It is that time of year again. The world of football in the UK is ready to explode into life, with leagues open and down the country returning after a long summer of international football. While the World Cup had its fair share of thrills and spills, nothing beats club football, and the Premier League looks set to have one of its most thrilling seasons of all time.
The Big Six – or however many clubs now belong to the club – are breaking transfer records left, right, and centre. Clubs experiencing their first forays into Europe – or first in a long while – are preparing to find out whether their squads can cope with the rigours of dual focus. Newly-promoted teams are assessing if they will be strong enough to survive amongst the big boys.
So, with the Premier League in the early stages of the season, who are the favourites and what is it that’s driving experts and fans alike to back them in great numbers?
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Arsenal
For Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal, as has been the case for a number of years now, consistency appears to be what is keeping them high in the betting consideration. At one online casino in the UK that offers sports odds, they are currently favourites to go back-to-back.
After the Spaniard’s first title as manager in 2025/26, the club has largely been conservative in the market. Piero Hincapie’s loan move is now permanent, and Christos Tzolis has arrived from Club Brugge. Aside from a mooted blockbuster move for Vinicius Junior, Arsenal appear to be sticking and not twisting.
Manchester City
The now Pep Guardiola-less City are second favourites to win their first Premier League title since 2024. They may still have edged Arsenal as favourites had it not been for the Spanish legend’s departure, but they may also have dropped further down the list had it not been for their early transfer business.
It may only be one player that stands out, but getting Elliot Anderson for a record-breaking English fee means that Enzo Maresca now has one of the World Cup’s breakout performers on the books. His performances for England have shown that he can go toe-to-toe with the likes of Declan Rice, which is key given Rodri’s potential departure and increasing injury issues.
Liverpool
For the red side of Merseyside, it’s not a transfer on the player front that has them third-favourites to reclaim the title that they so timidly surrendered last season. They may not be expected to romp to a title with ease, but their new manager could be what they need to reinvigorate them.
Arne Slot has been replaced by Andoni Iraola, and his impressive spell at Bournemouth bodes well for the Reds. His aggressive style of play has been likened to Jurgen Klopp’s already this summer. However, it is the case that his preferred playstyle mirrors the rock-and-roll football that earned Liverpool a Champions League and Premier League title under the German.
Manchester United
It has been a while since United were considered within the top four favourites for the title. This year highlighting that they may have improved but that they still sit some way off the quality needed to challenge at the very top.
For the Red Devils, much of the early hype – if you can call it that – is based on whether they will be able to continue the impressive form that Michael Carrick oversaw to earn them Champions League football. The results were exactly what was needed at Old Trafford and, if the club legend can keep it going, United will continue to be favoured.
The Best of the Rest
Elsewhere, both Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur have had an impressive summer window, signing top performers for nearly £100 million and more in the form of Morgan Rogers and Sandro Tonali, respectively. Of course, when the fixtures start to come thick and fast, everything will change, but there’s a lot to be excited about as the season returns.
