Let Thursday, March 5, 2026, be known as the date when Tottenham Hotspur supporters finally believed.
For about three minutes, a fanbase was unified in the hope that everything would be okay. Dominic Solanke’s opening goal against Crystal Palace, following some brilliant work from Archie Gray, saw Igor Tudor’s side climb to the lofty heights of 15th, restoring their four-point buffer over West Ham United.
But in one fell swoop; with a Micky van de Ven tug on Ismaïla Sarr’s shirt, relief turned into gloom. Within 13 minutes of Solanke’s smart tap-in, Spurs were a man down and 3–1 behind. Supporters, en masse, headed for the exits—or a sombre half-time beer.
It’s not merely Spurs fans who believe themselves to be doomed, but also those who brought up the prospect “as a laugh” a few weeks ago. The seemingly improbable has become a frightening potential; Tottenham look destined for the second tier.
There’s not a single team, perhaps not even Enfield Town of the National League South, that wouldn’t fancy their chances against the Lilywhites in their current state. Every fixture appears unwinnable, even if Tottenham’s remaining schedule, on paper, looks relatively kind.
How Tottenham’s Remaining Fixtures Compare to Relegation Rivals’
|
Leeds (31 points) |
Tottenham (29 points) |
Nottingham Forest (28 points) |
West Ham (28 points) |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Crystal Palace (A) |
Liverpool (A) |
Fulham (H) |
Man City (H) |
|
Brentford (H) |
Nottingham Forest (H) |
Tottenham (A) |
Aston Villa (A) |
|
Man Utd (A) |
Sunderland (A) |
Aston Villa (H) |
Wolves (H) |
|
Wolves (H) |
Brighton (H) |
Burnley (H) |
Crystal Palace (A) |
|
Bournemouth (A) |
Wolves (A) |
Sunderland (A) |
Everton (H) |
|
Burnley (H) |
Aston Villa (A) |
Chelsea (A) |
Brentford (A) |
|
Tottenham (A) |
Leeds (H) |
Newcastle (H) |
Arsenal (H) |
|
Brighton (H) |
Chelsea (A) |
Man Utd (A) |
Newcastle (A) |
|
West Ham (A) |
Everton (H) |
Bournemouth (H) |
Leeds (H) |
A home defeat to Sunderland on Tuesday night meant Leeds United failed to drift away from the dogfight, with Daniel Farke’s side two points better off than Tottenham and three clear of West Ham.
Leeds, however, haven’t performed like relegation candidates since their 3–2 defeat at Manchester City in November. A switch to a back three ignited something within the Whites, and, if you were to judge based on the average league position of their remaining opponents, they have the ’easiest’ run-in.
Leeds’ upcoming opponents boast an average league position of 13.2. They’ll target home games against Burnley and the resurgent bottom-dwellers Wolverhampton Wanderers as fixtures they must get three points from to help them preserve their Premier League status.
Tottenham currently don’t look like winning a game until they face Lincoln City in August, having amassed just four points from 11 games in 2026. However, they should benefit from hosting the relegation six-pointers against Nottingham Forest and Leeds. All of their away trips look daunting, even the visit to Molineux, and they’ll desperately want to be assured of safety by the time they take on Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on the penultimate matchday.
Everton, who have been here before, may take mercy on the Lilywhites when they rock up to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on the final day, assuming David Moyes’ side have nothing to play for.
Both Forest (9.8 average league position) and West Ham (9.1) have tougher schedules, but the pair are performing with far greater coherence and belief than Spurs. You’d back them to leapfrog Tudor’s side sooner rather than later, especially with Forest hosting Fulham, who lost to the Hammers midweek, in their next league outing.
Forest have challenging trips to Sunderland, Chelsea and Manchester United, but they’re welcoming a slumping Aston Villa, as well as Burnley, Newcastle and Bournemouth to the City Ground before the season’s up. They’ll target wins on home soil to keep them up.
The London Stadium has seldom been a daunting cauldron to play for visiting teams, but West Ham supporters are bound to be fervent down the stretch, given that their improvement could lead to the demise of their fiercest rivals. They’ll fancy their chances of hurting Manchester City next weekend, and Wolves also make their way to East London after the international break.
Spurs will hope that Arsenal can do them a favor in May, and a clash with Leeds on the final day could prove decisive.
What are Tottenham’s Chances of Getting Relegated?
After Tottenham parted ways with Thomas Frank last month, their chances of going down, according to Opta’s supercomputer, were less than 4%.
However, with Igor Tudor overseeing his third-straight defeat on Thursday night, Spurs’ odds of relegation have more than quadrupled. Opta now gives the Lillywhites a 16.1% chance of dropping to the second tier. West Ham’s chances of survival have been boosted to just under 50%, while Forest have a 26.88% likelihood.
Wolves and Burnley are all but condemned.
Tottenham’s chances are only likely to increase after their next Premier League outing at Liverpool, which remarkably arrives after the first leg of their Champions League round of 16 tie against Atlético Madrid. Spurs simply don’t win at Anfield, and there’s every chance that they enter the March international break in the relegation zone.
Forest’s trip to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on March 22 may feel more significant than last year’s Europa League final.
When Were Tottenham Last Relegated?
We’ve seen some historically grand clubs fall out of the top tier since the Premier League’s inauguration in 1992, including Newcastle United, Nottingham Forest, Leeds United and Aston Villa.
However, Tottenham’s potential demise to the Championship would undoubtedly be the most stunning. They were involved in the Champions League final just seven years ago, and were seemingly on the upswing once more after ending their 16-year wait for a trophy last May.
An array of factors have coalesced to create the current peril, with those at the top primarily to blame. It would be the first time in 49 years that Spurs suffer the humiliation of relegation. In 1976–77, they finished bottom of the 22-team First Division despite boasting a seemingly talented squad on paper, with a young Glenn Hoddle rising through the ranks.
Led by Keith Burkinshaw, Spurs bounced back rapidly, returning to the top flight at the first time of asking before embarking on a successful 1980s laden with cup triumphs.
