Every Yorkshire and Lancashire football club ranked by AI from smallest to biggest | OneFootball

FLW looks at how ChatGPT ranks all 16 Premier League and EFL clubs in both Yorkshire and Lancashire

The rivalries between the Yorkshire and Lancashire sides are endless.

It's always a big deal when a team travels across the Pennines to engage in a heated red rose versus white rose battle, and that feeling isn't just saved for on the field either.

Fans debate both online and in person about which team is the biggest in each county, and even further about whether their team is bigger than the others in the opposing region.

With that in mind, Football League World has consulted popular AI-based chat service, ChatGPT, to get their takes on who the biggest club is across both Yorkshire and Lancashire.

16 ? ? Harrogate Town

Kicking off this list at the bottom, Harrogate Town are still one of the EFL's newest clubs, and have a long way to go to establish themselves among some of the longer-serving sides across both Yorkshire and Lancashire.

Their rise from non-league to League Two under the Weaver family is highly respectable, but the reality is that, barring a 13th-placed finish in the 2023/24 campaign, their ceiling since their 2020 promotion has been one flirting with relegation.

Heading into the twilight of the campaign, they may find themselves back in the National League next year. If they can secure survival, though, they'll have even more opportunities against clubs from both Lancashire and Yorkshire to try and improve their standing on this list.

15 ? ? Fleetwood Town

The lowest-ranked Lancashire team on the list is Fleetwood Town, who have also spent the majority of its history outside the EFL.

That being said, they were able to break into League One pretty quickly after their promotion from the National League in 2012, and even had a couple of top-six finishes in the third tier amongst their decade there.

Now they're back in League Two, though, and ChatGPT still believes that there's a lot to do to strengthen their position amongst their county rivals.

14 ? ? Accrington Stanley

Accrington Stanley arrive next, another side who have spent the majority of their history in the lower leagues, and while there has been a journey up from non-league to where they are now, their EFL presence has been stronger than the two below them.

Like Fleetwood, Accrington's heights came in League One, where they spent five seasons before succumbing to relegation in 2023. Since then, they've flirted with relegation out of the football league altogether, but have at least steered themselves towards mid-table this season.

With a few county cups to go with their non-league titles and League Two trophy, there's little enabling Accrington to climb any higher than third-bottom on the list.

13 ? ? Doncaster Rovers

Predominantly, Doncaster Rovers have been an EFL regular since the early 1900s, barring a short National League stint in the late 90s into the early 2000s.

They have even had a few Championship campaigns since the turn of the century, too, but despite that long history, AI ranks them rather low due to the top-level impact, or lack thereof, that Donny has had in their history.

Barring an EFL Trophy win in 2007, all of Doncaster's cup wins have come at a local or non-league level, and that, plus a "smaller fanbase," per AI's admission, has them nearer the bottom of this combined list.

12 ? ? Rotherham United

Rotherham United are the second side on the list to at least have some Championship experience under its belt, but that's about as far as success goes for the Millers.

The club has an EFL Cup in its trophy cabinet from the 1960/61 campaign and a couple of EFL Trophies there, too. They've secured more promotions than arguably any side in the 92 has over the past 13 years, but with that comes an equally large number of relegations, too.

ChatGPT labels Lee Clark's side as "solid, but clearly below bigger Yorkshire clubs," which is a fair assessment, especially now their return to League Two has been confirmed.

11 ? ? Barnsley

Now we're breaking into sides who have some top-flight history under their belts and, in Barnsley's case, an FA Cup in their history, too, as they lifted the trophy way back in 1912.

The sheer amount of time since that honour, though, and their sole Premier League season back in the 1997/98 campaign, has affected the Tykes' position on the list.

Barnsley have yo-yo'd between the Championship and League One for the better part of a decade now, and look like they may be settling in the third tier, as they're set to finish in mid-table for the second successive season.

Their status may be fading somewhat, which explains their bottom-half ranking.

10 ? ? Blackpool

Blackpool are the third Lancashire club to appear on this list, and a more recent FA Cup honour, plus a more recent top-flight season, have them a little higher than others, even if the majority of the last decade has been spent in divisions lower than the Championship.

The Tangerines won the FA Cup in 1953, and were a regular in the top flight throughout the mid-1900s, too, registering numerous top-half finishes and even placing third a couple of years before that cup triumph.

Unfortunately, despite one Premier League campaign in the 2010/11 term, Blackpool have been unable to recapture that status in recent times, even falling as far down as League Two in 2016.

A fourth-tier relegation was being threatened once more this season, too, but the Tangerines have steered themselves to safety and will be looking to make good on the quality in their squad next season for a hopeful Championship return, which may bump them up a few extra places on the list.

9 ? ? Bradford City

Immediately, AI states that Bradford City's position towards the middle of this list comes mainly from the size of their support, rather than their honours.

Indeed, the Bantams have spent more time in League Two since the turn of the century than they have anywhere else, which has cultivated a real sleeping giant status at Valley Parade, which has continued to be packed out with fans week in, week out.

That support propelled them to promotion last season, and will play a big part if they are to go back-to-back into the Championship this year, a division they haven't played in since the 2003/04 campaign.

The fanbase and stadium alone aren't enough to break into the top half, but it is enough to see them above some sides with plenty more recent second-tier campaigns than them.

8 ? ? Hull City

Hull City come in at the halfway point of the list, and despite not having the major honours that those below them achieved in the early 1900s, their recent Premier League ventures and a run to the FA Cup final in 2014 have earned their top-8 spot, according to AI.

The Tigers have been promoted into the Premier League three times since 2008, and despite none of their stints lasting longer than two seasons, it's a division that a lot of the sides below them in the list would love to return to, or even reach for the first time at some point.

Additionally, the Tigers' position in the Championship play-off race in two of the last three seasons has them on the fringes of making more top-flight history, which would automatically put them in a position to perhaps even improve their standings.

7 ? ? Huddersfield Town

Huddersfield Town does have the major honours worthy of a place nearer the top of these rankings, though, as they have won three consecutive top-flight titles between 1924 and 1926, plus an FA Cup in 1922.

Unfortunately for the Terriers, ChatGPT states that their recent seasons, of which they have spent a long time outside the top flight, dampen what is described as an "enormous history."

Indeed, barring a two-year stint in the Premier League between 2017 and 2019, Huddersfield's recent history has been mainly in the Championship and even in League One, where they're set to spend a third straight year in the 2026/27 campaign.

There's plenty in place to engineer a return to the promised land, but until then, the Terriers will have to settle for being below some of their rivals.