Fulham, Brentford, Brighton, Crystal Palace, and Nottingham Forest being the others) to win just two penalties in 2024.
| Team | Games | Penalties Taken |
|---|---|---|
|
Wycombe Wanderers |
45 |
13 |
|
Portsmouth |
44 |
11 |
|
Liverpool |
37 |
9 |
|
Leicester City |
40 |
9 |
|
Bolton Wanderers |
47 |
8 |
At the other end, Burton Albion ended the year without being awarded a single penalty across their 44 matches, while eight teams, including Salford City, Plymouth Argyle and Cardiff City, won just one.
| Team | Games | Penalties Taken |
|---|---|---|
|
Burton Albion |
44 |
0 |
|
Chesterfield |
23 |
1 |
|
Plymouth Argyle |
44 |
1 |
|
Blackburn Rovers |
44 |
1 |
|
Cambridge United |
45 |
1 |
Points won from behind and dropped from ahead
Teams such as Jurgen Klopp’s 2022-23 Liverpool and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s 2020-21 Manchester United made winning games after going behind look easy, but that level of consistency is tough to maintain over a year.
Manchester City and Tottenham were the Premier League’s best at this in 2024, while leaders Barnsley’s record may provoke concern and joy in equal measure at Oakwell.
Barnsley were the comeback kings of 2024 (Alex Dodd – CameraSport via Getty Images)
Arsenal trailed in just seven games all year, the lowest, picking up eight points, while Liverpool collected 21 from 15 games where they faced a deficit. Chelsea (20 from 17), Wrexham (17 from 16) and Leeds (18 from 18) were the others to average at least one point collected per match when they went behind.
| Team | Games trailed | Wins | Draws | Losses | Points won from losing positions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Barnsley |
30 |
9 |
6 |
15 |
33 |
|
Man City |
17 |
8 |
3 |
6 |
27 |
|
Tottenham |
26 |
8 |
2 |
16 |
26 |
|
Coventry City |
31 |
6 |
6 |
19 |
24 |
|
MK Dons |
27 |
7 |
2 |
18 |
23 |
Plenty of teams struggled, though. Eight, including Millwall, Chesterfield, Wigan Athletic and Stoke, failed to win when they went behind, though, on a positive note, they faced fewer deficits than some of the teams that won more points. Among Premier League teams, Everton won just once in 19 attempts, while Fulham (16 games), Brighton (19), Forest (20) and Palace (20) all won twice each.
| Team | Games trailed | Wins | Draws | Losses | Points from losing positions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Millwall |
19 |
0 |
2 |
17 |
2 |
|
Chesterfield |
10 |
0 |
3 |
7 |
3 |
|
Wigan Athletic |
19 |
0 |
4 |
15 |
4 |
|
Port Vale |
25 |
0 |
4 |
21 |
4 |
|
Grimsby Town |
21 |
1 |
1 |
19 |
4 |
Brighton, Palace, and Brentford struggled to hold on to leads too, dropping 24 points each in such games. Norwich City were the biggest offenders, dropping 35 points from the 33 matches in which they led, thanks to 10 draws and five losses. Outside the top five, Derby County (26 points dropped from winning positions), Barnsley and Portsmouth (25 each) all struggled. Wolves, Manchester United and Everton dropped 18 points apiece in games where they took the lead.
| Team | Games Led | Wins | Draws | Losses | Points Dropped from winning positions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Norwich City |
33 |
18 |
10 |
5 |
35 |
|
Cheltenham Town |
27 |
15 |
5 |
7 |
31 |
|
Barrow |
26 |
13 |
9 |
4 |
30 |
|
Luton Town |
20 |
9 |
3 |
8 |
30 |
|
Shrewsbury Town |
20 |
9 |
6 |
5 |
27 |
At the other end of the spectrum, West Brom, Blackburn, Sutton United, Forest Green, Liverpool, Arsenal, and Leeds did not lose a single game from winning positions. Leeds were the most effective, winning 30 of 32 matches when they took the lead.
Sheffield Wednesday, Stevenage, Wimbledon, and Bradford City also left single-digit points on the table in games where they took the lead (nine points each).
| Team | Games Led | Wins | Draws | Losses | Points Dropped from winning positions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Leeds United |
32 |
30 |
2 |
0 |
4 |
|
Forest Green |
11 |
7 |
4 |
0 |
8 |
|
Liverpool |
30 |
26 |
4 |
0 |
8 |
|
Arsenal |
30 |
26 |
4 |
0 |
8 |
|
Bristol Rovers |
16 |
13 |
1 |
2 |
8 |
(Header photos: Getty Images)
