La Liga 2026-27 season preview: Predicted standings, top scorer, title favourites, relegation battle

Real Madrid will be bidding to reclaim the La Liga title from Barcelona in the 2026-27 campaign, and it is shaping up to be a fascinating season in Spain's top flight.

The top-four race will again be fierce, with Atletico Madrid, Real Betis and Villarreal all in the argument, at least ahead of the campaign, while newly-promoted Deportivo La Coruna, Malaga and Racing de Santander will be aiming to avoid immediate relegation.

Here, Sports Mole provides a comprehensive preview of the 2026-27 campaign, including predicted standings, top goalscorer, title favourites and the relegation battle.

La Liga 2026-27 season preview: Real Madrid, Barcelona will again be title favourites

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It would be a huge surprise if the La Liga title was won by a team other than Real Madrid or Barcelona; Atletico would be the closest challengers in the eyes of many, but it is difficult to imagine Diego Simeone's side finishing at the top of the pile in the coming season.

Barcelona have boosted their squad with the signings of Anthony Gordon and Karim Adeyemi, while the Catalan outfit are now the heavy favourites to sign Rodri from Manchester City; Robert Lewandowski has left, but Hansi Flick's side have a certain Lamine Yamal in their ranks, and there is expected to be more transfer business before the end of the window.

Real Madrid, meanwhile, have added Marc Cucurella, Ibrahima Konate, Bernardo Silva, Denzel Dumfries, Carlos Espi and Yan Diomande to their squad.

Los Blancos finished eight points off Barcelona last season, but there were so many issues at Bernabeu, which the return of head coach Jose Mourinho should solve - at least that is the plan; Jude Bellingham was not firing on all cylinders last season but off the back of an excellent 2026 World Cup, he should be in a good place.

News of Vinicius Junior's contract renewal is also huge for Real Madrid, while Diomande will boost an attack that also includes a certain Kylian Mbappe.

It could be one of the closest title races in history in 2026-27, with Barcelona and Real Madrid both having excellent chances of winning the championship, but the latter's transfer business has thus far been stronger, and that could see them finish at the top of the pile.

La Liga 2026-27 season preview: Mbappe, Yamal among the candidates for the top scorer award

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Unsurprisingly, Mbappe will start the season as the firm favourite to finish as the top goalscorer once again, having posted incredible numbers since his arrival at Bernabeu.

There have been question marks surrounding whether Mbappe has improved Real Madrid as a team since his arrival, but the forward has been La Liga's top goalscorer in each of his two campaigns since arriving in the Spanish capital.

Mbappe struck 31 league goals in 2024-25 and then 25 last term, and he will be the red-hot favourite to make it three in a row in the coming campaign.

Yamal managed 16 La Liga goals last term and could also be in the argument, but the runner-up from last season, Vedat Muriqi, has moved on to Fenerbahce; Mallorca were actually relegated in 2025-26, making his numbers even more incredible.

Osasuna's Ante Budimir is a reliable goalscorer at this level and is an outsider, while Real Madrid's Vinicius, Barcelona's Raphinha and Ferran Torres, and Atletico Madrid's Julian Alvarez could also potentially be in the argument.

Real Sociedad's Mikel Oyarzabal had an excellent World Cup for Spain, meanwhile, and he is also worth a mention when it comes to this particular category, but it is incredibly difficult to look past Mbappe providing that the Frenchman stays fit for the whole season.

La Liga 2026-27 season preview: Deportivo, Malaga, Racing Santander facing immediate returns to Segunda Division

© Imago

The race to avoid relegation from La Liga last season was a fascinating one, and there were incredibly only five points separating Girona in 19th from Real Sociedad in 10th.

Osasuna and Levante, who finished 17th and 16th respectively, finished level on points (42) with Mallorca in 18th, and it could be a similar story this season.

Racing Santander won the 2025-26 Segunda Division to secure an automatic return to La Liga, while Deportivo were second, five points off the summit.

Malaga came through the playoffs, and all three will be battling to remain in La Liga, but it could be tough for the trio considering the step up in quality that will occur.

Alongside Osasuna and Levante, Alaves and Elche could be in for testing campaigns, while even the likes of Espanyol, Sevilla and Rayo Vallecano cannot be ruled out of the battle given the unpredictable nature of the division.

In Chupe, Malaga have a forward who scored an impressive 24 goals in the Segunda Division last season, while Racing Santander's Andres Martin was third in the list with 23.

The step up into La Liga is a huge one, though, and there could be automatic returns to the second tier for the three promoted clubs in 2026-27.

La Liga 2026-27 season preview: Real Betis could battle Atletico for third

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Real Betis are a team to watch this season; Manuel Pellegrini's side finished fifth in La Liga last season, and they recently showed their class with an excellent pre-season win over Premier League champions Arsenal.

Third cannot be ruled out for Real Betis this term, but Atletico will naturally be the favourites for that position; Villarreal are another team to watch, having actually claimed third last term, three points ahead of fourth-placed Atletico and 12 clear of Real Betis in fifth.

As it stands, the top four spots will be Champions League ones, with fifth securing qualification for the league phase of the Europa League; sixth is a Conference League playoff round spot, but that is subject to change as the campaign develops.

Real Madrid and Barcelona could finish first and second respectively, with Atletico third and Real Betis in fourth; Villarreal and Athletic Bilbao may then complete the European spots.

Celta Vigo cannot be ruled out, while Real Sociedad should also improve after finishing 10th last term, but they will again be relying on Oyarzabal to find the back of the net.

La Liga 2026-27 season preview: Predicted standings