Who plays three at the back?
Share of line-ups set out with three defenders — the shape that has grown faster than any other in the archive.
Serie B (Italien) commits hardest: 77,8% of its line-ups start with three defenders.
| League | Three at the back | Line-ups |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Serie B Italien | 77.8% | 780 |
| 2. Fußball-Bundesliga Österreich | 66.8% | 389 |
| 3. Serie A Italien | 62.4% | 760 |
| 4. Fußball-Bundesliga Deutschland | 51.4% | 615 |
| 5. J1 League Japan | 42.1% | 570 |
| 6. Division 1A Belgien | 41.7% | 642 |
| 7. 2. Fußball-Bundesliga Deutschland | 41.4% | 616 |
| 8. Premiership Schottland | 37.7% | 464 |
| 9. Ligue 1 Frankreich | 36% | 614 |
| 10. Ekstraklasa Polen | 35.8% | 612 |
| 11. FA Cup England | 35.5% | 217 |
| 12. Championship England | 29.6% | 1.096 |
| 13. Superliga Dänemark | 28.5% | 386 |
| 14. HNL Kroatien | 28% | 322 |
| 15. UEFA Conference League International | 27.1% | 722 |
| 16. Primeira Liga Portugal | 26.8% | 613 |
| 17. Super League Schweiz | 26.6% | 459 |
| 18. Premjer-Liga Russland | 22.7% | 488 |
| 19. Liga MX Mexiko | 22.6% | 673 |
| 20. Major League Soccer Vereinigte Staaten | 21.9% | 1.080 |
Showing the major competitions. Include every competition
Any formation whose first line is a three. The provider records a formation for roughly a quarter of line-ups, so a league appears only once enough of its matches carry one.