Your data guide to football betting, Dan Tracey shows you where the numbers point before the market catches up.
With the 2025/26 Championship season very nearly upon us, here at OLBG, we take a look at which sides are likely to make a fast start in England’s second tier based on their previous form in the division over the last ten seasons.
Specifically, the research looked at the first five games of the season since the 2015/16 campaign and only included results from when each of the current Championship clubs were playing in the division.
Getting off to a good start to the season is crucial, particularly in a relentless division like the Championship where momentum from a few wins at the beginning of a campaign can be a catalyst for earning a playoff spot or even automatic promotion to the promised land of the Premier League.
Here’s how every club plying their trade in the EFL Championship during the upcoming 2025/26 campaign has generally fared at the start of the season over the last decade.
| Team | Goals For | Goals Against | Total Wins | Total Draws | Total Losses | Games Played | Win % | Points | Goal Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leicester | 7 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 80.00% | 12 | 3 |
| Southampton | 10 | 12 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 60.00% | 10 | -2 |
| Oxford | 9 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 60.00% | 9 | 3 |
| Charlton | 15 | 9 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 10 | 50.00% | 20 | 6 |
| West Brom | 59 | 37 | 15 | 10 | 5 | 30 | 50.00% | 55 | 22 |
| Sheffield United | 31 | 25 | 12 | 7 | 6 | 25 | 48.00% | 43 | 6 |
| Watford | 23 | 13 | 9 | 7 | 4 | 20 | 45.00% | 34 | 10 |
| Ipswich | 40 | 33 | 10 | 9 | 6 | 25 | 40.00% | 39 | 7 |
| Bristol City | 72 | 69 | 19 | 19 | 12 | 50 | 38.00% | 76 | 3 |
| Swansea | 41 | 39 | 13 | 10 | 12 | 35 | 37.14% | 49 | 2 |
| Blackburn | 58 | 56 | 16 | 17 | 12 | 45 | 35.56% | 65 | 2 |
| Hull | 52 | 55 | 13 | 13 | 14 | 40 | 32.50% | 52 | -3 |
| Norwich | 49 | 52 | 11 | 13 | 11 | 35 | 31.43% | 46 | -3 |
| Stoke | 35 | 51 | 11 | 7 | 17 | 35 | 31.43% | 40 | -16 |
| Millwall | 47 | 51 | 12 | 14 | 14 | 40 | 30.00% | 50 | -4 |
| Preston | 44 | 50 | 15 | 18 | 17 | 50 | 30.00% | 63 | -6 |
| QPR | 69 | 73 | 15 | 20 | 15 | 50 | 30.00% | 65 | -4 |
| Birmingham | 49 | 45 | 13 | 22 | 10 | 45 | 28.89% | 61 | 4 |
| Middlesbrough | 51 | 48 | 12 | 21 | 12 | 45 | 26.67% | 57 | 3 |
| Derby | 38 | 47 | 10 | 18 | 12 | 40 | 25.00% | 48 | -9 |
| Sheffield Weds | 40 | 51 | 10 | 16 | 14 | 40 | 25.00% | 46 | -11 |
| Coventry | 28 | 31 | 6 | 7 | 12 | 25 | 24.00% | 25 | -3 |
| Portsmouth | 6 | 11 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 0.00% | 3 | -5 |
| Wrexham | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0 |
Highest Win Percentage
Leicester came out on top in terms of win percentage, with four wins from their five matches in the second tier, giving them a figure of 80%. Although top of the list, their honour must be tempered by playng such a small number of games in comparison to their counterparts.
Then again, when they have taken the field in the Championship in the last 10 completed seasons, they have only suffered a single defeat for their troubles. With this early run of form, the King Power Stadium outfit will hope for a similar display at the start of the 2025/26 campaign.
Southampton
Southampton ranked next in joint second place and followed a similar pattern to Leicester in that they have only played five second tier matches across the last 10 complete Championships seasond between 2015/16 and 2024/25.
The Saints picked up three wins compared to Leicester's four and this sees them joint second with a win percentage of 60%.
Like Leicester, new Southampton boss Will Still will be hoping his men get start their promotion push back to the Premier League as quick as possible.
Oxford
Sharing joint-second are Oxford and there seems to be a common theme between each of the top three teams - they have only played a total of five games when compared to the maximum amount of 50 that could have been played since 2015/16.
Whereas Leicester and Southampton have largely been plying their trade in the Premier League, Oxford's more regular habitat has been League One in the past decade. However, a bright start to last season helped them stay afloat in the Championship.
Like the Saints, Oxford won 60% of their first five but whereas Southampton won three, drew one and lost one, the Yellow's would win three but lose their remaining two.
Wrexham
At the other end of proceedings, Wrexham are at the foot of the table but for good reason - they have yet to play a Championship game before the start of the 2025/26 season. Therefore, we move down to....
Portsmouth
Of the 23 teams that have actually kicked a ball in anger, it is Portsmouth that prop up the table. Pompey have also played just five games in our data sample but have failed to win any of them.
The Fratton Park outfit have failed to win any but at the same time have only lost twice. Three draws for their troubles suggests that John Mousinho's men are solid rather than spectacular
Coventry
Next in the list of slow starers is Coventry and with 25 Championship games under their belt in this early season data sample, the West Midlands outfit are a rather familiar face to the second tier.
Unfortunately, they have not fared very well in the opening few weeks of those five season and with a quarter century of fixtures contested, they have only picked up six wins for their troubles - giving them a win rate of just 24% and something that manager Frank Lampard will have to address at the start of this season.
Sheffield Wednesday
Just 1% better off are Sheffield Wednesday and although a 25% strike rate does not sound overly impressive, supporters of the Owls would kill for that considering the club's current financial woes.
The Hillsborough outfit are one of the Championship mainstays over the past 10 years having played a total of 40 games. Of those, they have won just 10 and this strike rate can also be applied to counterparts Derby over a 40 game sample.
Top Scorers
In terms of goals scored, Bristol City topped the charts with 72 goals but did concede 69 and their figure was helped by the fact they have played in the Championship for each of the 50 games possible. This also means that the Ashton Gate outfit average 1.44 goals per game in their opening five games of the season.
The other clubs that have played the full component of 50 games are Preston and QPR having scored 44 and 69 goals respectively. While Birmingham and Middlesbrough have only missed one Championship season in the past decade and they have scored a total of 49 and 51 goals each.
Leaky Defences
In its purest terms, QPR had the leakiest defence with 73 goals conceded but as referenced above this is the consequence of having played the maximum 50 games in the sample.
The West London outfit recording a goal difference of minus 4 across 50 total matches but when comparing leaky defences by goal difference alone, it is Stoke who are bottom of the pile.
The Bet365 Stadium side have played 35 games in our data sample (seven season out of ten), scoring 35 goals in the process. Unfortunately for the Potters, they have also conceded 51 - giving them a negative goal difference of 16.
All this information could be valuable to those placing early season bets on the football in their quest to get an edge against the bookies.
