Stoke are noisiest fans in UK football - official!

Sky TV have been measuring the average noise levels at UK Premiership football grounds all season, and they have just released the league table showing which fans make the most noise. The results are surprising for two reasons: first because newbies Stoke City are at no 1 (and bottom of the table Spurs are in second place); second because of the high levels of noise achieved.

The Stoke fans' average of 101.8 decibels is just below the threshhold of pain, equivalent to a powerful stereo system on maximum volume. Though short of Sky's claim that it matches a jet plane taking off, this is nevertheless between three and four times louder than the noise level at which factory or construction workers are required to wear hearing protection (85 dB). Impressive output indeed - and just in case any Stoke fans are concerned, no damage will result from exposure of just 90 minutes a week.

The noise levels jump to an even higher peak when a goal is scored of course, and these get really intense. The noisiest goal award goes to Newcastle, whose fans reached an amazing 114.8 dB when Michael Owen scored against Bolton. That's like being in the front rows at a rock concert.

However there doesn't seem to be any great correlation between noise levels and league position or long term success: Manchester United are way down the table. Maybe success breeds complacency, while fear and desperation ignite extra fervour - which could also explain the Spurs result.

Here's the full table:

1 - Stoke City - 101.8 decibels
2 - Tottenham Hotspur - 97.58 decibels
3 - Liverpool - 95.4 decibels
4 - Portsmouth - 94.3 decibels
5 - Newcastle United - 94.06 decibels
6 - Aston Villa - 92.2 decibels
7 - Chelsea - 92.06 decibels
8 - Middlesbrough - 91.3 decibels
9 - Arsenal - 90.8 decibels
10 - West Bromwich Albion - 90.26 decibels
11 - Everton - 89.98 decibels
12 - Blackburn Rovers - 89.3 decibels
13 - Bolton Wanderers - 88 decibels
14 - Manchester City - 87.25 decibels
15 - Fulham - 87 decibels
16 - Manchester United - 86.5 decibels
17 - West Ham United - 86.15 decibels
18 - Wigan Athletic - 86.16 decibels
19 - Hull City - 84.6 decibels
20 - Sunderland - 84.05 decibels