Are Lincoln City really better than Premier League-bound Hull City, Wrexham and Sheffield United?
Are teams set for Europe, such as Anderlecht, Shakhtar Donetsk and Besiktas, really worse than us? The logical answer is no, but for a bit of fun, I thought I’d tell you why, factually, the answer is yes! It all lies (that’s probably the right word) in the Opta Power Rankings, and a bit like the FIFA World Rankings, but for club teams.
What Are The Opta Power Rankings?
Opta Power Rankings are a global rating system designed to compare football teams across different leagues, countries and levels. More than 15,000 men’s and women’s teams are scored on the same scale, usually from 0 to 100 or 0 to 1,000, with the rankings updated daily. At the heart of the model is an Elo-style system, meaning teams gain or lose rating points after every match. Those changes are shaped by the expected outcome and the margin of victory, so a heavy win can be worth more than a narrow one, while an unexpected upset causes a much bigger shift than a routine victory for a strong side.
Keep that in mind when thinking about our rank.
The system also adjusts for the strength of the competition and the opposition, which is what makes it possible to compare clubs from very different environments. A strong result in the Premier League or Champions League carries more weight than the same result in a weaker domestic division. Rather than simply reflecting league position or long-term history, the rankings are intended to show a team’s current level, with recent performances helping to shape their rating. Opta can also use the ratings of individual clubs to assess the overall strength of leagues, giving a broader picture of which competitions are deepest, strongest or more top-heavy.
Lincoln City’s Position
As things stand, Lincoln City are ranked 159th in the world, which is astonishing. The top five are Arsenal, Bayern Munich, Manchester City, PSG and Barcelona, with Man Utd and Aston Villa making up the current top seven. Surprise entries in the top 100 include Como (32), Union Saint-Gilloise (35), and Southampton (75).
Each team is given a rating. Arsenal are 100, Barcelona 96.4, Inter Milan 94.4 and so on. We are 159th, but our rating is 82.7, which is level with teams such as Nicé, Penarol, Hull City and Ajax. Yes, currently, in these rankings, Lincoln City are on a par with Ajax. It really does feel a bit too Football Manager.
It’s when you scroll down that the surprises come. Ukrainian champions and Conference League semi-finalists, Shakhtar Donetsk, are on 82.5, while Anderlecht, qualifiers for Europe next season, are on 82.3. Ryan Oné could step up by joining us, according to the rankings: Sheffield United are 199th, on 81.9. Wrexham, darlings of the media and a side that narrowly missed out on the play-offs, are 182nd on 82.2.
Of course, we’re not better than these sides right now, but I do love this, and I wanted to rank us against other teams. FC Koln, a team I couldn’t get to see this year due to fake tickets, are 186th. Besiktas, the fourth-best team in Turkey, are 190th. Glasgow Rangers are 203rd, Birmingham City 221st, and QPR are 329th.
I know it’s all a bit of fun, but I thought you’d enjoy that. I won’t do a follow-up after six or seven games as we plummet again, but for now, I’ll settle on us being a better club than Rangers, Wrexham, Sheffield United and 1022nd-placed Grimsby Town (remember them? No?).