Championship Club by Club Betting Preview - Part 1

The EFL season kicks off a week before the Premier League rolls into action, with the race for the top flight beginning on Friday 8 August. Leeds United and Burnley ultimately pulled clear of the rest in 2024/25, but the rest of the division was much tighter – sixth-placed Bristol City were a yawning 32 points off automatic promotion but only 19 points clear of relegation.

How will things pan out in 2025/26? As ever, the sides dropping down from the Premier League are well-fancied to bounce straight back up. With ten of the last 12 promoted sides having been in either their first or second season of parachute payments, there’s sound logic to that. However, several other teams will dream of making a promotion push, not least newly promoted Birmingham City and Wrexham, who, with the exception of the relegated trio, have the biggest budgets in the Championship.

There’s much to look forward to in the coming months. In this three-part series, we present our best bet for all 24 sides.

Birmingham City

Birmingham City didn’t just win League One last season; they ran away with it. Under the impressive Chris Davies, the Blues won 34 of 46 games on their way to amassing a new EFL points record of 111. Riding a wave of optimism heading into the new campaign, the St. Andrew’s faithful have high hopes that their side may “do a Luton” and achieve back-to-back promotions. And they just might.

With the home crowd back on board, an established system, and eye-catching signings including Bright Osayi-Samuel and Kyogo Furuhashi, not too many sides will relish a trip to England’s second city. A top six finish appears achievable in a division where many sides are in a period of transition, but we wouldn’t put it past Birmingham to make a run at the automatic promotion spots. Hedge your bets and back the new boys to be promoted by any route.

• Recommended Bet - Birmingham City to be promoted @ 2/1 with Betfred

Blackburn Rovers

Having entered the season merely hoping to avoid a relegation scrap, 2024/25 went much better than expected for Blackburn – so much so that they still had a shot at a playoff spot on the final day. Narrowly missing out last season, the challenge is to build on that performance.

In Valérien Ismaël, they have a manager who unexpectedly took Barnsley to the playoffs in 2020/21, although stints at West Brom and Watford didn’t go so well. Sidnei Tavares looks a shrewd acquisition in midfield, while wide man Dion de Neva and 17-year-old forward Igor Tyjon could provide the X-factor. Overall, we question whether this starting eleven is equipped to follow Ismael’s high-pressing style for an entire season. With new threats dropping down and moving up, a bottom-half finish looks likely. That said, they may still fare better than local rivals Preston, who could be in for a season of struggle.

• Recommended Bet - Blackburn to finish above Preston @ 8/11 with bet365

Bristol City

Bristol City surpassed themselves last season to claim a playoff spot under Liam Manning. That finish inspires optimism for 2025/26. However, the club suffered a significant blow with Manning departing to take the reins at Norwich City.

New boss Gerhard Struber brings Championship experience, having saved Barnsley from the drop in 2019/20, but arrives on the back of successive sackings at Red Bull Salzburg and FC Köln. Not particularly encouraging, nor is the fact that the squad must adapt from Manning’s possession-heavy approach to Struber’s emphasis on the press. This feels like it could go either way. With such thin margins between the top and bottom, we’ll take a small chance on the Robins unravelling completely.

• Recommended Bet - Bristol City to be Relegated @ 10/1 with bet365

Charlton Athletic

Charlton return to the Championship for the first time since the 2019/20 campaign following victory in the League One playoffs. The main objective this term is simply to stay up.

Nathan Jones has turned to his old stamping ground of Luton Town to bring in Thomas Kaminski and Reece Burke, young winger Rob Apter and Sonny Carey join from Blackpool, while last season’s League One top scorer, Charlie Kelman, has also signed up. That recruitment gives them a chance, but relegation odds of 11/4 for the weakest of the three sides to earn promotion are still tough to pass up.

• Recommended Bet - Charlton to be relegated @ 11/4 with bet365

Coventry City

Doug King looked to have dropped a clanger when sacking the popular Mark Robins in November. However, redemption arrived in the shape of Frank Lampard. Under the Chelsea legend’s guidance, Coventry overcame a tardy start to charge to the playoffs – ultimately losing out in heartbreaking fashion to Sunderland in the semi-final.

With a full summer under his belt and excellent additions, including Kaine Kesler-Hayden from Aston Villa and Miguel Ángel Brau from Granada, we see no reason why Coventry can’t at least match last season’s performance. The third-best side in the league according to xG-difference in 2024/25, a top-six finish beckons.

• Recommended Bet - Coventry Top 6 Finish @ 10/11 with bet365

Derby County

Many raised their eyebrows when John Eustace left a playoff challenge with Blackburn to stave off relegation at Derby County. Nevertheless, the ex-Birmingham boss stated his belief that the Rams were the better long-term project. Having accomplished step one of his mission, in guiding Derby to a 19th-place finish, Eustace will seek progress in the coming campaign.

Danny Batth and the prolific Andreas Weimann are notable acquisitions from Blackburn, whilst £6 million signing Patrick Agyeman adds a physical presence up front. This may be a year too soon for promotion, but odds-against quotes for a top-half finish look worth taking.

• Recommended Bet - Derby County top-half finish @ 5/4 with bet365

Hull City

2024/25 was a season of disarray for the Tigers, and it almost ended in disaster. Replacing the highly regarded Liam Rosenior with Tim Walters didn’t work out, but Rubén Sellés did at least manage to stave off relegation. That wasn’t enough for the board, seeing Sellés depart to begin the new season at Sheffield United.

Next in the firing line is highly regarded, but unproven in the English game, Sergej Jakirović. A transfer embargo lasting until 2027 adds further to the chaos. But for the utter shambles at Sheffield Wednesday, Hull would look a decent bet to finish bottom. As it is, we will take them to go down.

• Recommended Bet - Hull City to be relegated @ 3/1 with bet365

Ipswich Town

Whilst expected, the loss of Liam Delap to Chelsea is the obvious blow to Ipswich. However, it’s hard to find many other weaknesses in a side that was promoted with 96 points in 2023/24. Dara O’Shea, Leif Davis, Alex Palmer and Jaden Philogene are all elite performers at this level, whilst Azor Matusiwa looks like a shrewd acquisition to add steel to the midfield. However, the biggest plus of all is that Kieran McKenna remains at the helm. The most settled side with the most talented squad, Ipswich are the most likely winners of the Championship in 2025/26.

• Recommended Bet - Ipswich Town to win the Championship @ 7/2 with Ladbrokes

Championship Club by Club Betting Preview - Part 2