The Premiership Rugby began its journey 37 years ago, in 1987. It is the first-tier rugby union championship in England. The official title for this tournament is the Gallagher Premiership Rugby. However, the league saw many different modifications in this department. Since 1987, the Premiership Rugby altered its name five times: Courage League, Allied Dunbar, Zurich, Guinness, Aviva, and now Gallagher.
Premiership clubs can qualify for two European club competitions – the European Rugby Champions Cup and European Rugby Challenge Cup. The Premiership Rugby belongs to the trio of highest-level professional leagues in the Western and Northern hemispheres. The other two are the Top 14 in France and the United Rugby Championship (URC). URC is an annual rugby union tournament that involves the finest Irish, Italian, Scottish, South African, and Welsh teams.
Premiership Rugby Odds – History
The league became professional in 1996, just before the 1996–97 season. In the first decade, clubs like Bath, Leicester, and Wasps were the only champions. Before the 1997-98 season, on the 1st of November, sin bins have been introduced.
The Premiership Rugby had 36 champions throughout its history. The number one team in the regular season won 23 times out of 36. In conclusion, 63.88% is the percentage that demonstrates how often teams that took first place in the regular season won the title.
The current Premiership Rugby champion is Saracens. The most astounding fact is that in 2020, Saracens were relegated but found their way back. Then, they made two straight finals appearances and finally won the entire thing in 2023. In the 2023 Grand Final, they beat the Sale Sharks 35-25.
Premiership Rugby Odds – All-Time Champions
After we glanced at the small portion of history, let us review the all-time Premiership Rugby champions. The list will feature all teams starting with season number one, 1987-88.
Premiership Rugby Odds – Courage League
| Season | Champion |
| 1987-88 | Leicester Tigers |
| 1988-89 | Bath |
| 1989-90 | Wasps |
| 1990-91 | Bath |
| 1991-92 | Bath |
| 1992-93 | Bath |
| 1993-94 | Bath |
| 1994-95 | Leicester Tigers |
| 1995-96 | Bath |
| 1996-97 | Wasps |
Premiership Rugby Odds – Allied Dunbar Premiership
| Season | Champion |
| 1997-98 | Newcastle Falcons |
| 1998-99 | Leicester Tigers |
| 1999-00 | Leicester Tigers |
Premiership Rugby Odds – Zurich Premiership
| Season | Champion |
| 2000-01 | Leicester Tigers |
| 2001-02 | Leicester Tigers |
| 2002-03 | Wasps |
| 2003-04 | Wasps |
| 2004-05 | Wasps |
Premiership Rugby Odds – Guinness Premiership
| Season | Champion |
| 2005-06 | Sale Sharks |
| 2006-07 | Leicester Tigers |
| 2007-08 | Wasps |
| 2008-09 | Leicester Tigers |
| 2009-10 | Leicester Tigers |
Premiership Rugby Odds – Aviva Premiership
| Season | Champion |
| 2010-11 | Saracens |
| 2011-12 | Harlequins |
| 2012-13 | Leicester Tigers |
| 2013-14 | Northampton Saints |
| 2014-15 | Saracens |
| 2015-16 | Saracens |
| 2016-17 | Exeter |
| 2017-18 | Saracens |
Premiership Rugby Odds – Gallagher Premiership
| Season | Champion |
| 2018-19 | Saracens |
| 2019-20 | Exeter |
| 2020-21 | Harlequins |
| 2021-22 | Leicester Tigers |
| 2022-23 | Saracens |
| 2023-24 | ? |
Premiership Rugby Odds – Favourites
The history implies that more than 63% of teams who finish first in the regular season win. Yet, there are more curiosities than you anticipate. Saracens, Northampton Saints, and Bath are the teams we will cover today.
Favourites – Saracens
The Saracens are one of the TOP 3 teams on this list. The defending champions are in the 3rd place and have 42 points. Compared to the other competitors, Saracens show better offensive characteristics.
They have scored the most points (410) and tries (57). However, their grandest problems among the TOP 5 favourites are scrum percentage (87.8%) and the number of penalties (156).
Favourites – Northampton Saints
The Northampton Saints are the number one in this regular and have 49 points. They are the first team to win ten times this year. Yet, the Saints have not only high attacking numbers but also defensive.
They lead the TOP 5 favourites list in the number of conversions (40), successful tackles (91%), number of tackles (2169), and are one of the best when applying maul (95.70%). The only thing they must improve is to reduce the penalties (164) and strengthen their scrum percentage (88.7%).
Favourites – Bath
The Bath rugby team has the number two rank in this year’s regular season and collected 44 points. When we analysed the other two teams, we had more positives than negatives. Nevertheless, the situation is distinct with this team.
The only praiseworthy features are points scored (402), number of tries (54), and one of the least amount of penalties (122). Yet, these are the elements they must enhance as soon as possible:
- Percentage of victorious mauls (88%)
- Successful tackles (85%)
- Overall number of tackles (1639)
Premiership Rugby Odds – Who is the Favourite?
The Premiership Rugby is one of the toughest championships and has massive competition. Nevertheless, who has the highest possibility of prevailing?
| Team | Odds |
| Saracens | 2.49 |
| Northampton Saints | 4.50 |
| Bath | 5.00 |
| Leicester Tigers | 9.00 |
| Harlequins | 9.00 |