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The Black Soccer Academic - 1607
The Premier League Diversity Report
2026: Making An Impact
Welcome to the first edition of the Premier League Diversity report, a new annual publication that reviews the representation and diversity of Black, Brown and White footballers in English football.
A football industry first, this report examines 380 matches from the 2025-26 season and provides a club-by-club statistical analysis of the players, in the world’s most valuable soccer league. This inaugural report has been created and authored by Dr Richard Flash, Director at The Black Soccer Academic Consultancy.
1. Representation matters
A new record was set in the 2025-26 Premier League season, as the representation of Black and Brown players increased to 48%.
This led to a record 12 rounds of fixtures where the number of Black and Brown players in starting line-ups, exceeded the number of White players. We also observed a record 14 match-weeks where the number of Black players in starting line-ups reached 100 or more.
The gap between the number of Black and Brown, and White players is closing, and our statistical analysis reveals the clubs that are driving the league’s diversity.
In our inaugural report, UEFA Conference League Winners Crystal Palace lead the way with the highest representation statistics. Season-long data shows that they selected Black and Brown players in 288 of their 418 starting berths. This resulted with them fielding an average of 7.6 Black and Brown starters per match, whilst Everton and Newcastle presented the lowest average of 3.3.
Fourteen of the twenty clubs fielded an average of five or more Black and Brown players in their first elevens, and this provides a sound indicator to support the league’s racial diversity.
The highest number of Black and Brown players in a first eleven was 9 and this occurred at Aston Villa, Burnley and Crystal Palace. Further down this report, our club-by-club analysis illustrates each club’s representation figures and squad diversity in more detail.
Significantly, overall Black and Brown player representation grew when compared to the 2024-25 season. Growth occurred despite the absence of thirty-two players in December and January due to the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).
Despite thirty-two of the league’s African internationals attending AFCON between match-weeks 17-22, there was an overall increase in the representation of Black and Brown players during the 2025-26 season.
Previous industry reports have stated that racial discrimination hinders the employment of Black and Brown individuals ‘off the pitch’. However, the trajectory of their representation ‘on the pitch’ is on an upward trend. With this knowledge, it is feasible that Black and Brown footballers will soon become the English League’s racialized majority.
2. Goals win games
1045 goals were scored in the 2025-26 Premier League season, equating to 2.75 goals per game. This fell short of the 2.93 average from the previous season. The highest number of goals scored in a round of fixtures was 37, and this occurred in match-week 35. The lowest scoring rounds were match-week’s 22 and 30 with 16 goals.
Black and Brown players are highly represented in our goals analysis. They scored 59.3% of the goals, a figure that rises to 59.9% after removing own goals.
Historically, Black and Brown players have become the targets of racial and religious abuse when not converting goalscoring opportunities. However, they are making a positive impact in English football, by scoring the most goals in the world’s most watched soccer league.
Reviewing each round of fixtures, we found that the Black and Brown players scored the most goals in 32 out of 38 match-weeks, presenting a statistic of 84.2%. Therefore, the collective goal scoring achievements of these players is clear for all to see.
Our club-by-club analysis identified that over two-thirds of the club’s top scorers were Black or Brown players. This further demonstrates the impact that Black and Brown players are making and highlights the impact of their representation in the world’s most valuable soccer league.
Representation in the league’s Golden Boot was strong with eight out of the top ten positions filled by ‘Black’ players.
Brentford’s Igor Thiago (22) and Manchester City’s Antoine Semenyo (17) followed Erling Haaland, who topped the list with 27 goals. There are four English players in the league’s top ten with Ollie Watkins (16), Morgan Gibbs-White (15), Dominic Calvert-Lewin (14) and Danny Welbeck (13) all enjoying excellent seasons.
Arsenal’s Eberechi Eze scored the league’s 400th hat-trick on November 23rd. It came in the North London derby at the Emirates Stadium and was one of seven hat-tricks scored during the season. Remarkably, all seven hat-tricks were scored by a Black player with African or Caribbean ancestry.
From the league’s early goal scorers such as Brian Deane and Andy Cole to the more recent Riyad Mahrez and Mohammed Salah, Black and Brown footballers are strongly represented when analysing the Premier League’s goal scoring charts.
3. Club-by-club analysis
Crystal Palace top this first edition of the Premier League Diversity report. From a total squad of 30 players, their starting line-ups were distributed to 24 players, of which 18 were Black and Brown. Out of 418 starting berths, 288 went to Black and Brown squad members, leading to a representation average of 7.6, down from 8.8 in 2024-25.
The Eagles added summer signings Jaydee Canvot and Walter Benitez to their squad, and full-back Tyrick Mitchell topped their starting appearances with 36. Academy graduate Rio Cardines became the Premier League’s 13th Trinidad and Tobago international on the final day of the season and they ended the season as UEFA Conference League winners.
In second place are Fifa Club World Cup winners Chelsea with 266 Black and Brown players in their starting berths. This resulted with a representation average of 7.0, down from 7.4 in 2024-25. Their first elevens consisted of 27 squad members, of which 18 were Black players.
The Blues representation was bolstered by the summer signings of Joao Pedro, Jorrell Hato, Estevao Willian and Jamie Gittens, and their top appearance maker was Spanish goalkeeper Robert Sanchez
In third place are Burnley, the surprise package in our analysis. They have jumped from 165 Black and Brown starting berths in the 2023-24 Premier League season to 259.
The Clarets have spent two seasons in the EFL Championship during the last 5 years and finished 2025-26 with a 6.8 representation average. Kyle Walker and goalkeeper Martin Dubravka were their top appearance makers with 35 starts.
The Black Soccer Academic - 1607
The Black Soccer Academic - 1607