The top 7 worst EFL Championship teams in history | OneFootball

FLW has looked at the sides who accrued the lowest points totals since the rebranding of the second tier in 2004

The current Championship campaign has certainly had its fair share of unexpected moments as it reaches the run-in stage.

However, it is fair to say that one predicament which hasn't shocked many is the dire situation which Sheffield Wednesday still find themselves in at the beginning of 2026.

It has been well-documented that the Owls had been financially decimated through the controversial ownership of Dejphon Chansiri, who's dramatic 10-and-a-half year spell as chairman at Hillsborough was brought to an end in October as the club entered administration.

Even before such measures had taken place, many Wednesdayites had resigned themselves to at least one season back in League One in 2026/27 after a mass exodus of senior players and former manager, Danny Rohl, last summer, which has since left Henrik Pedersen with a threadbare squad who have resided at the bottom of the Championship table for more than a half of the campaign.

There was a brief period in September where the Owls managed to sit above their Steel City rivals, Sheffield United, who started the season with five straight losses under Ruben Selles. However, two separate instances have seen Wednesday docked 18 points, and they are still in minus territory heading into the final two months of the season.

As such, they are on course to break the unwanted record of the lowest points total in Championship history since the division was rebranded in 2004, after already suffering the EFL's earliest-ever relegation at the hands of the Blades through a 2-1 loss at Bramall Lane on February 22nd.

With that being said, Football League World have looked at which seven sides are, statistically speaking, currently the worst-ever in the division's history in terms of points accrued from a 46-game season.

7 ? ? Ipswich Town - 2018/19 (31 points)

The club who are set to be pushed off this list by the start of next season are Ipswich Town, who were relegated seven years ago on just 31 points in what was a calamitous season at Portman Road.

Following the exit of Mick McCarthy in the latter stages of the 2017/18 campaign, the Tractor Boys looked to head in a new direction under Paul Hurst, who had narrowly missed out on promotion to the second tier as Shrewsbury Town boss in the League One play-off final.

However, it proved to be a disastrous appointment as Hurst won just one game in charge and was controversially replaced by ex-Norwich City boss, Paul Lambert, in October 2018.

Ultimately, the experienced Scot couldn't change Town's fortunes around, and they were relegated as the division's bottom club after winning just five games all season, ending the campaign 13 points adrift of safety.

6 ? ? Barnsley - 2021/22 (30 points)

In 'joint' sixth are Barnsley, who accumulated just 30 points in the 2021/22 campaign, which saw them progress through three different permanent or interim head coaches.

After losing in the play-off semi-finals under Valerien Ismael the previous season, the Tykes replaced the Frenchman with Markus Schopp, but the Austrian was dismissed in November 2021 after just one win in 15 games and a run of seven straight losses.

Poya Asbaghi was then appointed but unable to stop the rot which had firmly set in, with the Swede resigning after the South Yorkshire side's relegation was confirmed with two games to spare against Huddersfield Town in April 2022.

Barnsley even managed to finish four points below Derby County, who were docked a tally of 21 points throughout the season after entering administration and breaking financial regulations.

5 ? ? Bolton Wanderers - 2015/16 (30 points)

Bolton Wanderers supporters certainly won't have fond memories of the 2010s, and it is the second of three relegations suffered within said decade that sees the Trotters feature on this list.

Indeed, just four years after dropping out of the Premier League, the Lancashire side were relegated to League One for the first time since 1993 after taking just 30 points from 46 games.

Former Celtic boss, Neil Lennon, was in charge for the majority of the campaign before his dismissal before the interim appointment of Jimmy Phillips in March 2016.

Again, the Whites only managed to win five league games, whilst setting an unwanted record of going an entire season without emerging victorious on their travels.

4 ? ? Rotherham United - 2004/05 (29 points)

In outright fourth place on this ranking is the Rotherham United squad for the 2004/05 campaign, which was also the first since the rebranding of the Championship by the English Football League.

The Millers had spent three consecutive years in the second tier beforehand after gaining back-to-back promotions from what is now League Two and League One between 1999 and 2001, but they would endure their final season at this particular level until 2014 as a result of just a 29-point haul from 46 matches.

With the South Yorkshire side marooned to the foot of the table for most of the season, Ronnie Moore resigned as manager in January 2005, with both Alan Knill and Mick Harford subsequently taking the reins at Millmoor.

It took until November 2004 for the club to emerge victorious in a league outing against Leeds United, and they were left 15 points adrift at the bottom of the table behind Nottingham Forest, and 21 points adrift of Crewe Alexandra, who survived on goal difference.

3 ? ? Rotherham United - 2023/24 (27 points)

Unfortunately for those of a Rotherham persuasion, it is not the first time the South Yorkshire side feature on this particular list, and the 27 points accumulated in their most recent Championship campaign of 2023/24 also won't be the last.

The Millers, throughout the past decade, have developed a reputation for being a 'yo-yo' club between the Championship and League One, with their promotion back to the second tier in 2021/22 being the fourth that the Reds had achieved since their play-off success over Leyton Orient in May 2014.

However, the aforementioned season also represented a third relegation in seven years back to the third tier for the Millers, who were only outside the bottom three for five matches throughout the entire season, all of which came before October 2023.

This saw both Matt Taylor and Leam Richardson handed their P45s throughout the campaign in which two of their five wins came after the start of April 2024, the month in which their relegation was rubber-stamped with a 1-0 defeat to Plymouth Argyle at the New York Stadium, with the Pilgrims finishing 21 points clear of the cut-off Millers in 21st.

2 ? ? Blackpool - 2014/15 (26 points)

In second place on this list is the Blackpool season of 2014/15, which was definitely one to forget for a whole manner of reasons for Tangerines supporters.

Throughout this particular period, it was well-documented that the Seasiders were facing serious financial issues due to the Oyston family's controversial ownership.

As such, Jose Riga was left with an extremely threadbare squad and began the season with just one win from 14 games, which saw him sacked and replaced by ex-Birmingham City boss, Lee Clark, almost immediately after he was sacked at St. Andrew's after suffering an 8-0 defeat to eventual champions, AFC Bournemouth.

Clark's first win in charge, ironically, came against his former employers, but an overall total of just five wins all campaign saw the Lancashire outfit 20 points inside the relegation zone on 26 points, whilst also finishing 13 points behind 23rd-placed Wigan Athletic.

1 ? ? Rotherham United - 2016/17 (23 points)

As previously mentioned, Rotherham are the most prominent club on this list, with the Millers currently holding the Championship's lowest-ever points total of 23, which occurred in the 2016/17 campaign.

The Millers started the season with Alan Stubbs as boss following Neil Warnock's departure, but the Scot was dismissed in October 2016 after winning just one of his 13 league games in charge, before his successor, Kenny Jackett, resigned after just 39 days in charge after failing to win any of his five games in the hotseat.

Paul Warne was then named as interim boss before being handed the permanent vacancy in April 2017, four days after a 1-0 defeat to Fulham confirmed their relegation back to League One after three years.

However, this unwanted tally is set to be moved down to second place as a result of Sheffield Wednesday's on-pitch struggles in 2025/26.