The Hardest Away Day Seasons in English Football
Some seasons are harder than others โ not just on the pitch, but on the road. We've looked at every season in our database to find the clubs that have faced the most punishing away travel schedule in English professional football.
The All-Time Top 10 Most-Travelled Away Seasons
Across 8 seasons of data covering all four English professional leagues, these are the individual season records for total away miles:
| # | Club | Season | League | Total miles | Avg/trip |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Plymouth Argyle | 2026/27 | 4,869 | 212 | |
| 2 | Carlisle United | 2023/24 | 4,296 | 187 | |
| 3 | Exeter City | 2021/22 | 3,968 | 180 | |
| 4 | Sunderland | 2023/24 | 3,964 | 172 | |
| 5 | Newcastle United | 2024/25 | 3,925 | 207 | |
| 6 | Middlesbrough | 2026/27 | 3,741 | 163 | |
| 7 | Hartlepool United | 2021/22 | 3,502 | 159 | |
| 8 | Swansea City | 2023/24 | 3,479 | 151 | |
| 9 | Norwich City | 2022/23 | 3,442 | 150 | |
| 10 | Ipswich Town | 2023/24 | 3,411 | 148 |
All-Time Records by Division
The single-season record in each division โ the most miles any club has ever travelled in one away campaign:
What Makes a Season Hard?
The hardest away day seasons tend to share a few characteristics: the club is geographically isolated from the rest of their division, the division itself has significant north-south spread, and there are no short-hop fixtures to balance out the long trips. For clubs like Plymouth, Carlisle or Barrow, almost every away game is a long journey regardless of the division โ but the specific mix of opponents in a given season can make things significantly worse or better.
The Role of Promotion and Relegation
Many of the hardest seasons in our data occur in the year a club is promoted into a division where the geographic centre is far from their home ground. A Devon or Cornwall club promoted into a Yorkshire-heavy Championship faces an almost uniquely punishing schedule. Read more about what promotion does to away day miles โ
Compare all seasons โ ยท Full miles tables โ
Frequently Asked Questions
Which club has had the hardest away day season on record?
Plymouth Argyle hold the record with 4,869 miles in the 2026/27 League One season.
How many seasons of data does AwayDayMiles cover?
We currently hold data for 8 seasons, from 2019/20 to 2026/27.
Does the hardest away season always go to the same club?
No โ while geographically isolated clubs like Plymouth, Barrow and Carlisle appear frequently, the specific mix of opponents each season means the record changes year to year.
How do you define the "hardest" away day season?
We measure total one-way away miles โ the sum of straight-line distances from a club's stadium to every opponent's ground in a given league season. The highest total across all clubs and all seasons in our database is the record.