The most surprising Premier League underdog wins

Published: September 16, 2021

The English Premier League has become one of the world’s favourite football tournaments, combining high-energy sport with history, a fanatical fan base and the wealth that has enabled the best English teams to buy some of the world’s best players.

One of the best features of the Premier League is its highly competitive nature. Many of the clubs in the competition have rivalries that go back more than a century, and unlike in some European leagues, there is plenty of strength in depth.

The quick pace of English football has also been a distinctive feature, often putting bigger teams under pressure.

Over the years, there have been some remarkable upsets and surprises that have captured the imagination of football fans.

Arsenal 2-3 Norwich, 1992/93

The Premier League started with a bang in the 1992/93 season, but for Arsenal fans it was a day to forget. Back then, Arsenal was still based at Highbury and building work meant that one end of the ground was covered with a much-derided cardboard mural of fans.

However, the real supporters were in for an opening day treat as lowly Norwich took on one of the title hopefuls.

It all seemed to be going to plan for the Gunners as they led 2-0 at half time, but that all changed in an astonishing second half spell when Norwich fired in four goals in the space of 15 minutes.

Arsenal went on to win both domestic cups in 1992/93, but Norwich had an even more remarkable campaign, remaining in title contention until the beginning of April, before eventually finishing third.

Bradford City 1-0 Liverpool, 1999/00

The battle to avoid relegation from the Premier League is often as compelling as the fight for the title, and in May 2000, it produced a remarkable upset.

Lowly Bradford City, one of the smallest clubs ever to play in the Premier League, went into the game needing a victory against Champions League-chasing Liverpool to avoid the drop to the second tier.

This Liverpool side, led by Gerard Houllier, would go on to win three trophies in the following season and included stars such as Michael Owen, Robbie Fowler, Jamie Redknapp and Jamie Carragher.

It seemed an impossible task for the Bantams to get the win, but in the 12th minute, David Wetherall sent the home fans wild, giving Bradford the lead.

Liverpool pressed hard to get back into the game, and laid siege to the Bradford goal for the remainder of the game, but they were unable to find a way through and Bradford celebrated their remarkable and unlikely survival.

Chelsea 0-3 Sunderland, 2010/11

Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich transformed the fortunes of Chelsea. With the help initially of rising managerial star Jose Mourinho, he turned the London club into the main challengers to Manchester United’s dominance, winning three league titles in six seasons in the 2000s.

In November 2010, they were flying high after having won the Premier League in the previous season, and they were top of the table when they took on struggling Sunderland at home.

The Chelsea side included such famous names as Didier Drogba, Nicolas Anelka and Ashley Cole, but they were left stunned when Sunderland defender Nedum Onuoha fired the visitors into the lead.

Sunderland were on the back foot for the rest of the first half, but goals from Asamoah Gyan and Danny Welbeck in the second half completed one of the most incredible results in the history of Premier League football.

Leicester City 2015/16

Winning one game against the odds can be impressive, but winning the Premier League as an underdog is on a whole different level.

When Leicester City kicked off their 2015-16 Premier League campaign, they were rated as 5000/1 underdogs by bookmakers such as BetFromAfrica.com.

It was only their second season back in the top flight, and they had come through a tough relegation battle in 2014-15.

Although they were now led by the veteran Claudio Ranieri, no one imagined they could be title contenders.

In 23 previous Premier League seasons, only four teams had lifted the trophy, and not since Blackburn’s success in 1995 had a team other than Manchester United, Arsenal or Chelsea won the title, so Leicester’s strong start in 2015 was largely ignored.

However, as 2015 turned to 2016, Leicester showed no sign of fading. Powered by a resolute defence, excellent organisation, the skill of Riyad Mahrez and the goals of Jamie Vardy, Leicester astonished the football world, eventually winning the title with a ten point margin, a feat that may not be matched for many many years.

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