Third place Reading are more than twice as likely to win promotion than sixth placed Fulham , history suggests.
More than twice as many teams have won the playoffs after finishing third than they have from both fourth and sixth.
As many as nine of the 24 teams to win promotion through the playoffs in the Premier League era finished the season in third place.
They include teams such as West Ham in 2011/12, Swansea in 2010/11 and Bolton in 1994/95.
By contrast, only four teams to finish in sixth have ever made it to the top flight - Crystal Palace in 1996/97 and 2003/04, West Ham in 2004/05 and Blackpool in 2009/10 - as have just four who finished fourth - Leicester in 1993/94, Charlton in 1997/98, QPR in 2013/14 and Hull in 2015/16.
Fifth placed Huddersfield are in the second most successful playoffs spot - seven sides who finished in fifth in the league went on to win the playoffs.
Finishing league position | Playoff winners
3rd | 9
4th | 4
5th | 7
6th | 4
