As the Premier League 2021-22 season gets underway, we ask the public which club they feel is the best prepared to win the title. Manchester City emerge as the overwhelming favourites, drawing a vote of confidence from almost half of all those who picked a club (45%).
Pep Guardiola’s team, which has claimed the Championship in three of the past four seasons, has been picked the favourite for another title by almost four times as many people as any of the other 19 teams.
Manchester United take the second spot with 12% of people with an opinion choosing the Red Devils as season favourites. Chelsea bag 11% of the votes despite investing heavily this summer, while 2019-20 champions Liverpool have been picked as the season favourite by just 9% of those with an opinion, following a disappointing domestic campaign last time out.
Even fans of Man City’s top rivals have declared them as favourites to lift the trophy at the end of 2021-22 season. Among fans of the four clubs that followed Man City on the League table in 2020-21 – Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea and Leicester City – two in five think Man City will go all the way once again (39%).
Manchester United and Chelsea retain their positions as the second and third favourites among this subset of people, although the former picks up a much more significant lead.
As the season progresses, YouGov will continue to deliver insights into consumer perceptions around the Premier League. Stay tuned!
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Methodology: YouGov polled 1,800 GB adults online between 3:41 p.m. BST and 7:10 p.m. BST on August 12, 2021. The survey was carried out through YouGov Direct. Results are nationally representative of adults in GB. The margin of error is 3.7% for the overall sample.
