re: What Premier League team should I root for? (NSFWish I guess)

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You do know that it's not a requirement to choose a team right?

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Yeah, but it sorta sucks not to have one. I was talking about this on the Leeds thread. Leeds is my team (I lived there), but they've been out of the EPL for a decade. It's time to accept that I root for a Championship team and find an EPL team to root for on the side.

My advice on picking a team is "Be honest with yourself." Only five teams have a legit shot of ever winning the title. I don't mean now, I mean ever. Only five teams have won the title since the EPL was created in 1992, and on of those was Blackburn in 1995, before the economic effects of the Premiership really took hold. Since that initial five year period, only five clubs have even finished top 3 (except Leeds in 2000). There are only five clubs who can win. You have to understand that.

Those five are Man U, Man City, Arsenal, Chelsea, and Liverpool (who has never won EPL). If you ever want to see a team win the title, you have to choose one of those five.

If you are willing to scale back what success is, and be legitimately satisfied with a team that maxes out with finishing top 4/5 and getting a place in Champions League, then you could root for that next tier: Everton, Newcastle, Villa, Spurs, Sunderland, and West Ham. Those six teams are of varying quality, but they are unlikely to be relegated and are pretty solid, consistent Premiership sides. They all have rich histories and have decent support, even in the States.

But take it from a Leeds fan, don't flirt with a team that is likely to get relegated. It sounds cool until it happens to you, and it's almost impossible to follow a team in the second division. Crystal Palace is cool and all, but eventually, we know how this story ends. And I'm not trying to belittle them. Hell, I'd kill for Leeds to be a yo-yo squad. But it's brutal to root for and very difficult to follow.