Championship 2026-27 preview: the contenders, hopefuls and strugglers

Contenders

The relegated teams, naturally, will be the favourites to go back up but two have endured confusing summers. Jarrod Bowen committing to West Ham was a bonus and the quality available to Nuno Espírito Santo should make bouncing back straightforward for the calmest of the clubs to have dropped down. They brought in huge fees for Crysencio Summerville and Mateus Fernandes but incoming activity has been pedestrian, which is the only minor cause of concern.

Wolves sacked Rob Edwards out of nowhere and appointed César Peixoto for reasons few could comprehend, because why would you want a head coach with experience of success in a league when you can bring in one who has never been involved with English football? This overshadowed the positive work done on transfers, acquiring Kieran Trippier and Raúl Jiménez, two who will lead the charge upwards.

At Turf Moor the search for a new man in the dugout was less dramatic, more of a slowburner, as Nicky Hayen belatedly took the Burnley job. He will have to cope with a squad shorn of talent after Jaidon Anthony, Maxime Estève and Florentino Luís left with the incomings creating little excitement.

Southampton may think they should not be in this league but they have only themselves to blame and will face hostility wherever they go after spygate. Tonda Eckert has kept his job but will need to justify that faith by pushing for a top-two spot. The German’s unwitting victims, Middlesbrough, will be hurting from losing to Hull at Wembley but recuperation has been aided by investment in Jeremy Sarmiento, Radek Vitek and Will Lankshear.

After surprising many with a push for automatic promotion, Millwall knew this was the time to build on success, making clever signings of young players to aid the long-term strategy, with the £5m capture of the Belgian midfielder Mathis Servais the most intriguing. Wrexham’s ownership and financial backing means they will always be talked about and having missed out on the playoffs in their first season back at this level, they will want more.

Things were very quiet in north Wales until signing Anthony Patterson for a club record fee from Sunderland.

Hopefuls

Building on finishing 10th is a difficult task for Birmingham, who have looked far and wide for reinforcements. Their potential to threaten the top six will depend on fixing poor away form and whether August Priske can become as prolific as many believe he can, while a poor start could put Chris Davies under pressure. Roy Hodgson ended the season with Bristol City but it is Michael Skubala’s job to take them forward, hoping to continue his personal momentum after success at Lincoln. Money has not been a problem with a combined £8m spent on Lorent Tolaj and Dom Ballard, but the free arrival of Jed Wallace may be the best bit of business.

There will, undoubtedly, be a team from this category that ruffle some feathers on the way to finishing in the expanded playoffs system, bringing an additional layer of hope to the peloton. After the shambles of last summer and the start of the campaign, maybe Sheffield United have learned from their mistakes. No dreadful signings or appointments have been made, and with Tom Cannon and Patrick Bamford they possess firepower.

Stoke have thrown the cash around, most notably £10m on Ethan Galbraith from Swansea, in hope the team does not tail off after promising beginnings again but finding a consistent scorer could be a problem. Preston never give the impression of going up but turning Alfie Devine’s loan permanent implies a degree of ambition even if another mid-table finish seems more likely than a trip to the Promised Land. Another eclectic window makes Swansea a fun team to follow but whether Elijah Just or Joseph Opoku can turn them side from middle-of-the-road to challengers remains to be seen.

John Eustace has instilled stability at Derby, and getting Bobby Clark and Sammie Szmodics back was shrewd, but they do not feel much more than mid-table. Building on the second half of last season under Philippe Clement is the plan for Norwich, who possess plenty of potential in Jacob Wright, Mohamed Touré and Jovon Makama but it may be a year too soon for them to lead the team upwards.

The constant churn of managers and players at Watford will catch up with them at some point. They were poor last season and finding reasons why things may have changed is difficult with Alessio Dionisi the latest tasked with the impossible job. It is evident that Portsmouth want to buy and develop players under the age of 23. It leaves John Mousinho a rewarding but complex job of balancing results and individual progress. Lincoln are great innovators, which partly explains why they have made it to the Championship. The loss of Skubala was a dent in the ambition, leaving Chris Cohen and Tom Shaw to team up as joint-head coaches, which will add an additional layer of interest.

Strugglers

The good news is that Tony Mowbray is back at Ewood Park with the aim of avoiding another Blackburn relegation battle. The bad news is that it is unclear whether he has the tools at his disposal. James Morrison is no longer a caretaker but has to oversee a young and thin West Brom squad, which does not bode well. Charlton survived somewhat comfortably in the end and they have attracted Karlan Grant back and signed the skilful Millenic Alli but they still feel like a side destined for a long 10 months. The second half of the season was forgettable for QPR, so if there is a team looking over their shoulder, they play at Loftus Road.

The promoted Bolton need Sam Dalby to prove he can take the step up, otherwise goals may be difficult to find. Cardiff, meanwhile, will be reliant on those who brought them up after a quiet summer.

Ones to watch

Mateus Mané, Wolves, 18 The Portuguese forward has already shown himself to be capable of playing in the Premier League, so may find life in the Championship child’s play. A dynamic midfield eager to attack and score goals, Wolves have done well to keep hold of him.

Micah Mbick, Charlton, 19 A fine loan spell at League Two Colchester has given the striker grounding but he will be looking to kick on and shine higher up the pyramid. He has all the physical attributes – strong, fast, good in the air – but will want to hone his technical skills.

Luke Brooke-Smith, Portsmouth, 18 Brought in from Wellington Phoenix, the winger only turned 18 in June but already has an international cap for New Zealand. A lack of options gave him an opportunity in the Carabao Cup where he soon proved his capabilities to show he already has the quality to be an asset for Pompey.

Reporting from The Guardian contributed to this story.