The 9 most quiet sets of EFL Championship away fans named and ranked by AI | OneFootball

FLW has asked AI to rank the quietest sets of fans in this year's EFL Championship.

The 2025/26 Championship season is well underway, and fans have been traveling up and down the country in full voice to support their clubs.

Football is back, and the Championship season is finally here, meaning devoted fans of clubs in England's second tier are following their sides around the nation.

Leicester City, Ipswich Town and Southampton have all returned to the Championship after a solitary season in the Premier League, whilst Birmingham City, Wrexham and Charlton all earned promotion from League One.

Leaving us were Leeds United, Burnley and Sunderland, who will all compete in the top flight this season in a bid to avoid an immediate return, with Luton Town, Plymouth Argyle and Cardiff City all suffering relegation to the third tier last season.

There are six new sets of grounds to travel to this year if you're a Championship fan, with the opportunity to experience some of the most passionate fanbases in the land.

There are, however, some clubs' fans who don't make as much noise as others for a variety of reasons, whether that be due to poor attendances, poor performances or a combination of both.

FLW has asked alternative AI - specifically ChatGPT - to rank the nine quietest sets of fans in the Championship ahead of this season.

It's understandable as to why Stoke rank so low in context.

In the Premier League, the Staffordshire-based outfit made the bet365 Stadium (once the Britannia Stadium) a fortress, defeating the likes of Arsenal, Spurs and Man City in their first season in the top flight.

Ten seasons in the Premier League, with three consecutive ninth-placed finishes, came to an end in 2018 when the club was relegated, and it has suffered a downward trajectory ever since.

In each of their last seven seasons since relegation, the Potters have failed to finish in the top half of the league, with two 14th-placed finishes being as good as it has got for fans of the club.

This has coincided with decreased attendances since their Premier League days, where they once averaged 29,280 fans at the bet365 Stadium in their final season in the top flight. They averaged just 22,804 last campaign, when they narrowly avoided relegation on the final day.

ChatGPT said: Once known for ferocious support, but now more reserved—atmosphere has dimmed following years of underwhelming performances.

Watford are entering their fourth consecutive season in the Championship after relegation from the Premier League in 2022.

The Hornets haven't had much to get excited about in that period, with an eleventh-placed finish in 2022/23 being the highlight of the past three years.

Watford had the sixteenth-worst average attendance in the Championship last year, with 19,371 fans attending home matches at Vicarage Road on average, behind the likes of last-placed Cardiff and newly-promoted Portsmouth.

ChatGPT said: Quiet patches are common, although derby fixtures or high-stakes games lift the tempo.

7 Hull City

Hull City fans have been on something of a rollercoaster ride the past couple of seasons.

In the 2023/24 season, they finished just one place outside the play-off places, and then proceeded to sack then-manager Liam Rosenior and replace him with German manager Tim Walter.

Walter lasted just 18 games in charge the following season before he was sacked, with just three wins to his name, and was then replaced by Spanish boss Ruben Selles.

Sells kept the Tigers up on the last day of last season with a draw away at Portsmouth, but he too was then sacked and replaced by current boss Sergej Jakirovic.

Attendances at the MKM Stadium have stayed consistently around the 21,000 mark the past couple of seasons, with Tigers fans never knowing what to expect from their side.

ChatGPT said: Large, “bowl”-style architecture and sparse crowds dull the atmosphere; form-related swings further impact noise levels.

Norwich have always been in and around the play-off picture whenever they have been in the Championship for over a decade now.

The Canaries slumped to a thirteenth-placed finish last season despite early promise, and they will be hoping to have a more positive season with Liam Manning now at the helm.

Norwich have one of the most consistent fanbases in the country, with attendances at Carrow Road having not dropped below 24,300 since the 2003/04 season, apart from the year of Covid-19, and have not gone above 27,100 in that time.

Despite this, AI has ranked Norwich supporters as the sixth-quietest fanbase in the league, justifying it by saying: Friendly and vocal at times—but lacking a sharp, passionate cutting edge.

5 Queens Park Rangers

Queens Park Rangers are regulars in this division and have been since their relegation from the Premier League in 2015, entering their eleventh consecutive season in the second tier.

R's fans haven't had much to shout about in that period either, with a ninth-placed finish in 2020/21 being the club's most successful year in terms of league finish in that period.

Attendances have consistently stood between 13,700-16,800 in that time, though little on the pitch has happened to get QPR fans off of their seats consistently.

ChatGPT said: Compact and capable of edge-of-pitch intimidation, but inconsistent atmosphere under current circumstances.

Swansea will have been delighted to see Cardiff City suffer relegation last season, but Wrexham's promotion means they still have Welsh rivals in the division.

Like Stoke, Swansea were relegated in 2018 and have been in the Championship ever since, but unlike the Potters, the Swans have had a better go at climbing back up the divisions.

Swansea have finished beneath Stoke only once in that period in the 2021/22 season and only narrowly by just one point, but have had two play-off finishes to boast of.

Attendances at the Swansea.com Stadium haven't broken over 20,000 since the club's relegation, and AI has ranked them as the fourth-quietest fans in the league.

ChatGPT said: Supporters are praised for loyalty, but games are often generally subdued.

3 Oxford United

In Oxford's defence, the club has the smallest ground by capacity in the Championship this season, ranking even below the likes of Wrexham, who were in non-league not too long ago.

With the smallest ground comes with the smallest average attendance, as Oxford averaged just 11,352 fans at the Kassam Stadium last season.

The U's are only in their second season in the Championship, having competed primarily in League One and League Two for the majority of the last 15 years.

ChatGPT said: The unusual stadium layout suppresses atmosphere, with noise levels only spiking during big derby matches.

2 Blackburn Rovers

Blackburn holds the record as one of the few clubs outside the traditional big six to possess a Premier League title.

Unfortunately for Rovers fans, that was 20 years ago, and the club from Lancashire has suffered somewhat of a decline ever since.

Blackburn were a mainstay in the top flight between 1992-2012, with just two years in the second tier the only time they spent outside the division.

Since relegation from the Premier League in 2013, however, they have never really truly threatened a return to the top flight, with two seventh-placed finishes in 2022/23 and 2024/25 being as good as it has got for Rovers.

Attendances have averaged firmly around the 15,000 mark since 2013, aside from a spike up to an average of 19,552 last season.

ChatGPt said: Despite the club’s historic stature, the AI notes many empty seats and a lackluster volume across the stadium.

Bristol City surprised everyone, even including themselves, by securing a sixth-placed finish last season and earning themselves a position in the play-off semi-finals for the first time in the club's history in the Championship.

Unfortunately for them, they faced up against a Sheffield United side which had just narrowly missed out on automatic promotion and amassed 90 points, losing out to the Blades 6-0 on aggregate.

Attendances at Ashton Gate have seen a gradual increase season-by-season, with last campaign seeing the highest average attendance the club has recorded since the 1958/59 season.

Despite this, AI has ranked Bristol City as having the quietest fans in the league, saying: AI sees a loyal fanbase, but describes the matchday atmosphere as notably quiet for a club that reached the play-off semi‑finals last season.