Monday 31 August 2015 13:45, UK
There have been only nine home victories in the 40 Premier League games played so far this season.
Manchester City, Southampton and Swansea were the only teams to win on their own patch over the weekend; never before has a Premier League season started with so little success for home sides.
In what has been an unpredictable start to the campaign, only Manchester United, Manchester City (twice), Liverpool, Crystal Palace, Leicester City, Southampton and Swansea (twice) have been victorious at home.
However, the results are indicative of a wider trend in English football, as revealed by a Sky Sports study in August.
The study – which included all professional results since the Football League was founded in 1888 – found that home advantage is on the decline. The percentage of home games to have been won by the host side has fallen from its 65 per cent peak in 1895 to a low of 42 per cent in 2012/13.
Even in 1950, when the number of games per season rose from 1,848 to 2,028, the home side won 53 per cent of games – but that average percentage has continued to fall over the last 65 years.
Last season saw the previous low of home wins after each team had played four Premier League games - 12.
While home advantage has declined, away wins have begun to rise. Last season produced the highest share of away wins since the Football League was founded. Nearly a third of all games across England's top four division (31 per cent) ended with victory for the away side in 2014/15.
Premier League results in the opening four weeks of the season indicate these trends are continuing.
Among the most surprising results so far are West Ham's away day triumphs at Arsenal and Liverpool and Crystal Palace's win at Chelsea, while Manchester United and Tottenham have both been frustrated at home.
Will the trend continue throughout the season?
