Although there are still many games left in the Championship campaign, more than 25% of games is a respectable sample size to gauge how the remainder of the year will turn out.
So far, the second-tier campaign has been fascinating. Middlesbrough is currently at the top of the standings and is beginning to purr; Swansea City had a great start to the season but have hit a bit of a roadblock with two straight losses; and West Ham United and Wolves, who may still be figuring things out after being relegated from the Premier League, complete the top four.
Dark horses now have a chance to shine thanks to the expanded play-offs. Blackburn Rovers, QPR, Stoke City, and Portsmouth (who are ranked 8–11) will all believe they are in a fantastic position thus far.
The relegation debate is made even more difficult by the fact that teams at the bottom, such as Norwich City, Burnley, and Derby County, haven’t begun as well as many had anticipated, while the three promoted teams, Lincoln City, Cardiff City, and Bolton Wanderers, are off to excellent starts.
How does AI think the remainder of the Championship campaign will unfold in light of all of that? To find out, Football League World has consulted ChatGPT.
24Norwich City
AI predicts that Norwich will tumble into League One after finishing in the Championship with a wooden spoon this season, which is a somewhat alarming start to the updated forecasts.
So far this season, Philippe Clement’s team has been in a “feast or famine” situation. There have been no draws in their twelve games, and regrettably, the losses have been more common.
The Canaries are now ranked 20th because of their poor defence, which hides their current top-four goalscoring figures. According to ChatGPT, Norwich will experience an unexpected decline and the recent victory against Charlton Athletic won’t make things better.
23Preston North End
After just 12 games of the Championship season, Preston North End is already making significant progress towards catching up. The Lilywhites are six points outside of safety after only gaining five points so far this season.
After some very awful performances in his first three games in charge, there was some promise in their 1-1 draw with West Brom over the weekend that things might be improving under new manager Graham Alexander, but more has to be seen.
Right now, Preston is by far the most likely team to lose, and ChatGPT doesn’t anticipate a comeback at Deepdale.
22Derby County
Derby, who are in the drop zone with just one victory from their first 12 games, is another team that, like Norwich, was hoping to improve on a play-off near-miss from the previous season. However, they have fallen short of those ambitions.
The Rams’ dismal start to the season, particularly on defence, has been partly caused by injuries, which may explain why John Eustace’s team has been unusually easy to score against.
Many analysts believe that the only thing to do is wait for those players to return, and Eustace has enough credit in this division to make a comeback up the table look likely, similar to what happened last season. AI, however, does not anticipate that.
21Burnley
The good news for Burnley is that ChatGPT believes they won’t be relegated twice this season. Unfortunately, with a 21st-place forecast, things won’t necessarily improve after Nicky Hayen.
After the Clarets’ 4-1 loss at Lincoln, the Belgian manager lost his job as a result of the team’s dismal start, which puts them in the relegation zone. With this appointment crucial to determining the club’s future, all eyes are on Alan Pace and the other Turf Moor executives.
The club has a very bad vibe, and you’re concerned about what might happen if the new manager doesn’t make things better right away. Even if this doesn’t mean it will, they will still be a Championship team in 2027–2028.
20Watford
Watford is another team that now has a really bad vibe around them. The anger towards the Pozzo ownership persisted even after their crucial victory over Charlton a few weeks ago.
The Hornets’ supporters have faith in Alessio Dionisi, and it is nearly unanimously acknowledged that the team’s current situation isn’t due to the multiple head coaches the team employs annually.
It remains to be seen if the Italian stays at Vicarage Road for the duration of this season. In any case, AI believes they will finish in 20th, which, like Burnley, isn’t a total catastrophe but is an indication that the previous Premier League team will continue to slide.
19Lincoln City
Lincoln has undoubtedly been one of the more outstanding teams in the Championship through the first 12 games, considering what many anticipated of them before the season.
Budget-wise, they have already bloodied the noses of a few big-hitters this season, including Burnley last weekend, Southampton, and Middlesbrough, whom they drew and lost late to, respectively, earlier this season.
This projection wouldn’t even take into account their -7 goal differential, which AI indicates some concern about, and their crushing 6-0 loss to West Ham, in which they had nine men for the majority.
As the demands of the Championship increase, ChatGPT believes that the Imps will ultimately go down the league a little, but their only objective this season will have been to stay in the second division.
18Bolton Wanderers
Similar to Lincoln, nobody anticipated Bolton to be so competitive early in the season, especially considering that their transfer window wasn’t as good as their competitors’ on paper.
This season, Steven Schumacher’s team has just given it a shot, adhering to its attacking philosophy and refusing to back down from the supposedly “bigger” teams in the division. As a result, they have won games.
They have also given up goals, but Schumacher’s team will be able to score enough points to avoid relegation, according to AI.
17Charlton Athletic
Charlton had a very promising start and was the last team in the second division with a perfect record. However, they have lost four of their last nine games, drawn five, and won none.
The Addicks finished in 19th position last season after a great start thanks to the momentum they acquired from winning the League One play-offs, but this year’s decline has begun far earlier, and Nathan Jones will need to find a way to win games fast.
However, ChatGPT believes that Charlton will be alright come May and will actually be sitting a bit higher in the table than they are now. If anyone can do that, it’s the Welshman.
16Cardiff City
Cardiff, who have successfully adopted Brian Barry-Murphy’s heavy-possession approach in the tier above, completes the trio of former League One teams.
The Bluebirds’ present ranking of 16th may be attributed to their own wastefulness. In fact, Cardiff ranks fifth in big chances generated and third in xG and shots on goal per game. They are also in a play-off spot due to their xG disparity.
Cardiff is one of the best-coached teams in the division, according to BBM, and if they take advantage of some of these opportunities—which they have been doing since the international break—they may potentially challenge for a spot in the top eight.
Although AI doesn’t believe that would occur, a 16th-place result as a recently promoted team isn’t to be taken lightly.
15Wrexham
Even while Wrexham hasn’t been in the early relegation conversation like Burnley, Derby, and Norwich have, you can’t help but believe that Phil Parkinson’s team’s start to the season is equally concerning—they are now in 17th place with only three victories.
After only missing out on the play-offs the previous season, the Red Dragons replied with yet another hectic transfer window full of investments. They haven’t discovered any consistency, though, and others are wondering if Parkinson has reached his limit at the Racecourse.
AI believes there are legitimate concerns, but given the 58-year-old’s credit at Wrexham, it’s more probable that he will be given the benefit of the doubt.
Last season, Wrexham got off to a sluggish start before starting a steady ascent around this time. ChatGPT believes that this year won’t be the same.
14Millwall
Millwall, who finished third in the league last season and are currently in 13th place after 12 games, may be the team most affected by injuries and absences, aside from Derby.
The Lions have fought valiantly in the face of that difficulty, and it is practically expected that once things start to improve, as they are now, Alex Neil’s team will be able to move closer to their previous season’s performance levels.
Their solitary victory in the previous six games came against struggling Preston, but they have also taken two-goal leads against West Ham and Middlesbrough in that stretch before succumbing because they lack depth in comparison to their opponents.
Unfortunately, AI doesn’t predict a significant improvement for Millwall, therefore they are currently in the bottom half.
13Bristol City
Under Michael Skubala, Bristol City had a great start to the season but, with only one victory in their previous seven games, have drifted away from the early play-off talk during the past month or so.
They are the epitome of a mid-table team, with an extremely gratifying xG difference of 0.0 through the first 12 games.
However, this is a new initiative at Ashton Gate, and this past summer, many talented players with high ceilings came through the door. Although the Robins’ 13th-place performance seems normal, they currently appear to have a bright future.
12Sheffield United
After 12 games, Sheffield United is now ranked 12th, and AI doesn’t think things will change for the better or worse at Bramall Lane over the next 34 games.
Following an initial eight-game run that produced subpar underlying figures and put some pressure on Chris Wilder in the dugout, the Blades have appeared somewhat more optimistic following the international break.
Nonetheless, there is still hope that this Blades team may be in the running for a play-off spot because of their performances in victories over Lincoln and Bristol City on each side of that 10-man loss at Portsmouth and the last 30 minutes of that draw against Derby.
However, this prediction doesn’t seem to support that.
11Portsmouth
This season, Portsmouth wanted to become a more reputable Championship team and stay out of the relegation zone. In this instance, John Mousinho’s side will have done a good job.
With the attention at Fratton Park being on the clubs ahead in the play-off spots rather than looking over their shoulders at the bottom three after a run of three victories and a draw in their previous four games, the Pompey manager’s desire for greater investment in the team over the summer is working out so far.
Although a lot could change in the upcoming months, if this keeps up, Portsmouth might be headed for their best league finish since their 2009–10 Premier League relegation.
10Swansea City
Over the past several weeks, Swansea’s explosive start has been brutally put to the test as they have lost their previous two games, one against QPR and the other in a closely contested battle against West Ham.
Even though Vitor Matos’ team still has one of the finest defensive records in the division and is ranked second, AI believes the Swans will keep falling.
There will be several teams vying for the eight play-off berths this season, and ChatGPT believes Swansea won’t have that battle in the upcoming months for a variety of reasons.
9QPR
After their 5-0 thrashing of Swansea on Saturday, QPR returned to the play-offs, just missing out on the top eight.
The Hoops’ current situation after 12 games is a true tribute to Julien Stephan’s team, since they have had to deal with their own injury problems this season. However, given that they have only won twice in their last eight games, it could be attributed to a great start to the season.
AI may not be fully committed to the Hoops as a play-off team because of those recent results, even though they appear to be returning to victories.
In the end, though, a play-off challenge is a far cry from the boring seasons at Loftus Road in the past. This would be their best result since 2020–2021 and their second-best since they were demoted from the Premier League eleven years ago.
8Blackburn Rovers
Blackburn has had a fantastic season thus far, and Tony Mowbray’s team has also exceeded their preseason projections.
The lack of movement in the transfer market has only served to fuel the negative sentiment around Ewood Park’s ownership. However, the supporters deserve praise for their support of Mowbray and their team, which is resulting in victories.
It’s very amazing that Blackburn has already won as many league games at Ewood Park this season as they did in the entire previous year. They are now in 10th place, a spot they would have only dreamed of reaching in the previous year.
AI is supporting Rovers to keep that and some, finishing in the second-tier play-offs for the first time since their top-flight relegation in 2012, despite the team’s poor underlying metrics and some clinical finishing, particularly from Andri Gudjohnsen.
7Stoke City
Stoke is another team that many predicted would struggle this season but have surpassed those predictions. They were eliminated from the play-offs over the weekend, but it was still impressive that they were in them in the first place.
The Potters began the current season with three straight losses after a dismal finish to the previous one. They have only lost one of their previous nine games, and that was late against Middlesbrough, despite the fact that many believed they would struggle.
With Viktor Johansson in goal, Stoke can afford to sit back and protect leads once they obtain them, knowing that the Swede is among the best in the division at keeping the ball out of the net. However, similar to Blackburn, the underlying figures aren’t spectacular.
Some may find it unfeasible, but AI believes Mark Robins’ club will make the playoffs this year.
6Birmingham City
Birmingham City appears to be a serious contender for promotion this season after a somewhat disappointing campaign by their own new standards last season.
Chris Davies appears to have changed the way his Blues team has been playing, going a bit more direct and being content to play with less of the ball than they did the previous season. Despite this, they continue to play with a possession-heavy style that helped them win League One in 2024–2025.
Goals are the result, and the development of younger players like August Priske and James Beadle as well as a stable backline with some of the finest individual stats in the league are also contributing.
Despite all of that, the Championship appears to be a very tough league this season, therefore according to AI, the Blues could have to settle for the play-offs.
5West Bromwich Albion
ChatGPT’s description of West Brom as a “solid all-round team” is spot on. In order to keep the Baggies out of the bottom three in the latter part of the previous season, James Morrison made them a formidable opponent. He has continued to do so in the first 12 games of this season.
West Brom is now in fifth place, and many of their games have been decided by the odd goal. They have been fiercely competitive and have frequently won games thanks to their superior quality at the top end of the field.
They have all the makings of a play-off-caliber team thus far, but they do have a fairly sparse roster in terms of first-team stars, so we’ll see how they do if the fixture list gets crowded as the winter months go on.
4Wolves
So far in the season, Wolves have had an odd start. The Old Gold are currently in fourth position, two points outside of automatic promotion spots, and have the best underlying defensive figures in the division, despite the fact that some fans are still not quite persuaded by new manager Cesar Peixoto.
They haven’t been as bad going forward as their other rapid starts, but maybe they could be a little better with players like Fer Lopez, Mateus Mane, Adam Armstrong, and Raul Jimenez before his injury.
In any case, they’ve been more than comfortable in several victories, including the Black Country derby against West Brom and last weekend’s match against Watford, and they’ll be there or thereabouts come May.
Even though the division is difficult, the former Premier League team may view missing the top two as a failure.
3Southampton
Tonda Eckert’s team would be in second place in the Championship if it weren’t for Southampton’s four-point deduction from the EFL following the Spygate controversy back in May.
Apparently, ChatGPT believes that those lost points will be the difference between the Saints being immediately promoted or having to settle for the play-offs in what will be a season of narrow margins in the second tier this year.
So far this season, Southampton has been quite impressive, with players like Cyle Larin and Finn Azaz standing out. They also appear to have reached a new level since the outcome of Tonda Eckert’s FA hearing, and they are learning important lessons away from home.
AI believes the Hammers will prevail in the top-two race, but that Saturday’s 3-2 victory at West Ham delivered a message to the other promotion contenders. Nevertheless, it says that the Saints would be the favourites in the postseason.
2Middlesbrough
After defeating Bolton 5-1 on the road, Middlesbrough is currently atop the standings, and with this revamped Borough team, it seems that Hell-ball is beginning to establish itself in the Championship once more.
Tommy Conway and Riley McGree, for example, appear far better than they did the previous season, and Aidan Morris has advanced even farther. Then, Will Lankshear and Amario Cozier-Duberry appear to be second-tier Premier League players at the Riverside.
Their solitary setback came in the second game of the campaign at Blackburn, and they don’t look like slowing down anytime soon. It’ll be a return to the Premier League after a decade out for Boro, according to ChatGPT, but they’ll be pipped for the title come May.
1West Ham United
In fact, AI predicts that West Ham’s offensive power will be sufficient to push Middlesbrough off the top spot and win the Championship and return to the Premier League right away.
This season, Nuno Espírito Santo’s team has scored three goals or more in five of their twelve games, including two six-goal hauls against Lincoln and Wrexham.
They have now scored 32 goals, five more than Fulham did after 12 games during their record-breaking 106-goal season since the 2004–05 relaunch.
Under Marco Silva, the Cottagers won the division that year, and ChatGPT believes the Hammers will suffer the same fate in May.
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