How far will Sunderland fans have to travel in the 2016-17 Premier League campaign?

The promotion of Burnley, Middlesbrough and Hull has swung the Premier League's balance of power back towards northern-based teams in terms of representation.
Sunderland fans at Watford on the final day of the seasonSunderland fans at Watford on the final day of the season
Sunderland fans at Watford on the final day of the season

There will be now be 11 top-flight clubs from West Bromwich northwards and the loss of Norwich means no tricky long trips into East Anglia for fans.

Fans of Sunderland, now the Premier League's most northern club following the relegation of Newcastle, face the prospect of travelling the greatest number of miles (almost 8,500).

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However, even though they suffered from the loss of a derby against their local rivals they are still going to be about 400 miles better off as the relegation of Norwich and Aston Villa, coupled with the arrival of Burnley, Middlesbrough and Hull, means a reduction in time spent on the road.

Newcomers Middlesbrough are set to benefit the most from promotion as their mileage is likely to be reduced by nearly 860 - having four fewer away matches than in their Sky Bet Championship campaign helps.

In the season just gone Boro supporters had nine round-trips of more than 500 miles, including journeys to the likes of Brighton, Cardiff and Bristol plus four matches in the capital.

The number of 500-mile match days will be reduced to seven, although they still face journeys of 600-plus miles to Bournemouth, Southampton and Swansea.

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Swansea are the Premier League's next furthest travellers - and the only others with 8,000-plus miles to cover - courtesy of their position in south Wales, with their mileage increasing slightly - a trend experienced by 10 of the 17 clubs from last season with nine of those based in the southern half of the dividing line.

Fans of West Brom, by virtue of their central position, will travel the fewest miles.

Predicted miles travelled by Premier League fans in 2016-17 (2015-16 figures in brackets). All distances measured from ground-to-ground.

Leicester: 4,726 (4,602)

Arsenal: 5,125 (4,805)

Tottenham: 5,268 (4,928)

Manchester City: 5,282 (5,683)

Manchester United: 5,362 (5,750)

Southampton: 6,625 (6,332)

West Ham: 5,698 (5,374)

Liverpool: 5,602 (6,011)

Stoke: 4,905 (5,034)

Chelsea: 5,472 (5,086)

Everton: 5,477 (5,894)

Swansea: 8,250 (8,150)

Watford: 5,085 (4,763)

West Brom: 4,690 (4,568)

Crystal Palace: 5,736 (5,399)

Bournemouth: 7,546 (7,246)

Sunderland 8,457 (8,800)

Newcastle 8,889

Norwich 7,148

Aston Villa 4,422

And how do the new boys compare?

Burnley 6,174 (6,544)

Middlesbrough 7,432 (8,291)

Hull 6,462 (6,678)