Stories
Football stories told with data. Every number checked in our data.The odds said 53 points. Leicester scored 81
Leicester 2015-16: the biggest over-performance against the betting odds in 1,170 seasons of Europe's top five leagues, 28 points above...
With videoLeverkusen's unbeaten season was a 1 in 1,723 shot
We multiplied the betting odds of all 34 Bundesliga games of Leverkusen's 2023-24 season: the chance of never losing was 1 in 1,723. They finished...
With video290 shots against 156, and 17th in the table
Borussia Dortmund 2014-15: rated the second-best team in Germany by the odds, 17th of 18 at the winter break despite outshooting opponents 290 to...
With video27 goals at the World Cup, and they lost the final
Hungary 1954: 29 games and one defeat in four years, 9-0, 8-3, 4-2 and 4-2 at the World Cup, then a 3-2 defeat in the final against the West...
With videoBrazil: 39 years unbeaten at home, then two defeats in four days
From 1975 to 2014 Brazil played 68 competitive home games without a defeat. Then came Germany 7-1 and the Netherlands 3-0 at the 2014 World Cup,...
With videoBolivia won 4 of 92 away qualifiers. At home, they beat Argentina 6-1
The biggest home advantage in World Cup qualifying: Bolivia take 1.72 points per game at home in La Paz and 0.25 away.
With video37 games unbeaten, champions of Europe, three World Cups missed
Italy went 37 games unbeaten between 2018 and 2021 and won Euro 2020, yet lost World Cup playoffs to Sweden, North Macedonia and Bosnia and...
With videoGreece won Euro 2004 with three 1-0s
Greece arrived at Euro 2004 without a single win at a major tournament and won it with 7 goals in 6 games and three 1-0 knockout wins against...
With videoSpain won the 2026 World Cup conceding one goal
Eight games, seven clean sheets, one goal conceded: no World Cup winner had ever let in fewer than two.
With videoFootball started with a 0-0
Scotland 0-0 England, 1872, the first international match. Then 17 years and 65 games without another 0-0. How scoring changed in 49,547...
With videoEngland: 7 semi-finals or finals since 1966, 7 defeats
Since winning the 1966 World Cup, England have reached seven semi-finals or finals and lost all seven, every time by one goal or on penalties.
With videoMorocco: 43 games unbeaten, the longest run in history
From March 2024 to July 2026 Morocco went 43 games without losing, the longest unbeaten run in 49,547 international games since 1872. It ended...
With videoLose the first game, win the World Cup
Argentina 2022, Spain 2010, West Germany 1954: five World Cup winners lost a game along the way, and only four won every game.
With videoPortugal won Euro 2016 without winning a group game
Three group draws, then Croatia, Poland on penalties, Wales and France in the final: seven games, three wins, no defeats.
With videoNapoli: champions by 16 points, ninth one year later
Napoli won Serie A 2022-23 with 90 points and finished ninth in 2023-24 with 53. Across Europe's top five leagues, champions kept the title 28...
With video12 points in 38 games: the worst season in 12 years
Southampton 2024-25: 2 wins, 6 draws, 30 defeats and 86 goals conceded, the lowest points per game in 1,170 seasons of Europe's top five leagues.
With video60 titles, 17 champions: which league is the most open?
Champions of Europe's top five leagues from 2014-15 to 2025-26: Bayern 11 of 12, PSG 10 of 12, and five different champions in England.
With videoThe best defence in 12 years finished third
Atlético Madrid 2015-16 conceded 18 goals in 38 games and took 88 points, but Barcelona (91) and Real Madrid (90) finished ahead.
With video6 wins, 19 draws: how Udinese stayed up
Udinese 2023-24 drew 19 of 38 games, the most in 12 years of Europe's top five leagues, and survived by two points.
With videoHow much does hosting the World Cup really help?
Host nations win 62% of their games at their home World Cup against 49% elsewhere; six hosts won the title, the last one France in 1998.