The 2025/26 Premier League season is here, and the excitement is already building. Fans, pundits, and even league officials are asking the same thing. Could this campaign be the most competitive the English top flight has ever produced?
The general belief among many last season was that the Premier League had dipped in quality. Liverpool won the title with ease, the three promoted clubs went straight back down without making much of an impact, and two of the biggest names in the league, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur, looked far from their best. To some, it felt like the drama and unpredictability had faded.
That assessment left out some crucial facts. While Liverpool dominated domestically, English clubs also shone on the European stage. The Europa League and the Conference League were both won by Premier League sides, and three teams made it to the knockout rounds of the Champions League, where they fell only to eventual winners Paris Saint-Germain.
The 2024/25 season also made history in a way that has never happened before. Five different Premier League clubs lifted major trophies. Liverpool were champions of England, Crystal Palace won the FA Cup, Newcastle United claimed the League Cup, Tottenham took the Europa League, and Chelsea were crowned Conference League winners. Tottenham’s victory came in an all-English Europa League final against Manchester United. Chelsea did even more by adding the FIFA Club World Cup in its expanded format, defeating Champions League holders PSG in the final.
This year, England will send nine teams into European competitions. Six of them will start in the Champions League league phase, which means that one out of every six clubs at that stage will be from the Premier League. Crystal Palace, who finished 12th in the table last season, also added the Community Shield to their collection by beating Liverpool on penalties. Tottenham, who were 17th last season, narrowly lost the UEFA Super Cup to PSG despite being the better side for much of the match.
Even the relegation of all three promoted sides for the second consecutive year can be seen as a sign of strength. If new teams cannot survive, it suggests that the standard across the league is extremely high. The criticism of competitiveness last season mostly came from frustration at the title race ending early, but there were battles worth watching elsewhere in the table.
Premier League chief executive Richard Masters highlighted the competitiveness of the league ahead of the new season, and there is truth to his words. Liverpool clinched the title with four games left, but their late drop in form, taking only two points from those final matches, showed that any loss of focus can be punished. Head coach Arne Slot repeatedly stressed that every victory required intense effort and quality, with only two or three games feeling comfortable.
The fight for Champions League qualification was gripping until the final day. Chelsea and Newcastle claimed the last two spots, while Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest missed out. Forest’s 65 points were the highest total ever recorded by a seventh-placed team in the Premier League, underlining how high the standard was for a top-half finish.
Many teams produced standout achievements. Liverpool lost only twice before sealing the title. Arsenal had the best defensive record, conceding just 34 goals. Manchester City won more games than any other side after the turn of the year. Chelsea not only won European silverware but also became Club World Cup champions. Newcastle reached 20 league wins for the first time since 2002/03. Aston Villa went unbeaten in 21 straight home games in all competitions, their best run since the late 1970s.
Nottingham Forest matched the league’s elite when playing away from home, collecting 33 points on the road, the third-best record behind only Liverpool and Arsenal. Brighton came from behind to claim 23 points, the most of any side. Bournemouth set a new club record for points in the Premier League with 56 and finished with a positive goal difference for the first time in their top-flight history. Fulham scored more goals from substitutes than any other team in a single Premier League season, while Crystal Palace recorded their highest points total and also won six consecutive away games for the first time.
Everton’s revival under David Moyes saw them collect 31 points from his first win in January, a tally bettered by only three teams in that period. Wolves also surged in form under Vítor Pereira, earning 33 points after his December appointment. Even Manchester United and Tottenham, despite domestic struggles, showed their quality in Europe, with Tottenham lifting their first major trophy since 2008.
The gap between the champions Liverpool and Tottenham in 17th was only 46 points, the smallest since 2015/16. The gap between Arsenal in second and Spurs was 36 points, the narrowest since 2020/21. There were 93 draws last season, the most since 2017/18, and 137 one-goal victories. These figures suggest that matches were often closely fought, even if the title race itself lacked tension.
European success further strengthens the case for the league’s quality. According to the Opta Power Rankings, six of the top nine teams in the world are from the Premier League. Liverpool, Arsenal, and Manchester City occupy the top three spots, with Chelsea, Aston Villa, and Newcastle also in the top 10. Every side that avoided relegation last season is ranked among the top 40 in the world.
Comparisons to other European leagues are striking. La Liga has only 13 teams in the top 100, Serie A has 12, Ligue 1 has 11, and the Bundesliga has 10. Even promoted sides Burnley and Leeds rank just outside the top 50, with Sunderland not far behind.
In the end, defining strength is tricky. A league is not automatically strong because it is competitive, nor is it automatically weak when big clubs struggle. What the Premier League offers heading into 2025/26 is a deep pool of talented teams, proven success in Europe, and enough unpredictability to keep fans hooked.
The title race may still have a favourite, but the battles for Europe, for survival, and for bragging rights promise to keep this season alive from start to finish. Whatever happens, it is clear that the Premier League enters this season in a position of power, and the rest of the footballing world will be watching closely.
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