Some heavyweight British football clubs are battling it out for promotion to the Premier League from the Championship and it's currently Norwich City that top the second tier table on 78 points, while Sheffield United sit four points behind in second spot.
Behind that promotion-searching pair lies Leeds United a further point back, while West Bromwich Albion, Middlesbrough and Aston Villa are all sitting safely in the play-off spots and will be dreaming of promotion to the Premier League.
As the international break gives the Championship clubs a well-earned rest, it's given us time to delve through some non-playing statistics and the attendance figures are staggering, with some of the Championship teams attracting significantly higher crowds than teams in the Premier League, and it's no surprise to see some of the biggest clubs in British football challenging for top spot on the attendance record.
Aston Villa currently top the charts with an average home attendance of over 35,000 (according to worldfootball.net), while Leeds United are second on the list with an average attendance of nearly 34,000. Those two huge clubs are the two to surpass the thirty thousand barrier, and with both sides performing well this season, then both sets of supporters will be dreaming of a return to the Premier League.
Down the years both clubs have been flag-bearers for English football in Europe, but a dip in form over the last two decades has seen them drop down a division, but with Dean Smith igniting hope into Villa and Marcelo Bielsa breathing excitement around Elland Road then these superb attendances just show that both clubs are monster clubs that deserve to be playing in the top tier.
Third on the list of home attendances is Nottingham Forest with over 28,000 fans watching each game at the City Ground while Derby County are fourth on the list, with high-flying Norwich City and Sheffield United fifth and sixth on the list, respectively.
In the lower echelons of the attendance table, Rotherham are bottom of the pile with an average gate of less than 10,000, while Brentford, Wigan Athletic and Hull City are the next trio of clubs up from the Millers.
Check out the average home attendance of each Championship club in the 2018/19 season:
- Aston Villa - 35,051
- Leeds United - 33,676
- Nottingham Forest - 28,201
- Derby County - 26,626
- Norwich City - 25,855
- Sheffield United - 25,620
- Stoke City - 25,094
- Sheffield Wednesday - 24,124
- West Bromwich Albion - 24,078
- Middlesbrough - 23,436
- Birmingham City - 22,263
- Bristol City - 20,761
- Swansea City - 18,999
- Ipswich Town - 17,762
- Reading - 14,537
- Bolton Wanderers - 14,452
- Blackburn Rovers - 14,413
- Queens Park Rangers - 13,757
- Preston North End - 13,731
- Millwall - 13,363
- Hull City - 12,179
- Wigan Athletic - 11,541
- Brentford - 10,040
- Rotherham - 9,680
Highest average championship attendances so far this season:
Aston Villa - 35.051 🔥👏
Leeds - 33.676
Notts Forest - 28.201
Derby - 26.626
Norwich - 25.856
Sheff Utd - 25.618
Stoke - 25.095
Sheff Wed - 24.124
WBA - 24.078
Boro - 23.437
#PartOfThePride #UTV