First Division 1947/48

Arsenal won the 1947/48 First Division with 59 points, 7 points ahead of Manchester United. Blackburn Rovers and Grimsby Town were relegated. The season's 462 matches produced 1,343 goals, 2.91 a game.

Arsenal

Champions

1,343

Goals

2.91

Goals a game

51%

Home wins

Final table


1	ArsenalArsenal	42	23	13	6	81	32	+49	59
2	Manchester UnitedMan United	42	19	14	9	81	48	+33	52
3	BurnleyBurnley	42	20	12	10	56	43	+13	52
4	Derby CountyDerby County	42	19	12	11	77	57	+20	50
5	Wolverhampton WanderersWolves	42	19	9	14	83	70	+13	47
6	Aston VillaAston Villa	42	19	9	14	65	57	+8	47
7	Preston North EndPreston North End	42	20	7	15	67	68	-1	47
8	PortsmouthPortsmouth	42	19	7	16	68	50	+18	45
9	BlackpoolBlackpool	42	17	10	15	57	41	+16	44
10	Manchester CityMan City	42	15	12	15	52	47	+5	42
11	LiverpoolLiverpool	42	16	10	16	65	61	+4	42
12	Sheffield UnitedSheffield Utd	42	16	10	16	65	70	-5	42
13	Charlton AthleticCharlton	42	17	6	19	57	66	-9	40
14	EvertonEverton	42	17	6	19	52	66	-14	40
15	Stoke CityStoke	42	14	10	18	41	55	-14	38
16	MiddlesbroughMiddlesbrough	42	14	9	19	71	73	-2	37
17	Bolton WanderersBolton	42	16	5	21	46	58	-12	37
18	ChelseaChelsea	42	14	9	19	53	71	-18	37
19	Huddersfield TownHuddersfield	42	12	12	18	51	60	-9	36
20	SunderlandSunderland	42	13	10	19	56	67	-11	36
21	Blackburn RoversBlackburn	42	11	10	21	54	72	-18	32
22	Grimsby TownGrimsby Town	42	8	6	28	45	111	-66	22

▌ Champions ▌ Relegated. Two points for a win, one for a draw; clubs level on points are split by goal average (goals scored divided by goals conceded), as they were then. Sort and filter it on the all-time table →

The 1947/48 title race

The top four's points, match day by match day. Pick other clubs or measures on the race chart →

Points, Sat 1 May 1948

Arsenal

Man United

Burnley

Derby County

Hover the chart to read any match day, or a club to highlight its line.

1947/48 · Sat 1 May 1948

An MP4 of this race to post on X, TikTok, Instagram or YouTube.

The 1947/48 scoreline grid

Every result of the season, home goals along the bottom and away goals up the side. Each square counts the matches that finished that way. Select a square to see those matches.

Away goals

1 1

1 2

6 2 1

7 11 11 3 3

17 26 18 10 6 1 1

32 57 43 22 12 6 1

25 48 30 28 15 4 2 1 1

Home goals

Times it's happened

Never

Once

3–4

5–9

10–19

20+

First-ever results

Every result in 1947/48 had happened before.

Biggest wins

May 1, 1948Arsenal 8–0 Grimsby Town8-goal home win

August 27, 1947Wolves 8–1 Grimsby Town7-goal home win

March 26, 1948Arsenal 7–0 Middlesbrough7-goal home win

May 1, 1948Preston North End 0–7 Blackpool7-goal away win

November 29, 1947Blackburn 1–7 Middlesbrough6-goal away win

Highest-scoring matches

December 6, 1947Preston North End 7–4 Derby County11 goals

August 27, 1947Wolves 8–1 Grimsby Town9 goals

May 1, 1948Arsenal 8–0 Grimsby Town8 goals

November 29, 1947Blackburn 1–7 Middlesbrough8 goals

August 30, 1947Man United 6–2 Charlton8 goals

Most common results

#11–1 draw57 · 12%

#21–0 home win48 · 10%

#32–1 home win43 · 9%

#40–1 away win32 · 7%

#52–0 home win30 · 6%

How 1947/48 compares

At 2.91 goals a game, 1947/48 was the 41st lowest-scoring of the 93 old First Division seasons (the average is 3.07). Home sides won 51% of matches, against 52% across all seasons; 23% were draws and 26% away wins.

Every season 1947/48 table Race chart