All 24 EFL Championship clubs ranked by the size of their global fanbase | OneFootball

Football League World has seen which Championship clubs have the largest following

Fans are everything in football, and many clubs take pride in having as diverse and global a fanbase as possible.

In the Championship, there are some clubs whose fanfare is boosted by their recent time in the Premier League or by their current ownership.

Others thrive off being one of the few clubs in a city or town, meaning more people are naturally attracted to the only local professional side around them.

On the flip side, those who are in a congested area can sometimes struggle to push their content past those who come from the local area.

Football League World has taken into account the above, plus their social media following, to find out who has the biggest global fanbase in the second tier.

24 ? ? Preston North End

At the bottom of the list sits Preston North End, who unfortunately don't tick many boxes when it comes to having a large, global fanbase.

Whilst Deepdale plays host to tens of thousands of loyal, loud fans every home game, picking up those who perhaps aren't as loyal to a local club is quite difficult, given their proximity to many other clubs in the Lancashire area.

The likes of Blackburn Rovers and Blackpool have had more Premier League seasons as of recently than the Lilywhites, and then they also have to compete with the Manchester clubs just next to their county, too.

Preston has the lowest combined following on X and Instagram, and therefore struggles to make it off the foot of this ranking.

23 ? ? Millwall

London clubs below the Premier League can often find it difficult to establish a large fanbase due to the sheer number of sides both in the EFL and non-league.

Therefore, Millwall ranks rather low on the list. With no recent Premier League success, there isn't much being broadcast about the Lions outside their incredibly loyal, rough-around-the-edges fanbase.

And, given the reputation that Millwall fans can have, new fans to the English game may choose to support another club in proximity.

22 ? ? Charlton Athletic

The social media follower numbers and the global fanbase numbers between Charlton Athletic and Millwall are rather small.

Charlton might just have the edge on the Lions since they've been in the top flight a little more recently than their South London rivals, so more neutral fans may know the club a little better.

The two fight tooth and nail on the field, and perhaps will be off it too to possibly grow their fanbase outside the local area.

Despite being owned by Michael Eisner, who is a former CEO of The Walt Disney Company, Portsmouth's global fanbase isn't as large as one of the biggest film companies in the world.

Pompey fell down the leagues around the time that clubs were being showcased online a lot more.

So, despite now being back in the Championship, many new fans may still know them as a perennial League One or even League Two side, especially given the emergence of other south coast sides during that time.

They'll be hoping to get back to their former Premier League glory, in turn building that fanbase even further.

20 ? ? Bristol City

Bristol City haven't been a top-flight side since the 1979/80 campaign, and a lot of the time since have seen them either in the third division or just floating around the second tier's mid-table.

Therefore, despite the fanbase perhaps building last season, as word about their play-off push spread and more neutrals may have started to adopt the Robins as their side, it hasn't really done enough to push them towards the top-supported sides in the division.

They may be recognised as the bigger team in Bristol, but Bristol City aren't exactly huge compared to their divisional rivals.

19 ? ? Oxford United

Oxford United's X following is actually the lowest in the Championship. However, their Instagram following pulls them above some of the other second division sides in the combined list.

Not many people associate Oxfordshire with football. Their main pull comes via the University, and their closest professional rivals are Swindon Town, who are still an hour away down the A420.

Although that means that the one-club city has a deep-rooted fanbase in the county, and those who come from around the world to study there may also adopt them as their team, pushing the word about the club a little further away from Oxford itself.

Not enough to put them any further up than 19th on this list, but better than a place in the bottom three.

Social media following has Coventry City nearer the bottom of the Championship.

In a similar way to Portsmouth, a lot of their recent history has seen them in lower divisions, battling financial turmoil. But their location definitely doesn't help either.

The Midlands is a congested area when it comes to professional football teams, and good professional football teams, too.

Plenty of sides ply their trade in the Premier League or the Championship, so for a side who were in League One and League Two during the rise of Leicester City and while the likes of Aston Villa and West Brom played, or still play, in the top flight, it made it difficult to build that profile.

A promotion to the Premier League looks likely this season based on the Sky Blues' start, though, so perhaps their status is about to rise significantly over the coming months.

17 ? ? Blackburn Rovers

Blackburn may average among the worst attendances in terms of the percentage they can fill their stadium.

But their previous history of winning the Premier League and the support that is generated from the British Indian community due to the Venky ownership, gives them a good base for a sizable global fanbase.

Rovers still sit around the lower mid-table spots on the list, though. Like Preston, they have to contend with a lot of clubs that have a more recent marketable history for global fans, plus the Manchester clubs aren't too far away either.

16 ? ? Sheffield Wednesday

The Blue side of Sheffield may not have as many global fans as their former Premier League neighbours, but they still have a proud fanbase across the world.

The Owls are one of the traditionally historic and recognisable clubs in England. Therefore, they already have an advantage over some of the other clubs in the Championship whose history perhaps isn't as rich.

There'll have been a small surge in Thai fans during the positive parts of Dejphon Chansiri's reign as owner (but not as many as another Thai-owned Championship club), and there'll be plenty of Sheffield Wednesday fans in other parts of the world, too.

Not as many as Sheffield United, but a modest position for a club that has to share a city with another big professional club.

15 ? ? Middlesbrough

Middlesbrough's location is a bit of an awkward one. In between Tyneside and Yorkshire (although technically a part of North Yorkshire), not many people in either of those counties choose to support Boro, instead opting for the likes of Newcastle United, Leeds United or others.

However, like Sheffield Wednesday in a sense, Middlesbrough do have a recognisable history, winning trophies and making European finals in the early 2000s with some continental stars such as Juninho running the show.

Therefore, there'll be a decent global following for Boro, you'd reckon, and it'll be boosted a little in Sweden too, with the arrival of Kim Hellberg as their new manager.