We wanted to find out how English football fans are coping, surveying 2,000 respondents in the UK who were all categorised as current supporters of a Premier League team. Using a balanced index from the data across five categories, we asked our respondents the following questions and placed the following index values on each topic:

• Their feelings on 2024 performances so far - 20%
• Thoughts on the club’s management and coaching - 20%
• Whether or not they liked the current ownership at the club - 20%
• Their faith in the medical staff to keep injuries to a minimum - 20%
• The overall matchday experience at their club, and whether it represents fair value – 20%

Asked to answer each question between 1-5 (with 5 being ‘very satisfied’), we totalled the average response to each before assessing the overall score for each team.

Key Findings:

• Aston Villa fans, fresh from a remarkable fourth place finish in 2023/24 and excellent Champions League start, topped the study. ‘The Villains’ tallied 4.18 out of 5 in our ‘Happiness Index’.
• It’s not too often Manchester City finish second, but they had to settle for minor honours on this occasion, scoring 4.1 overall.
• Neighbours Manchester United have suffered a torrid time of things in recent years compared to past glories, and their fans are really feeling the pain. Another change of manager could ease things, but for now ‘Red Devils’ fans only rank 17th (2.64 out of 5).
• Wolves’ fans finished bottom of the study and are officially the ‘most miserable’ in the Premier League. Scoring consistently low across all categories, the West Midlands outfit only bagged a meagre 2.42 out of 5.

The Premier League fan happiness index

Following an excellent 12 months and with supporters singing Unai Emery’s praises, it can be no huge surprise to see Aston Villa’s fans (4.18 out of 5) as the happiest in the Premier League. Top scoring across their peers when it comes to performance in 2024 (4.5 out of 5) and club ownership (4.2 out of 5), it is evidently an exciting time to be a football fan in Birmingham. Villa fans also joint-top scored for coaching staff (4.4 out of 5) and scored consistently in the matchday experience category (3.7 out of 5).

Manchester City fans aren’t used to finishing in second place, but that’s where they are in the 2024 Happiness Index with a score of 4.17 out of 5. Boasting arguably the world’s top coach in Pep Guardiola, City fans ranked their faith in the coaching set up at a joint-high 4.4 out of 5. Despite injuries to the likes of Rodri and Kevin de Bruyne in recent weeks, supporters on the blue side of Manchester ranked their faith in medical staff at 4.3 out of 5; the highest for that category across all 20 Premier League clubs.

Looking for the best owner in the Premier League? Look no further than Brighton & Hove Albion’s Tony Bloom, who top-scored with an impressive 4.4 out of 5. Seagulls’ fans have had it good in recent years, and they finished third happiest overall with 4.09 out of 5. Meanwhile, many Liverpool followers might have been concerned after Jurgen Klopp’s summer departure, but Arne Slot has made that transition look easy so far, and the red half of Merseyside appears content enough with a 4.08 out of 5 happiness rating, placing them fourth overall.

It’s been a rough few years to be a Manchester United fan, and Erik ten Hag was recently handed his marching orders by the Glazer’s and Sir Jim Ratcliffe. Scoring moderately across all categories, Red Devil supporters only scored 2.64 out of 5; narrowly avoiding the relegation spots in 17th position. At the top of Manchester United fans' list of woes was their faith in the medical staff keeping injuries to a minimum, with their confidence rating of 3.1 out of 5, the lowest across all Premier League sides. With 45 reported injuries to their playing staff in the 2023/24 season, perhaps it’s not just a change of coaching staff that is required at Old Trafford.

The most miserable fans in the Premier League are based in the West Midlands, with Wolverhampton Wanderers taking the crown in 20th. Wolves supporters scored just 2.42 out of 5, which might seem a little harsh on the face of it. Tallying just 1.7 out of 5 for performances this calendar year so far, alongside a 2.4 out of 5 for matchday experience (the lowest of all clubs), it’s clear that there is plenty of work to do at Molineux to win the Black Country faithful back over.

Conclusion

Patient approaches have paid dividends in recent years, with Aston Villa and Brighton & Hove Albion both making full use of smart signings on and off the pitch. A good run in Europe is also clearly important when it comes to fan satisfaction. It is not so good news for Man Utd, Wolves or Southampton, who need to do a lot more to impress their loyal fanbases across the board!

Methodology

In October 2024, we surveyed 2,000 Premier League fans asking five questions around team performance, faith in coaching staff and owners, faith in the medical department to keep injuries low and how they rate a matchday experience when it comes to value at their club.

The average score out of five was then analysed for each question, using an equal scoring system. The overall average out of five was then worked out for each of the 20 Premier League clubs (as of October 2024).

Data sources:

• Ipsos
• Football Supporters’ Federation

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