Skip to content
GO TO bet365 Sports
Football
  1. Football
  2. Premier League

Teams top of the Premier League at Christmas: How often do they win the league?

Any Premier League team considering themselves a title challenger wants to be top at all parts of the season, but being top at Christmas seems to carry some added significance.

Similarly, at the other end of the table, nobody wants to be bottom at Christmas, with that often spelling doom. Indeed, only four teams have been bottom at Christmas in the Premier League and stayed up, but how many teams who've been top at Christmas have gone on to win the league? Find out below.

Teams top of Premier League at Christmas and final position

Season

Team top at Christmas

Final position

92/93

Norwich

3rd

93/94

Man Utd

1st

94/95

Blackburn

1st

95/96

Newcastle

2nd

96/97

Liverpool

4th

97/98

Man Utd

2nd

98/99

Aston Villa

6th

99/00

Leeds

3rd

00/01

Man Utd

1st

01/02

Newcastle

4th

02/03

Arsenal

2nd

03/04

Man Utd

3rd

04/05

Chelsea

1st

05/06

Chelsea

1st

06/07

Man Utd

1st

07/08

Arsenal

3rd

08/09

Liverpool

2nd

09/10

Chelsea

1st

10/11

Man Utd

1st

11/12

Man City

1st

12/13

Man Utd

1st

13/14

Liverpool

2nd

14/15

Chelsea

1st

15/16

Leicester

1st

16/17

Chelsea

1st

17/18

Man City

1st

18/19

Liverpool

2nd

19/20

Liverpool

1st

20/21

Liverpool

3rd

21/22

Man City

1st

22/23

Arsenal

2nd

23/24

Arsenal

2nd

As seen in the table above, the team top at Christmas has only won the league 16 out of 31 times, and only twice in the last six seasons.

Teams top at Christmas are winning the league more often than they did in the early years of the competition, however, with the financial disparity growing and fewer teams able to be top at Christmas, let alone go on to win the league.

Manchester United won eight of the first 11 Premier Leagues, but were only top at Christmas in three seasons (and only won the league in two of those), with Sir Alex Ferguson making a habit of ensuring his side were raring to go at the business end of the campaign.

Between 2004 and 2017, the team top at Christmas went on to win the league 11 out of 14 times, with Arsenal and Liverpool being chased down by Manchester United in 2008 and 2009, and Liverpool dramatically letting their lead slip at the end of the 2013/14 campaign with Manchester City taking the title.

In the last six years, we've only seen City top at Christmas once, but Pep Guardiola, like Ferguson, has always made sure his sides finished campaigns strongly.

The Citizens are surely too far back this time, though, and table-toppers Liverpool look well placed to win a record-equalling 20th league title.

Related Articles

bet365 uses cookies

We use cookies to deliver a better and more personalised service. For more information, see our Cookie Policy

New to bet365? Bet £10 & Get £50 in Free Bets Join Now

Min deposit requirement. Free Bets are paid as Bet Credits and are available for use upon settlement of qualifying bets. Min odds, bet and payment method exclusions apply. Returns exclude Bet Credits stake. Time limits and T&Cs apply.