The long wait for the 2025/26 season is nearly over.
The EFL Championship has already started in England, and the Premier League is set to follow suit on Friday when Liverpool host Bournemouth at Anfield.
But what about the rest of Europe's top leagues? Below, we take a closer look, and we also name our league winner betting tips.
2025/26 Premier League
Season Start: Friday, 15 August 2025 – Liverpool will face Bournemouth at Anfield on the opening day of the season. A full round of fixtures follows over the weekend, with Manchester United vs Arsenal on Sunday the highest profile fixture.
Premier League Winner Tip
Liverpool will beging the season as favourites in the latest Premier League betting at 6/4, with Arsenal second at 9/4 and Manchester City in the hunt at 5/2.
Tip: We feel that Liverpool have fixed something that wasn't broken and have made too many changes to their playing XI. Man City are in transition, meaning this could finally be the year Arsenal win the title.
Bonus Tip: Back Cole Palmer each-way to be Premier League top scorer at 20/1. Palmer finished second in the scoring charts in the 2023/24 season, wasn't too far off the top four in 2024/25, despite having a poor second half of the season.
Palmer is a player who is only going to improve and he should finish in the top four, and who knows, he may be a stong candidate to be top scorer.
2025/26 Bundesliga
Season Start: Friday, 22 August 2025 – with Bayern Munich vs. RB Leipzig at the Allianz Arena getting Matchday 1 underway.
Don't forget, unlike the Premier League, Serie A and La Liga - which all have 38 match days, the Bundesliga only has 34.
Bundesliga Winner Tip
Bayern are overwhelming favourites at around 3/10, with Bayer Leverkusen second in the Bundesliga betting at 8/1.
Munich look settled, while Leverkusen are rebuilding after the departures of head coach Xabi Alonso and high profile players such as Florian Wirtz
Tip: Bayern look nailed on to win, but are very short. For better value odds, back Leverkusen in betting without Bayern at 11/8.
2025/26 Serie A
Season Start: Saturday, 23 August 2025 – running through to late May 2026. Genoa vs Leece and Sassuolo vs Napoli are the opening fixtures, with both matches kicking off at 17:30 BST.
Serie A Winner Tip
Napoli are 13/8 favourites to retain their crown, but Inter Milan and Juventus are likely to be competitive, with the bookies pricing Inter at 11/4 and the Old Lady at 5/1.
An each-way bet on Juve at 5/1 looks the best value bet
2025/26 La Liga
Season Start: Friday, 15 August 2025 – Girona will host Rayo Vallecano in the opening fixture of the season, with Villarreal vs Real Oviedo kicking off later in the evening.
Champions Barcelona will get the season underway with a visit to Mallorca on Saturday, with the match kicking off at 18:30 BST.
Real Madrid get their season underway at home to Osasuna on Tuesday 19th at 20:00 BST.
La Liga Winner Tip
It's usually a duel between Real Madrid and Barcelona. Can Atlético make it a three-horse race this season?
The best La Liga betting sites believe that Xabi Alonso can get Madrid back to the summit of Spanish football, as they have installed Real as their 4/5 favourites.
Barça are second favourites at 11/10, with Atlético third in the betting at 8/1.
We see Barcelona retaining their title, and at odds against, they are worth backing.
For each-way value bets, back Atlético at 8/1 and/or Athletic Club at 50/1.
Early Season Betting Strategy
- Outright Markets: Snap up early-season bets when momentum and odds still favour smart value plays.
- Each-Way Advantage: Each-way options provide stronger returns for outsiders—great for bets on Juventus or Leverkusen.
- Odds Shifts: As fixtures are played and squad news emerges, odds will shift quickly. Stay alert for value lines.