Record of Teams in the Play-offs Based on Finishing Position

Huddersfield were one of the early favourites to be relegated from the Championship but overcame all expectations to finish third and earn a place in the playoffs, marking the Terriers as the biggest overachievers in the division, according to research that compared where pre-season odds predicted each team would finish compared to their actual final position.

Research Crowns Huddersfield and Luton the Championship’s Biggest Overachievers as Barnsley and Reading Fail to Meet Expectations

The Terriers finished 19 places higher than the 22nd place finish they were forecast, while Luton made similar strides towards overturning their odds by finishing 13 places higher than expected by clinging onto sixth place.

Coventry City (+9), Blackpool (+8) and Blackburn (+4) all performed well, while Nottingham Forest and Bristol City ended their season three places higher than the odds suggested they would.

The John Smiths Stadium has seen some above par performances on a consistent basis all season, leading the Terriers to be the divisions biggest overachievers

Championship Overachievers

The list of Overachievers below shows Bournemouth finished two places higher than expected by the betting sites odds, and Huddersfield, as mentioned some 19 places higher than the bookies predicted.

• Bournemouth (+2)
• Huddersfield (+19)
• Nottingham Forest (+3)
• Luton (+13)
• Blackburn (+4)
• Millwall (+5)
• Coventry (+9)
• Preston (+5)
• Blackpool (+8)
• Bristol City (+3)
• Peterborough (+1)

Bournemouth Vitality Stadium will once again enjoy Premier League football in 2022/23 after gaining automatic promotion without the need for the playoffs.

Championship Underachievers

Meanwhile, Barnsley and Reading were predicted 10th and 11th place finishes respectively, with Barnsley finishing bottom of the league and Reading finishing 21st, they can be considered as the division's underachievers.

Elsewhere, Swansea City were predicted a play-off finish in 5th, however, ended up 10 places below what the odds predicted in 15th, as well as West Brom being expected to finish second before ending up a disappointing eight places lower in 10th

While Sheffield United fell below expectation, they remain in the playoffs having finished 4th and are second-favourites to gain promotion through this medium at 9/4 with the bookmakers.

• Sheffield United (-2)
• Middlesbrough (-1)
• West Brom (-8)
• QPR (-1)
• Stoke (-5)
• Swansea (-10)
• Cardiff (-10)
• Hull (-4)
• Birmingham (-4)
• Reading (-10)
• Derby(-6)
• Barnsley (-14)

League One football returns to Oakwell and Barnsley fans as the Championships biggest underachievers of the season.

Final EFL Championship League Table

So here is the full Championship table, showing the finishing positions of each team and how they compared to the betting odds prior to the season starting

Fulham began the season as favourites with the bookies to do so and delivered chance the '0' in the difference column.

Research shows Huddersfield are best placed for promotion despite Nottingham Forest being favourites

But the Championship is far from over and for four teams the competition has just begun, with the promotion play-offs now taking centre stage - but who has the best chance of being promoted? Is it the side that finishes third or do teams fourth, fifth or sixth stand a better chance based on recent years?

It’s a welcome outcome for Huddersfield fans as the team that finishes third in the table has the best play-off strike rate with four promotions via the play-offs in the last 10 years - more than any other place.

Fourth and fifth-placed sides have each won three promotions in the last 10 years, handing Nottingham Forest and Sheffield United a boost ahead of their play-off campaign.

The findings are very bad news for Luton fans, with no team finishing sixth in the Championship achieving promotion in the last 10 play-off campaigns, with just three teams finishing sixth reaching the final itself, Ipswich (2014/15), Sheffield Wednesday (2015/16), and Derby (2018/19).

However, the achievement by Luton can not be dismissed given the cost of the squad and how that relates to the value gained from a frugal spending strategy. They top the table fo Championship teams when looking at the price of victory in the EFL Championship

Despite finishing fourth, Nottingham Forest are the 13/8 favourites to achieve promotion with victory at Wembley, with Sheffield United next at 9/4, Huddersfield 7/2 and Luton 9/2.