Which team currently holds the record for the most goals conceded in a Premier League season? Read on and find out!
Normally, extensive research is required for any statistical analysis. But in this run down of the English top flight's leakiest defences, we hardly have to go back at all to find our #1 defensive losers, who broke one of football’s least desired records only last season…
The most goals conceded in a Premier League season: Our top 5 hall of shame
1. Sheffield United (2023/24) – 104
Sheffield United unfortunately broke the record for the most goals conceded in a Premier League season when they let in an astonishing 104 goals last term. Having sold arguably their two best players in Iliman Ndiaye and Sander Berge before the campaign started, and having just been promoted from the Championship, the Blades were always destined to struggle.
A change of manager from Paul Heckingbottom to Chris Wilder midway through the season also unsettled them, and ultimately, they did not have enough quality to stay up. Not only that, but heavy home defeats to the likes of Newcastle United (8-0) and Arsenal (6-0) among others ensured a wretched defensive record.
2. Swindon Town (1993/94) – 100
Swindon's unwanted record was finally taken off them by Sheffield United after three decades, having been the only other previous team to concede a century of goals in a Premier League season. Back then, the Premier League was an exhausting 42-game affair, and the Robins were arguably not ready for top-flight football.
They quickly regretted beating Leicester City in the 1993 Division One playoff final – indeed, it took John Gorman’s men 16 attempts to win their first league match, and the 1993/94 campaign remains the Wiltshire side’s only season in the division.
3. Ipswich Town (1994/95) – 93
The following campaign, Ipswich conceded for fun and finished bottom of the table, in what was the final 42-game season before the Premier League compacted to a 38-game format. Ipswich’s trip to Old Trafford in March 1995 was certainly one game too many, as they became the first side to concede nine goals in a single PL match.
With just three shutouts in the whole campaign, the East Anglia outfit eventually finished a whole 21 points adrift of the lowest ranked survivors, Aston Villa.
In truth though, the Tractor Boys had been living on borrowed time for a while. Only the previous season, a late Mark Stein goal for Chelsea against Sheffield United saved Ipswich from relegation, after Everton’s miracle comeback against Wimbledon.
4. Derby County (2007/08) – 89
Fourth on the list is the infamous Derby team that finished on a record-low points tally of just 11 in the 2007/08 season. The Rams won only one match all campaign, which itself equalled a record set generations earlier. They also became the first PL team relegated in the month of March, and the first to gain that bleak distinction in any top-flight campaign for 32 years.
There aren’t nearly enough superlatives to express just how bad the Rams were in that campaign, as they conceded 5+ goals on an eye-watering six occasions in league action.
5. Fulham (2013/14), Luton Town (2023/24) – 85
Last but certainly not least on our list are both Fulham and Luton, who conceded 85 goals each in their respective campaigns. As a small consolation, neither side ended up bottom of their league table, though Fulham’s lack of goalscoring nous was horrendous, with central midfielder Steve Sidwell ending up as their ‘top gun’ with just seven goals.
By contrast, Luton were an exciting team in the final third last season, but their recruitment and overall squad lacked Premier League experience. As such, it was not a surprise to see them go straight back down, following their fairytale return to the top-flight after more than three decades of absence.
