Birmingham City host Ipswich Town in the opening match of the 2025/26 EFL Championship on Friday 8th August. Both teams will expect to be in the promotion shake up at the end of the season.
Below, we take a look at their chances in more detail, when we name our EFL Championship betting tips for the upcoming season.
Ipswich Town – Champions in Waiting
Kieran McKenna’s men made an immediate return to the Championship after a disappointing 2024/25 season in the top flight. As disappointing as that was, the Tractor Boys look the best placed of the three relegated teams to immediatelty bounce back.
Town may have lost the services of Liam Delap, and one or two more may depart before the end of the transfer window, but they have by-and-large retained the majority of the squad that came down from the Premier League.
Furthermore, they are the only team to have stuck with their manager, and we feel that puts them in a good place to win the Championship and get back in the Premier League at the first time of asking.
Sheffield United – The Smart Bet for Second
The Blades were close to securing automatic promotion last season, but came third in the battle with Leeds United and Burnley for the top two places in the Championship table. Further heatbreak was to follow after United lost 2-1 in the playoff final to Sunderland.
The double failure eventually cost Chris Wilder his job. Despite his sacking, Wilder has left the Blades in a good place. United have a strong playing squad, giving new boss Rubén Sellés a strong platform to begin from.
We can see the Blades getting over last season's double-disappointment and securing automatic promotion.
Other Promotion Favourites
- Birmingham City – The League One champions bring plenty of financial muscle and already have a Championship quality side in place. Manager Chris Davies may lack experience at this level, but he has plenty of support in place and even if the Blues struggle to adapt, they should have enough quality to get into the top six.
- Southampton – Will Still is the new man in charge. The 32-year-old former Lens' coach comes with an impressive CV, but he will have his work cut out rebuilding the Saints after a poor season in the Premier League that saw them finish bottom on just 12 points.
- Leicester City – It's hard to know what to make of the Foxes. They seemed in no rush to sack Ruud van Nistelrooy on the back of relegation from the Premier League, and they will also begin life back in the Championship without Jamie Vardy. It could be a struggle for Leicester City this season
- Coventry City – The Sky Blues looked well out of the promotion race when Frank Lampard took over last November. However, a strong second half of the season saw Coventry reach the playoffs, only to be knocked out by a goal in stoppage time at hte end of the second leg against Sunderland. The Sky Blues look set to be in the running for a place in the top six again this season..
Dark Horses to Watch
- Derby County – John Eustace jumped ship from Blackburn Rovers to the County Ground for a reason. Eustace is an established Championship manager and it wouldn't be a huge shock to see the Rams competing for a top-six place.
- Stoke City – After getting sacked by Coventry City last season, Mark Robins was never going to be out of work for long. The under-the-radar manager worked miracles on a shoestring at Coventry and came within a penalty shootout of getting the Sky Blues to the Premier League in 2023. Robins could well work the same sort of magic at Stoke City.
Betting Verdict
We are happy to bet on Ipswich Town to win the league, or at the very least, finish in the top two.
Our other betting tips are for Sheffield United to be promoted, and we also believe that Southampton, Coventry City, Birmingham City and Derby County will make it to the playoffs.