In brief
According to a 2024 study, Tottenham Hotspur is the best-run football team in England.
Despite a number of problems in recent months, Manchester United is ranked second.
Despite finishing last in League One, Cambridge United is the third-best-run club in England.
The wonderful game is football. Fans around the world admire it, making it the most popular sport in the world. It is both a form of purist art and entertainment. However, some people view it as a business as well, and those in charge of managing football teams must handle it as such. Making money and succeeding on and off the pitch are their objectives.
Although this may not be as severe for teams at the bottom of the pyramid as it is for those at the top of the Premier League, they are nevertheless expected to do every effort to manage teams efficiently. In all honesty, some are performing far better than others. Just before the 2024–25 football season began, Fair Game undertook a study that has now shown how well every team in the top seven English football leagues is being managed.
A research called the Fair Game Index examines a number of important aspects of managing a football team and utilises them to assess how well a team is managed. Financial sustainability, good governance, equity standards, and fan and community engagement are the main aspects that are examined. These have been used to rate all clubs, from the Premier League to the National League North and South, according to how well they are being managed. Let’s examine the highly intriguing findings.
The league each team played in during the 2023–2024 season is used to determine the standings for each division.
Premier League
Manchester United are second
Tottenham Hotspur is currently the best-run team across all seven of England’s leagues, the report claims. Even though Daniel Levy’s team hasn’t won anything in a while, they’re performing well overall. Given their recent problems, many Manchester United supporters may find it hard to accept that the team is in second place. Expect next year’s outcome to be a little different because the Red Devils had to cope with stadium leaks and a rodent infestation during the 2024–2025 season.
It’s interesting to note that just ten of the Premier League teams from the previous season are among the top 20 in the nation. Among the teams that made it were Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City, and Liverpool. There is a small inaccuracy in the table; Bournemouth is rated 20th, although they are actually 53rd. Despite their recent strong on-field results, the Cherries are the lowest-ranked team in the premier tier.
Championship
Norwich City are first
Norwich City and Swansea City are the fifth and sixth best run teams in the nation, respectively, despite playing in the Championship. Despite Wayne Rooney’s recent troubles at the club, they are also the top two teams in the second division, with Plymouth Argyle one spot below them. Only those three finish in the nation’s top 20 during the entire Championship.
The three teams that were promoted to the first division the previous season—Leiceum City, Southampton, and Ipswich Town—are currently placed 26th, 28th, and 30th overall. Even though they won the FA Cup the previous season, Coventry City is the lowest-ranked Championship team—in fact, they are placed as low as 101st out of all teams in the nation. In an attempt to get back up the ladder, the Sky Blues recently hired former England star Frank Lampard in lieu of long-time manager Mark Robins.
League One
Cambridge United are third overall
Cambridge United is placed third in the entire nation for the quality of their management, which is a rather unexpected revelation in the rankings. It is evidence of the outstanding job being done at the club. They are currently dead last in League One and are having trouble on the pitch in spite of this. Four additional division teams are in the top 20 nationwide: Bolton Wanderers, Carlisle United, Lincoln City, and Exeter City, who are placed ninth, eleventh, sixteenth, and eighteenth, respectively. The latter is more unexpected considering the financial problems the former Premier League team has faced over the past ten years.
The Royals are ranked 100th in the nation and dead last among League One teams, which is hardly surprising given how awful Reading has been playing lately.
League Two
Notts County are only 22nd
With AFC Wimbledon and Forest Green Rovers ranked eighth and fourteenth overall, respectively, there are just two teams in the top 20 of League Two. The latter has established a strong reputation for their outstanding efforts in creating an eco-friendly team, but they weren’t as successful on the pitch; they were relegated to the National League the previous season, and Troy Deeney was one of four managers who took over. They are currently two points behind the leaders in the National League in third place.
Even though Wrexham earned their second consecutive promotion and are currently performing well in League One, they were only placed eighth out of all League Two teams last season and 60th overall. In the division, Notts County was rated 22nd. One could anticipate that the team will perform better given that they have made progress after a few incredibly dull years.
National League
York City are first
After 23 games of the 2024–25 season, York City is in first place in the National League, which is exactly where they are in the league standings. Chesterfield is second in the league but far lower overall in 55th place, whereas the Minstermen are 21st in the nation. However, the Spireites swept to promotion last season after dominating the competition. Marc White is the owner and manager of Dorking Wanderers, a team that was only established in 1999 but has recently risen through the football leagues before being demoted for taking a step too far.
As they finished 153 out of 164 teams nationwide and second from bottom in the National League, the results show that their ascent to popularity is not a reflection of how well the club is operated. Despite Dorking’s relatively low ranking, White is renowned for his bold and honest demeanour, and overall, he has performed admirably. Even though they are currently seven points above the drop, AFC Fylde is currently placed 164th, the lowest of any team in the entire nation.
National League North
Scarborough Athletic are second
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On to the National League North, where, shockingly, 12th-place Chester is ranked first and 22nd nationwide. Scarborough Athletic is ranked second in the division but 33rd overall. They were only created in 2007 after Scarborough FC folded. The Seadogs have had a very fortunate few years, and the fan-owned squad has done a fantastic job of rising from the ashes of the prior team from the seaside town.
With three relegations in the last five years, Scunthorpe United has recently declined in the football hierarchy. They are now rated sixth in the division and 113th overall, which reflects that. However, this season, the Iron are in the midst of the promotion struggle.
National League South
Yeovil are only seventh
Yeovil Town has had a terrible run in recent years, much like Scunthorpe. Although the team was playing in the Championship not so long ago, they are now in non-league football. They managed to get promoted to the National League, where they have established themselves in midtable, despite being the 111th best-run club in the United Kingdom.
Famous for their stellar FA Cup matchup with Liverpool, Havant & Waterlooville was relegated from the National League South the previous season. Nevertheless, based on their performance last season, they were ranked 15th in the division.
