Which Football Fans Moan the Most?

Let’s be honest - football fans love a moan. We complain about our own teams, other teams, rival fanbases, referees, managers, coaches, players, footballs, the weather, kick-off times… and that’s barely scratching the surface.

It’s natural to be passionate, tribal, and protective of the teams we follow, week in, week out. But some fans clearly take it a step further. Are some clubs’ supporters inherently bigger cry babies than others? Who in the Premier League whinges the most? AceOdds decided to crunch the numbers.

How the Numbers Were Calculated

The analysts at AceOdds examined fan reactions across Reddit to measure which Premier League fanbases have been the most vocal - and most negative - since the start of the season. Using over 1.2 million Reddit comments collected from 20 club subreddits, they tracked frustration and complaints about referees, VAR, players, managers, and clubs in general. By focusing on keywords and phrases associated with anger and disappointment - think “ref bias,” “VAR joke,” “pathetic,” “ruined my weekend,” and “manager out” - they could quantify which supporters were the most reactive and emotional about their teams.

West Ham Tops the Cry Baby Table

Arsenal fans often get tagged as the Premier League’s biggest whingers, but according to the data, it is actually West Ham supporters who take the crown.

With 4.03% of Reddit comments classified as “cry baby” posts, the Hammers’ fanbase is the most vocal in the league. Given how things have gone since David Moyes led West Ham to Europa Conference League glory - followed by managerial changes with Julen Lopetegui and Graham Potter - it is perhaps understandable.

The club currently sits 18th in the table, embroiled in a relegation battle, but there is still time for a turnaround.

Wolverhampton, Aston Villa and the Rest of the Top Five

Wolves come in second with a 3.89% score. Their complaints are arguably valid — they have lost key players such as Rúben Neves, Rayan Aït-Nouri, Matheus Cunha, Max Kilman, and Matheus Nunes this season which has contributed to a terrible start. They are currently favourites to go down at 1/8 with Burnley and West Ham not far behind at 2/7 and 6/5 odds respectively. You can check the implied probability of them getting relegated here.

Aston Villa, who endured a slow start compared to their recent high standards, rank third with 3.70%.

Liverpool fans, riding high last season after their Premier League triumph, have struggled this campaign. Sitting 8th and having lost seven of their last ten matches across competitions, the Kop have earned a 3.69% cry baby score, placing them fourth.

Tottenham, whose squad has improved on last season’s 17th-place finish, still face criticism over style and entertainment under Thomas Frank. Spurs fans record a 3.68%, rounding out the top five.

The Rest of the League

Other fanbases in the top ten include Fulham (3.49%), Manchester United (3.40%), Burnley (3.37%), and Leeds United (3.27%).

At the opposite end of the spectrum, Manchester City supporters are the least whiny, scoring just 2.11%. After a disappointing third-place finish last season, City fans have little to complain about this campaign.

Promoted Sunderland are also low on the whinge scale at 2.13%, with the Black Cats sitting fourth on 19 points - far above pre-season expectations of relegation. They are closely followed by Arsenal (2.16%), Brighton & Hove Albion (2.18%), and Brentford (2.48%).

Referee Complaints

If there’s one universal truth in football, it’s this: when things go wrong, the referee is always to blame. Or at least, that’s how it feels on matchday. Every fanbase has its own conspiracy theories, VAR grudges, and “the ref’s got it in for us” collectively and we’ve also been able to look into which fan base feels the most hard done by.

Liverpool sit comfortably at the top of the referee-complaint mountain with a hefty 58 complaints. Given their recent wobble, patchy form, and the ever-present VAR soap opera surrounding them, the frustration is hardly shocking. When things go sideways at Anfield, the match officials tend to be the first name on the charge sheet.

Right behind them are Manchester United with 48 complaints, with Arsenal fans rounding out the top three at 42, proof that “agenda” talk is alive, well, and extremely loud in North London.

Chelsea (36) and Spurs (32) keep things competitive in the blame-the-ref race, each still finding room to moan despite largely improved performances. Interestingly, Manchester City have lodged 27 referee gripes among their fans. That's still low by comparison, but high enough to remind us that even serial winners have their moments.

Lower down the table. Wolves (5), Brentford (4), Sunderland (4), and Nottingham Forest (4) barely make a noise and Brighton, famously chilled this season, registered just 6.

And then there’s West Ham. The kings of the overall “cry baby” table only posted 10 referee complaints which signals they’ve spent so much time moaning about the state of things on the field after firing Lopetegui and Potter in recent seasons.

Conclusion: Cry Baby Premier League

So, there you have it. Football fans will always moan - it is part of the game, part of the fun, and part of what makes supporting a team so addictive. But some fanbases just take it to another level. West Ham fans, for all their passion, have earned the crown this season, while the likes of Manchester City, Sunderland, and Brighton seem remarkably chill in comparison.

At the end of the day, whether you are blowing bubbles, losing your voice on Reddit, or quietly shaking your head at the VAR drama, moaning is just part of being a football fan. Some of us do it louder than others - and this season, West Ham are top of that particular league table.