7 EFL Championship clubs that always bottle it named and ranked by AI | OneFootball

FLW asked AI to name the seven Championship sides who always bottle it in the second-tier.

Over the years in the EFL Championship, some teams have consistently bottled it in big moments.

We’ve seen sides crumble and let results slip away from what should have been positive and rewarding campaigns.

It can be hugely frustrating watching from the stands, and some fans have had to see their clubs revert to type a lot, which sometimes questions why we love the beautiful game so much.

With this in mind, FLW asked AI to name and rank the seven Championship clubs that always bottle it in the big moments.

First up is East Anglian outfit Norwich City, who have recently been known as a yo-yo team.

From 2018 up until 2022, the Canaries had floated between the bottom of the top-flight and the top end of the second-tier, but have now undergone four straight years in the Championship since their last relegation from the big time.

Since then, Norwich have had two mid-table finishes and reached the play-offs once under David Wagner, losing comfortably to Leeds United in the semi-final.

AI did highlight their slump in 2022-23 and their inability to get back into the top-flight quickly, with the Canaries squad folding once the pressure increases in recent times.

6 Bristol City

In sixth spot is Bristol City, who will have been disappointed by their latest play-off heartache against Sheffield United.

The Robins have never made it to the Premier League since its formation in 1992, but they came closest in 2008 when they were defeated by Hull City in the play-off final at Wembley.

As they head into their 11th straight season of second-tier football, Bristol City have been largely mid-table strugglers, although when they have flirted with the top six, they’ve fallen short in the majority of their quests to get there.

AI has listed them as bottlers due to the club fading away in the closing months of seasons, and then when they do reach the play-offs, not having enough to get over the line for promotion.

Taking a trip to South Wales, and we find Swansea City, who have found it so difficult to get back to the Premier League since their relegation back in 2018.

The 2025-26 campaign marks their eighth straight season of second-tier action, which has seen Graham Potter, Steve Cooper, Russell Martin, Luke Williams and Alan Sheehan occupy the dugout throughout that time.

Over the eight-year stint, Swansea have made the play-offs twice, both times being beaten by Brentford in the 2019-20 semi-final and the 2020-21 final at Wembley.

AI has been critical of Swansea’s performances in both of those encounters, believing they capitulated in the second leg of the semi-final and were outclassed in the final the following year.

AI has said that Swansea tends to bottle it when they need to show some more grit in matches.

Coventry City are a team back on the rise, but when they have got close to glory, they have fallen short.

AI has listed their 2023 play-off final defeat to Luton Town on penalties, their 2024 FA Cup semi-final loss to Manchester United and their 2025 play-off semi-final heartache to Sunderland as games that they should have come out on top in.

AI complimented these games as brave displays, but failures nonetheless, earning them the 'bottler' tag.

3 West Brom

Fellow Midlands rivals West Brom make the list and enter at number three, as they have now been out of the Premier League for five years.

Similarly to Norwich, Albion earned the yo-yo team tag, consistently bouncing between the bottom of the Premier League and the top end of the Championship.

But in recent times, Albion have left supporters disappointed by their antics, suffering mid-table disappointment in their first season back in the second-tier under Valerien Ismael and Steve Bruce in 2021-22.

In 2022-23, the Baggies didn’t quite have enough to squeak into the top six under Carlos Corberan despite a resurgence, and when they did so the following term, they were beaten comprehensively by Southampton in the semi-final.

In 2024-25, Albion faded with Tony Mowbray at the helm despite looking set to cement a top six spot before Corberan departed, and they are now scraping to get back to the big time amid well-documented financial issues.

AI describes Albion as a club that flatters to deceive, and that the fans know it after years of the same old.

In second spot is Middlesbrough, who have come close in recent times to securing promotion back to the Premier League but have failed to do so.

Ai has described Middlesbrough as a big club with an equally big fanbase, but insists the team struggles to produce with such high expectations.

It has cited three occasions where Boro have really bottled it in the second-tier, starting in 2022-23 when they looked like automatic promotion contenders under Michael Carrick but then lost in the play-off semi-final to Coventry City.

It also highlighted their no-show performance in the 2015 play-off final against Norwich City and their history of missing out on promotion despite having strong squads between 2009-2015.

AI has outlined that whenever Boro are considered for promotion, they crumble, which is hard to disagree on based on their recent history.

Claiming top spot for the biggest bottlers in the Championship is Preston North End, who are now entering an 11th straight Championship term in 2025-26.

They are one of the longest serving teams in the Championship without promotion, with AI citing a limp defeat in the 2005 play-off final to West Ham as to the reason for their ranking.

Since then, Preston have suffered mid-table mediocrity and even relegation down to League One, which was rectified in 2015 with Simon Grayson.

The closest the Lilywhites came to getting into the play-offs was a seventh-place finish under Alex Neil in 2018.