Championship Predictions & Betting tips

Find our free predictions for betting on the 2025-26 Championship as well as tips and forecasts for each upcoming matchday. Full information for your sports bets.

2025-26 Championship Predictions

The Championship, also known as the Sky Bet Championship for commercial reasons, is the second tier of English football. It is one of the toughest leagues to compete in due to the massive prize at stake. Promotion to the English Premier League can see a club earning millions of pounds so everyone wants to achieve that. The intensity and importance of each matchday makes it a great league to place bets on. Our team of betting experts will provide you with excellent and completely free previews throughout the season, aiming to get you as many wins as possible.

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Championship Title Prediction: Who will win the 2025-26 Championship?

After suffering relegation from the Premier League last season, there’s a good chance that Ipswich Town will be able to go right back up as winners of the Championship.

There’s plenty of quality in this team from their season in the top flight, including Leif Davis, Omari Hutchinson and Jacob Greaves. There’s a good core of players here and the experience in the Premier League should serve them well as they prepare to face Championship opposition once again. Players such as Conor Chaplin and George Hirst, who struggled with the jump up to the Premier League, are expected to have strong seasons against the inferior quality in the second division.

Coming into the new campaign, Ipswich are the best bet to be crowned champions. Our 2025-26 Championship prediction: Ipswich Town!

2025-26 Championship prediction - odds on the title favourites

• Ipswich Town - 5.50
• Southampton - 7.00
• Coventry - 7.00
• Birmingham - 7.50
• Middlesbrough - 9.00
• Leicester - 12.00
• West Brom - 12.00
• Sheffield United - 26.00
• Stoke City - 26.00
• Norwich - 26.00
• Bristol City - 26.00
• Millwall - 34.00

Odds taken from Bet365

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Who will be promoted from the Championship?

It’s set to be another closely-contested promotion battle in the 2025-26 season. Ipswich Town and Southampton are the two frontrunners for the top two automatic spots, and our experts do believe that the Tractor Boys and the Saints will be able to secure promotion. As for the final spot, there are a number of sides that will realistically feel this could be their year. Norwich could be a good shout for a dark horse promotion contender, while much of Leicester's push could depend on how many points they are deducted.

Our experts believe that Birmingham City are well-equipped to go up. After setting a record high points total in League One last year, they’ll be hoping to emulate Ipswich Town from the 2023-24 season and earn a rare second straight promotion. They’ve been extremely active in the transfer window, bringing in no fewer than eight players so far including Celtic’s Kyogo Furuhashi and Demarai Gray from Al-Ettifaq. They’ve also secured a number of impressive loan signings including Eiran Cashin from Brighton and Tommy Doyle from Wolves. While they might not be one of the top two teams, the Blues could well end up being the side that wins the promotion playoff. Our 2025-26 Championship promotion prediction: Ipswich Town, Southampton and Birmingham City!

2025-26 Championship - odds on the promotion favourites

• Ipswich Town - 2.00
• Southampton - 2.75
• Coventry - 2.75
• Birmingham - 2.87
• Middlesbrough - 4.00
• Leicester - 4.33
• West Brom - 4.33
• Sheffield United - 8.00
• Stoke City - 8.00
• Norwich - 9.00
• Bristol City - 9.00

Odds taken from Bet365

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Who will be relegated to League One?

The bottom three of the teams drop down to League One, the third tier of English football. For the 2025-26 season, there is one clear favourite for the drop: Sheffield Wednesday. The Owls are facing a number of problems. There have been two months of unpaid wages, a current transfer embargo that will last until the end of the summer 2026, an owner who is actively looking to sell and the threat of a potential points deduction. With all the struggles they are facing, it would frankly be a miracle if they were able to stay up.

Expected to join Sheffield Wendesday is Oxford, who finished only a few points above the drop zone in 2024-25. They gave up the third-highest goals allowed total in the league last season and the defence isn't expected to be much better this season. Expect the U's to be firmly planted in a relegation scrap this season.

Finally, Hull City could be the third team that winds up going down to the third tier. They too have to deal with a transfer embargo (lasting three windows) for unpaid wages. Hull escaped the drop last season by the skin of their teeth but the transfer embargo means they haven't been able to sign a goalscorer, which is bad news for a team that managed just 44 goals last term. Our 2025-26 Championship relegation prediction: Sheffield Wednesday, Oxford United and Hull City!

2025-26 Championship - odds on the relegation favourites

• Sheffield Wednesday - 1.12
• Oxford United - 2.10
• QPR - 3.00
• Hull City - 4.00
• Charlton - 5.50
• Blackburn - 5.50
• Preston North End - 7.00
• Derby County - 8.00
• Portsmouth - 8.00
• Watford - 8.00

Odds taken from Bet365

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Who will score the most in the 2025-26 Championship?

Milhailo Ivanovic will be one of the top young players to keep an eye on this season. The 20-year-old had a fantastic end to the 2024-25 season, scoring seven goals in the final nine games of the season. He’s a player that hasn’t yet reached his full potential and he could be primed for a breakout season in 2025-26. With Millwall expected to improve on their eighth-place finish from last year and push for the play-offs, the Serbian striker will be crucial in their hopes for promotion.

With there plenty of possible names that could be this season’s top goalscorer, Ivanovic could present some very good value at the current price. Our 2025-26 Championship prediction: Cameron Archer!

2025-26 Championship - favourites for top goalscorer

• Josh Sargent (Norwich) - 5.00
• Haji Wright (Coventry) - 9.00
• Jay Stansfield (Birminham) - 13.00
• George Hirst (Ipswich) - 15.00
• Kyogo Furuhashi (Birmingham) - 17.00
• Tommy Conway (Middlesbrough) - 17.00
• Cameron Archer (Southampton) - 17.00
• Chuba Akpom (Ipswich) - 21.00
• Kieffer Moore (Wrexham) - 21.00
• Adam Armstrong (Southampton) - 26.00
• Sammie Szmodics (Ipswich) - 26.00
• Jordan Ayew (Leicester) - 34.00
• Mihailo Ivanovic (Millwall) - 34.00

Odds taken from Bet365

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Beginners Guide to how the English Championship works

There are 24 clubs playing in the English Championship. That's four more than are in the Premier League. Each club faces the other 23 home and away. Therefore there are 46 matches to be played and then three more if you want to win the play-offs.

Three teams each season will be promoted to the Premier League. The top two are promoted automatically, then the sides finishing third to sixth compete in the play-offs. The winner of that then takes their place in the top league in England. The bottom three sides are relegated to League One

At the end of the English Championship season this is what happens: 

• The club finishing first wins the title and is automatically promoted to the Premier League.
• The side in second place also wins automatic promotion.
• Third to sixth take part in the play-offs. The semi-finals see the sixth place side take on the team finishing third and the teams finishing fourth and fifth face each other. The semi-finals are played over two legs.
• The winners of the semi-finals meet in the play-off final at Wembley with the winners promoted to the Premier League.
• The bottom three sides in the table after 46 games are relegated to League One.

There is so much to play for in the English Championship. This explains why making predictions on matches in this league is so popular. With midweek and weekend fixtures throughout the season, you'll love betting on the English Championship.

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How to predict Championship matches

The Championship is considered to be quite an unpredictable league. Last season, only Leeds and Burnley lost less than ten of their 46 league matches and Sunderland were promoted despite having been beaten 12 times. There are a number of factors that you should consider before betting on games in the English Championship. 

• Check the form of each Championship side
• Take into account the clubs' fixture lists
• Take note of the list of players absent from the Championship
• Look at the psychological context of the Championship match
• Analysis of the latest Championship statistics

These five tips will help you when making predictions of matches being played in the Championship. Let's look at them in a little more depth.

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Consider the form of each Championship side

The form of a team - and its key players can also be one of the biggest indicators of the outcome of a match. Teams that have won their previous matches, or whose key players are in the middle of a scoring streak should perform better than a team that is going through a rough patch, or whose star player is going through a bad patch. Analyzing the previous performances of the team as a whole and the best players on each team is a crucial step in creating your Championship football predictions.

Take into account the clubs' fixture list

English football can get very busy at times. There are 46 league games to play (and that's before the play-offs start) and it's common for teams to be playing not just at the weekend but also in midweek too. Then there's the FA Cup and Carabao Cup games that can be played. Last season, Preston were almost relegated while making it to the FA Cup quarter-finals. The sheer number of games they had to play did see their form dip. Always look to see how many games a side is playing in a short period of time.

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Take note of the list of players absent from the Championship

It's important to know the team news for the game you wish to bet on. With a heavy fixture list, it's likely that injuries will be picked up. Sides may decide to rotate their squad to cope with all the games they have to play. Make sure you know if key players are going to be included or are being left or out injured.

Look at the psychological context of the Championship match

How important is the Championship match you want to bet on? This is particularly a factor in the latter stages of the season. A club that has no chance of promotion but is safe from relegation may start experimenting with their line-ups. If the game is a vital one, then both sides will be determined to win the match and field their strongest possible line-ups.

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Analysis of the latest Championship statistics

Statistics are so important when you want to bet on a football match. Make sure you know which clubs are in good form and those that are struggling for wins. Which clubs can't stop scoring and who are the ones who can't buy a goal? Is a team struggling for home wins or getting poor results on the road? Which strikers are in top form and who are the clubs that just can't stop conceding goals? Knowing these facts can help you have a great deal with your Championship bets.

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What not to do for your Championship predictions

When making your predictions on the Championship, there are certain practices that you should not do. They can hinder your chances of making a successful bet. Here are the main ones that we advise you definitely don't do when making your predictions on the next Championship games. 

• Not analyzing the Championship game
• Betting on a side's reputation not their current form.
• Failing to compare odds at different sites and not getting the best available
• Betting on a Championship match that has nothing at stake.
• Chasing losses - never a good idea whatever the league.
• Taking boosted odds but not wondering why they are being offered
• Not checking the team news
• Betting repeatedly on your favorite team

It's amazing how many times these examples of poor betting behavior take place. Don't fall into the trap and begin betting this way.

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Championship predictions: statistics you need to know

As we have previously mentioned, statistics are so important when you are deciding who to place bets on. Look for trends as they can tell you a great deal about the Championship. Here are the most important statistics from the recently completed 2024-25 Championship season:

• Home wins: 46%
• Draws: 28%
• Away wins: 26%
• Average goals: 2.45 goals per game
• +0.5 goals: 92%
• -0.5 goals: 8%
• +1.5 goals: 71%
• -1.5 goals: 29%
• +2.5 goals: 45%
• -2.5 goals: 55%
• +3.5 goals: 22%
• -3.5 goals: 78%
• +4.5 goals: 9%
• -4.5 goals: 91%
• Goal timing distribution: 76-90 minutes (22%)
• First half goals: 44%
• Second half goals: 56%
• Average home team goals: 1.43
• Average away team goals: 1.02
• “Both teams to score: yes”: 50% of matches
• Average shots per match: 21.92 shots
• Wins by 2 goals or more (handicap): 29.8% of matches
• Correct score 0-0: 7.9% of matches
• Correct score 1-1: 14% of matches
• Most frequent score: 2-1 or 1-2 (18.1% of games)

Understandably, the Championship sees a noticable dip in average goals scored when compared to the Premier League. This also sees the "Over 2.5" bet drop to sub 50%. While there might be fewer goals overall, home teams tend to enjoy more success in England's second division, winning at nearly a 50% clip in the 2024-25 season.

If you're looking for really attractive odds, the exact score of 1-1 was one of the most frequent scorelines in the previous campaign, while draws overall came through in almost one out of every three games. Of course, nothing is guaranteed, even less so when betting exact scorelines.

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In short: how to make the right Championship predictions?

You need to take care if wanting to make hopefully profitable Championship predictions. Researching a game is top priority, know the team news, judge correctly how important a game is and look at the fixture lists of both sides. 

Remember that Sportytrader's betting experts will be covering a large number of games throughout the season. The predictions are totally free and well-researched. They will definitely help you in deciding the prediction you need to make for a match. 

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Our Championship predictions of the moment

Best odds to bet on the Championship

To get more information on the Championship, don't hesitate to compare Championship odds and follow the matches live on our Championship Livescore page. These tools will help you make more accurate predictions for the 2025-26 Championship.