Championship promotion odds 2026/27: Predictions and tips as relegated trio start as favourites to bounce straight back

THE Championship is back and this season promises to be one of the most competitive in recent history as 24 teams battle it out over a marathon 46 matches in the hope of reaching the promised land of the Premier League. The three relegated teams of West Ham, Burnley and Wolves are among the favourites in the latest Championship promotion odds. They will join an already competitive-looking field that includes Southampton, Middlesbrough and Sheffield United, along with the improving Wrexham and Birmingham City. There is an added twist this season as well. The Championship play-offs have been expanded from four teams to six. As a result, clubs finishing from third to eighth are all in with a chance of reaching the top flight through the Wembley final. The prospect of taking part in the most lucrative match in football at the end of May is likely to keep the Championship season alive until the final weekend. It will only serve to increase the interest in what is already one of the most exciting leagues in world football. Quick tips for the 2026/27 Championship promotion market West Ham for automatic promotion – 5/6 with bet365 Valentín Castellanos to top score in the Championship – 10/1 with Betfred Stoke City to finish in the Top 8 – 7/2 with Betway ⬆️ Latest Championship promotion odds It’s no major shock to see the relegated trio of West Ham, Burnley and Wolves amongst the favourites to be promoted straight back to the Premier League. The bookmakers see West Ham as the clear favourites. However, it’s not a clear-cut case that Burnley and Wolves will join them, as most betting sites are expecting Middlesbrough to be right in the mix after they impressed last season. Teambet365BetfredBetwayWest Ham United1/21/21/2Wolves7/411/82/1Middlesbrough9/46/42/1Burnley3/13/17/2Southampton7/210/34/1Birmingham City9/29/24/1Wrexham6/15/15/1Sheffield United11/26/111/2Norwich City6/15/16/1Millwall6/111/213/2West Brom9/110/18/1Derby County12/112/110/1Swansea City12/111/112/1Watford14/114/116/1Bristol City16/114/114/1Stoke City16/116/110/1QPR16/114/116/1Cardiff City18/120/118/1Blackburn Rovers20/122/114/1Bolton Wanderers18/122/120/1Charlton Athletic20/128/120/1Portsmouth25/125/116/1Preston North End40/140/128/1Lincoln City50/150/133/1 *Odds correct as of 17th August but subject to change. 🤔 How does automatic promotion and the play-offs work? The format being used to decide automatic promotion for the 2026/27 Championship season has slightly changed. The basis of three clubs gaining promotion to the Premier League remains the same. And as has been the case in recent years, the teams finishing first and second in the table will automatically go up. The change is simply being made to the play-offs. In recent years the teams finishing third to sixth took part in the play-offs. Beginning this season, the number of teams taking part in the play-offs has been expanded from four to six, meaning the teams finishing from third to eighth are now included. FinishReward1stAutomatic promotion2ndAutomatic promotion3rdQualify for the play-off semi-finals4thQualify for the play-off semi-finals5thHome advantage against 8th in eliminator match6thHome advantage against 7th in eliminator match7thAway to 6th placed team in eliminator8thAway to 5th placed team in eliminator To expand on the new format, the teams finishing fifth and eighth will meet in a one-off eliminator match, as do the teams who finish sixth and seventh. The higher-ranked team hosts those matches, meaning fifth and sixth will have home advantage. The winners of the two eliminators then face the teams who finished third and fourth in the league in the play-off semi-finals. Both ties will remain two-legged, with the higher-ranked third and fourth-placed teams having home advantage in the second legs. Furthermore, the team that finishes third in the Championship will face the lowest-ranked team remaining in the play-offs after the two eliminator matches, while the team that finished fourth faces the other eliminator winner. This means there is no set pathway as the team that finishes third in the table won’t know their play-off opponents until the eliminators are completed. The winners of the semi-finals will meet at Wembley for the final promotion place in the most lucrative match in football. The idea behind the new system is to keep more clubs in the promotion hunt for longer. It could mean that teams all the way down to tenth or lower still have a chance of promotion going into the final weekend of the season. The format has also been designed to give the teams that finish higher up the table an advantage over those that reach the play-offs in the lower positions. ⬇️ The relegated trio The three teams that are relegated from the Premier League are nearly always the favourites to go straight back up. Parachute payments and the financial clout that comes from being in the English top flight give them a huge advantage over the rest of the division: West Ham West Ham are the obvious favourites to be promoted with the best football betting sites. They feel like a Premier League club in the wrong division. The Hammers retained Nuno Espirito Santo as their head coach, which is a significant achievement. They’ve also largely managed to keep the bulk of their Premier League squad together with captain Jarrod Bowen also remaining at a club that clearly means a lot to him. Coventry City highlighted last season how important goalscorers are in a Championship squad. West Ham can replicate this. Alongside Bowen, they also have Valentín Castellanos, Pablo and Niclas Fullkrug. Some lower Premier League clubs would be happy to have that group of strikers to pick from and this is one of the main reasons the Hammers are expected to bounce back at the first time of asking. ⚽ Back West Ham to win promotion from the Championship at 1/2 with bet365 ⚽ Wolves Wolves endured a miserable Premier League campaign in the 2025/26 season. They finished bottom of the table with only three wins and 20 points. They appeared to be planning for life in the Championship when they appointed Rob Edwards as head coach in November. However, he was shown the door in June, with the club instead deciding to hit the reset button and start all over again with Cesar Peixoto named as the new head coach. Kieran Trippier has been recruited from Newcastle United and striker Raul Jimenez has also returned to the club. These signings will bring plenty of experience to Molineux and will complement established Championship players like Adam Armstrong. The big question hanging over the club is whether it was the right decision to bring in Cesar Peixoto to replace the experienced Rob Edwards. Edwards knew the Championship like the back of his hand, while Peixoto has no previous experience of English football, let alone the Championship. ⚽ Tip Wolves to go straight back up to the Premier League at 2/1 with Betway ⚽ Burnley Like Wolves, Burnley are another fascinating case, having turned their back on proven Championship experience and gone in a different direction. They finished second in the Championship in the 2024/25 season on 100 points under Scott Parker, only to be relegated from the Premier League at the first time of asking. Rather than sticking with Parker, the club have instead appointed the lesser-known Nicky Hayen to spearhead their campaign for an immediate return to the top flight. With the exception of a brief spell at Haverfordwest County, Hayen has only coached in Belgium. The Clarets have also seen a lot of departures this summer and may need to strengthen in the remainder of the transfer window to improve their chances of promotion. ⚽ Tip Burnley to win another promotion out of the Championship at 7/2 with Betway ⚽ 💪 Other contenders Middlesbrough have unfinished business and at times looked like the best footballing side in the division last season. Putting the ball in the back of the net looked to be the Teessiders’ biggest problem. Kim Hellberg’s team were beaten by Hull in the play-off final after being reinstated following Southampton’s expulsion. Before their exclusion for spying, the Saints were probably the best team in the division in the second half of the campaign. They have been handed a four-point deduction for this season. But if Tonda Eckert’s side can pick up from where they left off, they will have no problem knocking off the deficit and getting into the promotion shake up. One note of caution is Eckert could yet receive a lengthy ban for his involvement in the whole spying scandal which will obviously hamper Southampton’s chances and betting odds. Finally, Birmingham City can’t be ignored. The Blues have made significant investments in the team in recent seasons, but they still looked a long way off the pace finishing tenth last season. If City are struggling again, they are likely to make a change in the dugout. They will go for a big name and they will also back that manager in the transfer market. 😲 Who could spring a surprise? Wrexham look like the obvious candidate, but can we even call their continued success a surprise anymore? They don’t have the same financial clout as the relegated teams or even Birmingham City, but they still continue to make strides and will be confident of finishing in the play-off places at the very least. Promotion to the Premier League would complete their fairytale rise through the leagues and be a fitting end to a story that even Hollywood would struggle to conjure up. 💡 My Championship promotion betting tips There are three markets I’m going to focus on for my Championship promotion betting tips. All offer different value and wagering options: Automatic promotion (top two finish) – West Ham West Ham are very short to win the Championship and even shorter to finish in the top two. As short as their odds are, I just don’t see how this bet doesn’t win. They have a significant advantage in the dugout with Nuno and the quality of the goalscorers they have in their squad is better than any other team in the division. If the Hammers go up via the play-offs, this bet loses. However, I just don’t see them finishing outside of the top two. ⚽ Tip West Ham for automatic promotion at 5/6 with bet365 ⚽ Championship Top Goalscorer – Valentín Castellanos Also known as Taty, Valentín Castellanos gave glimpses of the quality he possesses in the Premier League last season. The Argentine scored six goals in 18 matches following his arrival in the January transfer window. He looks too good for the Championship and I’m surprised West Ham have managed to hold onto him. West Ham skipper Jarrod Bowen is 11/2 favourite to top score. A bet on Castellanos to top score at 10/1 looks far better value. ⚽ Back Valentín Castellanos to top score in the Championship at 10/1 with Betfred ⚽ Top 8 Finish – Stoke City A team I believe could spring a surprise this season are Stoke City. They have the experienced Mark Robins in charge, who played a significant role in helping the Sky Blues regain Premier League status. Robins is the master of incremental gains. Under his leadership, Stoke were on the fringes of the play-offs for much of the early half of last season until a disappointing finish saw the Potters fall away and finish 17th. The experienced boss will be only too aware of what he needs to build on that this season and a top-eight finish looks within their reach. ⚽ Bet on Stoke City to finish in the Top 8 at 11/4 with Betway ⚽ 🗓️ Key periods of the Championship season At 46 games long, the Championship is a marathon. There are midweek matches for long spells of the season, meaning squad depth plays a huge role. Some significant stages of the season that can impact promotion are: September – The midweek fixtures begin in September, and during this crucial period there are five rounds of matches crammed in ahead of the international break that begins after the final fixture on 20 September. Festive period – A run of seven fixtures between the beginning of December and 1 January severely tests squads that are already reaching breaking point. This period of the season can shape the remainder of the campaign and cause weaker teams to fall away in the new year. Easter – The league will have already taken shape by this stage of the season, but the back-to-back matches on Good Friday and Easter Monday can often produce season-defining results at the top and the bottom of the table. The final weeks – It goes without saying that the run-in is crucial. Someone may already have a huge lead at the top of the table, but expect the battle for play-off places to really come alive in the final few games. 🤔 How to follow the latest Championship news and results Long-term Championship bets should be treated with caution at the beginning of the season. History shows us that so much can change, making it vitally important to keep on top of managerial changes and injuries to key players that can occur across what is a long season. It’s also worth keeping a close eye on comings and goings in the January transfer window. The sheer length of the Championship season means regularly reevaluating your bets is a must. What looks good now could look awful by January. And the same applies in reverse. The changes made to the play-offs mean that over half of the table are going to have an outside chance of promotion. Some obviously slimmer than others. But it makes keeping a close eye on the bottom half of the table worthwhile, especially after Christmas, when dark horses could emerge. There are value bets everywhere in this league. It’s widely regarded as the most exciting second tier in world football, which is what makes it so interesting and worth following. 🙋 Championship 2026/27 promotion FAQs For more information on the 2026/27 Championship season and betting help, check out our FAQ section below: 1. Who are the favourites to get promoted from the Championship? West Ham are the odds-on favourites to gain promotion back to the Premier League. They are followed by Wolves, Burnley and Middlesbrough. 2. What are the odds for Wrexham to be promoted? Wrexham’s odds to be promoted are currently between 9/2 and 6/1 depending on which bookmaker you use. The Hollywood-owned club are 25/1 to win the Championship and 10/1 to finish in the top two. 3. How many parachute teams have gone straight back up in the last 10 seasons? Parachute teams tend to be favourites to go back up, but it doesn’t happen as often as you might believe. Last season only Ipswich Town managed it, with Burnley, Leeds, Leicester, Fulham, Norwich, Watford and Newcastle United all having achieved it over the past ten seasons. 4. How many points are usually needed for automatic promotion? There is no fixed points total to guarantee automatic promotion, but 84-90 is widely regarded as the benchmark. Ipswich went up in second place on 84 points last season. However, Sheffield United could only manage third place with 90 points in 2024/25, with Leeds and Burnley finishing in the top two with 100 points each. About the author Craig Mahood Craig Mahood is an expert in sports betting and online casinos and has worked with the company since 2020. He joined the Betting & Gaming team at The Sun in June 2022 and works closely with the leading bookmakers and online gaming companies to provide content on all areas of sports betting and gaming. He previously worked as a Digital Sports Reporter at the Scottish Sun, covering Scottish football with particular focus on Celtic and Rangers, As well as football, he has covered horse racing, boxing, darts, the Olympics and tennis for the Sun. Remember to gamble responsibly A responsible gambler is someone who: Establishes time and monetary limits before playing Only gambles with money they can afford to lose Never chase their losses Doesn’t gamble if they’re upset, angry or depressed Gamcare – gamcare.org.uk Read our guide on responsible gambling practices. For help with a gambling problem, call the National Gambling Helpline on 0808 8020 133 or go to gamstop.co.uk to be excluded from all UK-regulated gambling websites. Most read in Betting