AI ranks the 8 EFL Championship players most likely to win Strictly Come Dancing | OneFootball

BBC1's top-rated show Strictly Come Dancing returns on Saturday evening, so FLW have asked ChatGPT to pick 8 Championship players who could win it.

BBC1's hit show Strictly Come Dancing returns for its 24th series on Saturday, so FLW have asked AI to judge which eight Championship players would be the most likely to win it.

The international break is over and the nights are drawing in, so this weekend sees the start of the autumn TV schedule. And that means the return of the 24th series of its hit show Strictly Come Dancing, in which celebrities pair up with professional dancers to win the approval of public votes and determine a winner, with the winner being announced in December, shortly before Christmas. Broadcast since 2004, this show has become a huge hit with audiences and has become a staple of the TV schedules at this time of the year.

There is a football presence among the eight contestants chosen this year, with the former England international midfielder Karen Carney and the former Dutch international Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink both among the competitors. But what of the current batch of players who are currently plying their trade in the Championship? We asked ChatGPT to rank the eight players that it believes would be the most likely to win if they entered.

The Southampton midfielder Shea Charles is the first to make this list, with ChatGPT explaining its workings as follows: "As a younger talent, he might not currently have the highest profile, but he has potential, energy, and the “underdog” appeal which can resonate with viewers."

This is all well and good, but AI is still under the impression that Charles is still on loan at Sheffield Wednesday, where he played last season, whereas he's returned to his parent club and has made nine appearances for them already this season. Had he still been with Wednesday, it couldn't be completely ruled out that Dejphon Chansiri would already have tried to sell him to the BBC by now.

If nothing else, the Ipswich Town left-back Leif Davis has the sort of winning mentality required to win an exacting competition like Strictly. At 25 years of age, Davis has already been promoted four times in his career, from League One with Ipswich in 2023, and to the Championship with Leeds United in 2020, Bournemouth in 2023 and Ipswich in 2024.

AI's justification for Davis's inclusion is: "A defender or full-back, but modern full-backs often have attacking runs, balance, pace. He might lack the flashiest profile, but could be a dark horse, especially if he shows consistency and improvement." Davis was on the radar of Premier League clubs during the summer, and the defender may have been grateful for a couple of months' dance rehearsal in comparison with the start to the season that his team have made.

6 Malick Yalcouyé

19-year-old defender Malick Yalcouyé has youth on his side, though there's a question to be asked over whether somebody who stands 5'7 tall would have the upper body strength required to go all the way in Strictly. Yalcouyé signed for Swansea City on a season-long loan during the summer, so the Swans would presumably have to get permission from his parent club, were he to enter something like this.

ChatGPT's argument in his favour runs thusly: "He’s one of the higher-valued midfielders in the division. While less “celebrity” than forwards, his skill level suggests he could learn well and have surprises." A more convincing argument for his inclusion comes from the tactics website Breaking The Lines, who described him as a player who is "extraordinarily agile and can change direction effortlessly", which sounds like just about the perfect skill-set for a professional dancer.

5 Hayden Hackney

Middlesbrough midfielder Hayden Hackney was the subject of intense transfer speculation over the course of the summer before deciding to stay with Boro for at least the first half of this season. That interest will almost certainly ignite once the January transfer window opens, and Hackney may find his chances of a big move enhanced, should he go into that window off the back of winning Strictly.

ChatGPT summary for Hackney's selection again focuses on his relative youth: "A younger midfielder with composure and consistency. He might not have the same flash as a forward, but could win over judges and the public by showing strong progression week to week." But a player who could be on the verge of making millions of pounds from a transfer to the Premier League may be wary of the possibility of injury that comes with a competition like this, and the BBC have already lost Dani Dyer to an ankle injury this year.

ChatGPT's assessment of the Southampton midfielder Finn Azaz places great importance on his position: "As an attacking / creative midfielder, Azaz’s skill-set suggests good coordination, which helps in dance. His stats from last season made him notable in the Championship sphere." It is certainly true to say that the skill-set required to be a top-class professional footballer is similar to a dancer, but why position is so important in the case of this one particular player is left for us to guess.

Finn Azaz only completed his £12 million move from Middlesbrough to Southampton at the end of the summer transfer window, and it's unlikely that Will Still would be too happy about losing one of his new signings to Strictly after just three appearances for his new club.

The second Ipswich player to make this list, Jadon Philogene is included by ChatGPT because: "He is quick, likely nimble, and plays on the wing / attacking side, meaning agility is a strength. Also, being relatively high profile in Ipswich’s rise gives some visibility." AI has one eye on a player's profile, as this will help to determine how well he'd do in the weekly public vote.

Michael O'Neill, who managed Philogene while he was at Stoke City in 2022, said of him that, "he’s brave; he puts himself in dangerous situations", traits that could also do him a world of good in the world of competitive celebrity dance-offs.

2 Gustavo Hamer

Another player who may not be a Championship player for that much longer, Gus Hamer makes the shortlist for having "good body control, rhythm, and flair", while ChatGPT also makes the claim that, "He already commands respect on the field, which could translate to confidence on stage, although why this is mentioned in the case of Hamer and not the others remains something of a mystery.

Middlesbrough fans, for example, may be able to make a persuasive case for saying that Hayden Hackney "commands respect on the field", and nobody would raise their eyebrows. Hamer does have one trait that's unique among all eight of the players chosen by ChatGPT; as a Sheffield United player, he's the only one in relegation positions at the time of writing. As such, winning Strictly might welcome change from the week-in-week-out defeats he's been enduring for the Blades so far this season.

1 Josh Sargent

And the winner of the EFL Championship Strictly Come Dancing award for 2025 is Norwich City's Josh Sargent, though AI does make another misstep in its reckoning over his inclusion: "He’s one of the standout names in the Championship at present. His goal scoring, visibility, and athleticism help. He’s young enough to adapt, likely has a decent fanbase, and can pull votes."

As an established US international, Sargent probably does have the highest-profile and the biggest fanbase of the players listed here. There is, however, one small problem with this logic; the majority of Sargent's fanbase will be American, and as such would not be able to vote on Strictly, at least not without running up a huge telephone bill for calling in to vote from a foreign country. Having won one public vote already this year with the 2024-25 season award for Norwich's Player of the Year, ending 2025 by being the winner of this year's Strictly Come Dancing would be a perfect end to a very successful twelve months for the striker.