Hull City vs Stoke City Predictions, Lineups & Betting Tips

Hull City vs Stoke City Predictions, Lineups & Betting Tips

Match Details: January 1, 2026 | MKM Stadium | EFL Championship | 15:00 GMT

Hull will play hosts to Stoke on New Years Day as both sides look to kick 2026 off with three points that could be crucial in how the top half of the table looks come the end of the day. A win for the hosts has the potential to see them jump into the top two, depending on results for Middlesbrough and Ipswich, while Stoke need three points to rejoin the play-off battle that they've fallen away from in recent weeks. There's plenty to play for in this game and both sides have played some attractive football across the season so far, so this should be a game worth watching.

Key Betting Tips: Hull City to Win at 2.38 odds on talkSPORT BET and BoyleSports both represent good value based on the tip provided by Football Park's advanced algorithm.

The hosts come flying into this game in magnificent form, while the visitors have suffered a massive slip in results in recent weeks, so based on the odds provided, backing a home win seems like the best bet.

Hull City vs Stoke City Predicted Lineups

Hull City Predicted XI (4-3-3): Ivor Pandur; Akin Famewo, John Egan, Charlie Hughes, Lewie Coyle; Matt Crooks, Regan Slater, Darko Gyabi; Liam Millar, Ollie McBurnie, Kyle Joseph

Hull's injury woes worsened in their last game when Ryan Giles made an early exit in just the sixth minute, joining an absentee list of Mohamed Belloumi, Brandon Williams, Eliot Matazo, John Lundstram and Joe Geldhart. Also missing out will be Semi Ajayi, as he is part of the Nigeria squad for AFCON.

Stoke City Predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Viktor Johansson; Ben Gibson, Ben Wilmot, Ashley Phillips, Bosun Lawal; Tatsuki Seko, Steven N'Zonzi; Sorba Thomas, Jun-Ho Bae, Million Manhoef; Divin Mubama

Lewis Baker and Aaron Cresswell are two injuries to Stoke that are expected to return in January, whereas they may have to wait a little longer until Eric Bocat is ready to return. Ben Pearson will serve a suspension after being shown red last time out, while Junior Tchamadeu will prove a big miss as he continues his time at AFCON with Cameroon.

Hull City vs Stoke City Current League Standings

Hull have quietly become a side worth shouting about towards the top of the Championship, transforming themselves from a side battling relegation last season to one that have a genuine opportunity to lift themselves back into the Premier League after an eight year absence. Even with some injuries to important players, there's something about the Tigers this season that means you can never really count them out, and that has come to the fore lately with some exceptional results that now leave them just two points behind the automatic promotion spots. With so much on the line for Sergej Jakirovic's side, they'll know how important a win here could be for their prospects for the rest of the season.

In contrast, Stoke have suffered a serious fall from grace over December that now means they don't even look like much of a play-off candidate anymore, let alone the Coventry chasers they were a month ago. They've slipped to 10th place and are four points behind the play-offs, which doesn't sound like such a bad position to be in, but when you consider how damaging a free-fall in the Championship can be, they need to rediscover their ability to win games to avoid their season turning into a disaster.

Hull City vs Stoke City Head-to-Head Timeline

There seems to be a strange pattern of the away side winning in every one of their recent encounters, whoever it is that's visiting. We wouldn't anticipate that trend continuing in this installment, though, as the form of the two sides is too much of a contrast and points towards a rare win for a home side between Hull and Stoke.

Historically, the Potters have had the better of the Tigers when they've met, having won in this fixture 11 times in comparison to Hull's six. Only three matches have ended on level terms, so the likelihood of there being a winner in this match is high, and it looks as though the hosts are set to reduce the historic gap between the two with a win.

Recent Head-to-Head Results:

• November 29, 2025: Stoke City 1-2 Hull City (Championship)
• February 1, 2025: Hull City 1-2 Stoke City (Championship)
• September 20, 2024: Stoke City 1-3 Hull City (Championship)
• March 29, 2024: Hull City 0-2 Stoke City (Championship)
• September 24, 2023: Stoke City 1-3 Hull City (Championship)

Hull City and Stoke City Recent Matches Analysis

Hull City Last 5 Matches:

• Hull City 1-0 Middlesbrough (A) - Championship
• Hull City 2-2 Sheffield Wednesday (A) - Championship
• Hull City 1-0 West Brom (H) - Championship
• Hull City 3-1 Millwall (A) - Championship
• Hull City 2-0 Wrexham (H) - Championship

Hull's form has been a big talking point in this prediction as to why they are likely to run out winners in this meeting, and now you can see why, with four wins and one draw in their last five games that has seen them turn into a genuine promotion contender. Their opponents haven't exactly been easy to beat either, with second placed Middlesbrough and high-flying Millwall falling at the hands of Hull, while Wrexham have proven that they aren't a team worth discounting this season. All this means the draw against Sheffield Wednesday came as quite a disappointing shock, but they were able to rejuvinate themselves in a statement win against Kim Hellberg's side that will have them back in high spirits for this game.

Stoke City Last 5 Matches:

• Stoke City 1-2 Sheffield United (H) - Championship
• Stoke City 0-0 Preston (H) - Championship
• Stoke City 0-1 Watford (A) - Championship
• Stoke City 2-1 Swansea (H) - Championship
• Stoke City 0-1 Ipswich (A) - Championship

On the other hand, now, and Stoke's form is a key reason as to why they probably won't get a result here. Admittedly, some of their opponents have been tricky, especially Ipswich and Watford, but when you consider how well they were doing just a few weeks ago, some of these results have come as a real disappointment to the Potters. One win in five isn't good enough for a side chasing the play-offs and it's shown, as they have slipped down the table from third to 10th in just a matter of weeks and are no longer the promotion contenders many considered them to be. Only scoring in two out of their last five games is a really poor record to have in front of goal, so they will desperately need to improve their finishing if they want to turn things around.

Hull City vs Stoke City Predictions

Our advanced algorithm analyses over 200 data points to generate these predictions with a 53.30% confidence in Hull City to Win. The model factors in current form, head-to-head records, player availability, and tactical matchups.

Best Hull City vs Stoke City Betting Tips

Football Park’s Best Bet: Hull City to Win @ 2.38 odds on either talkSPORT BET or BoyleSports - The hosts look like the stronger side heading into this game, so we expect them to have too much quality for a Stoke side that are struggling for confidence off the back of a massive slip in results.

Key Players to Watch: Hull City vs Stoke City

Ivor Pandur (Hull City): The Croatian has proven himself to be a good keeper at this level, but his performances recently have stood out for his excellent ability between the sticks, which have helped him earn three clean sheets in the last five games. He ranks as one of the best goalkeepers in the league for saves made and for his sweeping traits, helping Hull to become difficult to break down. He may be a little more involved than the fans would like, as you'd rather your keeper not have to make saves in the first place, but they'll feel reassured by Pandur's recent performances to say the least.

Sorba Thomas (Stoke City): The winger from Wales has been one of many Stoke players that have had a pretty substantial drop in form, but Thomas displayed his potential in the opening months of the season to become a brilliant player at this level, and should still be worth keeping an eye on despite his struggles lately. He currently has to his name eight goals and five assists in the Championship so far this campaign and has established himself as one of the most exciting and explosive players on the wing in the league, so if he can rediscover his form and eye for goal, then he could cause some serious problems at the MKM.

Hull City vs Stoke City Match Facts

Broadcast Details: Sky Sports+

Referee: Craig Pawson

Stadium Information: Located in Kingston upon Hull, the MKM Stadium has been the home of Hull City since 2002 and has a capacity of 25,586.

Hull City vs Stoke City: Final Prediction

Hull City 3-2 Stoke City