The Worst Premier League Teams in History

Derby County were relegated from the English top flight on 29 March 2008 – the earliest any team has ever been demoted from the Premier League since its inception in 1992/93.

While Derby are often cited as the worst Premier League team of all time, several other clubs also deserve mention in this notorious category. And after Southampton have done their best to take this particular crown in the recently concluded season, today we take a look at the sides that will always be remembered as the bottom of the barrel.

Derby County (2007/08)

Derby County’s 2007/08 season is widely considered the poorest in Premier League history. They accumulated a paltry 11 points – the lowest tally ever recorded in a single Premier League campaign. Even when factoring in the traditional three points for a win, no team in English top-flight history has fared worse.

The Rams suffered defeats in four of their first five matches (drawing the other), before finally registering a 1-0 victory over Newcastle United thanks to Kenny Miller’s long-range effort. Unfortunately for Derby, that proved to be their sole win of the season. Broadcast live on Setanta Sports, the camera missed capturing the goal live – a fitting metaphor for their season. They failed to win any of their final 32 matches (D7 L25), setting a Premier League record for the longest winless run.

Neither Billy Davies nor Paul Jewell could stem the tide as the club plummeted into the Championship. Derby used 36 players throughout the season in an attempt to halt the slide – a figure only surpassed by Middlesbrough (37 in 2005/06) and Fulham (39 in 2013/14).

No player managed to score more than four goals. Kenny Miller topped the charts with just four, while only Sunderland’s Tommy Miller (three in 2005/06) recorded fewer goals as a club’s leading scorer in a Premier League season. Paul Jewell’s record of 24 games without a win remains the most ever for a Premier League manager at a single club. He never returned to manage in the division again.

Swindon Town (1993/94)

Swindon Town’s solitary top-flight campaign is remembered for all the wrong reasons. Managed by John Gorman, their squad featured mainly British players, with only Luc Nijholt (Netherlands) and Jan Åge Fjørtoft (Norway) representing foreign nations.

Their start was ominous – winless in their first 15 Premier League fixtures, a feat not seen since Sheffield United’s 16-game drought in 1990/91. By season’s end, Swindon had secured only five wins and conceded a staggering 100 goals – the most ever allowed in a single Premier League season at the time.

Offensively, they fared better than expected, scoring 47 goals – more than seven other sides that season. Fjørtoft led the scoring with 12 goals, despite going goalless in his first 20 appearances before netting a dozen in his last 16 games. Ultimately, Swindon finished 13 points from safety.

Defensively, however, they were in chaos. Gorman deployed four goalkeepers across the season, all of whom conceded at least six goals. Only Newcastle in 1999/2000 and Middlesbrough in 1996/97 have matched this unwanted record.

Huddersfield Town (2018/19)

After gaining promotion to the Premier League in 2016/17, Huddersfield Town made history as the first club to be promoted despite conceding more goals than they scored during the regular Championship season.

They defied expectations by surviving the 2017/18 Premier League season, finishing four points above the relegation zone. That said, they failed to score in 21 games – a mark only Derby County in 2007/08 surpassed.

Come 2018/19, Huddersfield failed to heed the warning signs. They finished bottom of the league with just 16 points – the joint-third lowest in Premier League history. Their three victories came against Fulham and Wolves (twice).

Their relegation was confirmed with six matches to go – tying the record for the earliest Premier League relegation in terms of games remaining.

Ipswich Town (1994/95)

The mid-nineties saw Ipswich Town enter their third Premier League season. Unfortunately, this campaign would be remembered for one of the division’s most iconic thrashings.

With a -57 goal difference, Ipswich rank among the worst in Premier League history, only better than Derby (2007/08, -69), Sheffield United (2023/24, -69), Norwich (-61), and Southampton (2024/25, -60). Their goal average was less than one per match, while conceding over two per game.

They conceded 93 goals – second only to their own 121 in the 1963/64 campaign. The nadir came at Old Trafford, where they were thrashed 9-0 by Manchester United. Andy Cole scored five goals that day, the most by a United player since George Best’s six against Northampton in the 1970 FA Cup.

Relegation was confirmed in mid-April with six games remaining – the second-earliest demotion in Premier League history. Ipswich also had the league’s oldest average starting XI (28 years, 168 days). Manager George Burley eventually rebuilt the squad, earning promotion again for the 2000/01 season.

Sunderland (2002-03)

The 2002-03 season was a bleak one for Sunderland, despite ITV’s The Premiership theme tune promising a “Beautiful Day” courtesy of U2.

They failed to score in their first two games – something not seen since their 1976/77 relegation. Peter Reid lasted just nine matches before being sacked with the club in 17th place (W2 D2 L5). His successor, Howard Wilkinson, managed only two wins from his first nine league matches. A 2-1 win over Liverpool offered brief hope, but they then failed to win any of their next 11 games.

One low point was a 3-1 loss to Charlton in which Sunderland scored three own goals – two by Michael Proctor and one by Stephen Wright – a dubious feat only matched by Sunderland themselves in 2014 against Southampton.

Mick McCarthy replaced Wilkinson but couldn’t prevent the club from losing their final 15 matches – the longest losing streak within a single Premier League campaign.

Sunderland failed to score in 20 games and finished with just 21 goals – the second-lowest in Premier League history behind Derby (2007/08) and Sheffield United (2020/21, with 20).

Despite the catastrophe, Sunderland kept faith in McCarthy, who led them back to the Premier League in 2004/05 as champions.

Sunderland (2005/06)

Only four players remained from Sunderland’s 2002/03 debacle in 2005/06 – Stephen Wright, George McCartney, Kevin Kyle, Julio Arca – along with manager Mick McCarthy.

The new season began disastrously with five consecutive defeats – their worst top-flight start ever. Extending back to the 2002/03 campaign, this represented 20 straight Premier League defeats, the longest such streak in top-flight history.

This campaign was even worse than their last, ending with just 15 points – the third lowest ever. Their tally of three wins remains the club’s worst in a top-flight season.

McCarthy was sacked in March 2006. Interim manager Kevin Ball oversaw the final 10 matches, winning only once. Sunderland’s 28 home defeats between 2002/03 and 2005/06 were the most by any Premier League team during that stretch, despite them playing two seasons in the second tier.

Sheffield United (2020/21)

After a stunning ninth-place finish in 2019/20, Sheffield United were struck by the dreaded “second-season syndrome.”

Following a 1-0 defeat to Wolves on 17 April, their relegation was confirmed with six matches remaining. They had won just four of their 32 matches up to that point.

Interestingly, they managed to win three of their final six fixtures, finishing the season with more wins than both Fulham and West Bromwich Albion (five each). Still, it could not hide how poor their season had been.

The Blades’ first win did not arrive until their 18th fixture – a 1-0 home success over Newcastle United on 12 January, setting a Premier League record for the latest first win.

Sheffield United (2023/24)

Sheffield United endured another nightmare in 2023/24. Their highest position all season was 16th. From Matchday 6 onwards, they languished in the relegation zone.

With just one win and five points from 14 matches, Paul Heckingbottom was dismissed. He was replaced by Chris Wilder, who had guided them to ninth in 2019/20, but he could not repeat the feat. The Blades won only two more matches – against Brentford and Luton – and finished bottom with 16 points.

Their defence was a disaster, conceding 104 goals – the most ever in Premier League history. Their rate of 2.74 goals conceded per match was the highest in the top flight since Ipswich in 1963/64 (2.88).

They scored just 35 goals, resulting in a –69 goal difference – matching Derby County’s infamous 2007/08 campaign.

Southampton (2024/25)

Southampton came close to matching Derby County’s record-low points total. A goalless draw against Manchester City prevented that humiliation, lifting them just above the 11-point threshold.

Still, there was little reason for celebration. Southampton may have recorded one more win than Derby did, but they also suffered 30 defeats – the only club in Premier League history to reach that figure in a single season.

Dishonourable Mentions

Queens Park Rangers (2012/13)

After narrowly surviving in 2011/12, QPR made lavish signings including Park Ji-sung, Rob Green, José Bosingwa, Julio Cesar, and Esteban Granero.

Despite the investment, they failed to win their first 16 games – setting a new record for the longest wait for a win from the start of a season (later broken by Sheffield United). Harry Redknapp replaced Mark Hughes, but QPR still finished bottom.

Norwich City (2019/20)

Labelled “the best team to be bottom of the league in Premier League history,” Norwich failed to gain a single point from losing positions. They lost all 27 matches in which they fell behind.

Although they bounced back in 2020/21, Norwich were relegated again in 2021/22 and have yet to return.

Aston Villa (2015/16)

Villa lost 11 consecutive games between February and April 2016 – the third-longest losing run in Premier League history.

Manager Rémi Garde departed with the lowest win percentage (9.5%) of any permanent Villa boss in the competition’s history.