Championship 2026-27 season preview: West Ham, Wolves headline second-tier promotion race

After six years of steady growth in the division under Mark Robins and Frank Lampard, Coventry City secured the Championship title last season, sealing a return to the Premier League for the first time in over two decades.

Ipswich Town and surprise package Hull City joined the Sky Blues in the promised land after a 46-game campaign which provided evidence to clubs that slow and sustainable progression could eventually lead to the ultimate prize.

However, that rather-fairytale script looks in danger of being ripped up and thrown in the metaphorical bin this season, with a number of big fish dropping down from the top flight into Championship waters.

Here, Sports Mole looks at some of the teams who could be heavily involved in the second-tier promotion race this campaign.

Championship 2026-27 season preview: Summer sales unlikely to thwart West Ham

For the first time in 14 years, West Ham United are back in the Championship after an 18th-placed Premier League finish last season, eventually pipped to top-flight safety by city rivals Tottenham Hotspur.

With the Hammers suffering the drop, the 2026-27 second tier has a standout club once again, similar to the storylines of Newcastle United in 2016-17 and former English champions Leicester City in 2023-24.

Both the Magpies and the Foxes cantered to the Championship title in those seasons with over 90 points, and such a successful campaign is not beyond the reach of West Ham under Nuno Espirito Santo.

The summer sales of Crysencio Summerville, Mateus Fernandes and Callum Wilson have weakened the squad but bolstered the East Londoners' bank balance, whilst the Hammers have crucially committed Jarrod Bowen to the second-tier fight.

Championship 2026-27 season preview: Wolves ditch local boy for Portuguese promise

After guiding Wolverhampton Wanderers through the final seven months of their disastrous 2025-26 campaign, Rob Edwards was relieved of his duties in June, with the Black Country club appointing Cesar Peixoto.

The Old Gold have returned to Portuguese roots in a quest to repeat their most recent campaign in the Championship of 2017-18, when Ruben Neves headlined arguably the most talented title-winning XI in the division's history.

The throwback theme is strong at Molineux this season but there is certainly more than nostalgia in store following the arrival of striker Raul Jimenez and former England international Kieran Trippier.

Without West Ham's intrusion into the second tier, Wolves would be the obvious favourites for automatic promotion this term, in which league derby days with West Bromwich Albion will return for the first time since 2021.

Championship 2026-27 season preview: Spygate scandal deals Southampton promotion problem

Despite giving the rest of their promotion rivals a head start during the first three months of last season, Southampton raced into the Championship playoffs before one of the division's biggest-ever scandals.

After playing excellently against Arsenal and Manchester City in the spring, the Saints were the overwhelming favourites for Wembley success against Hull before Tonda Eckert's side were expelled from the promotion race due to spying on opposition training sessions.

Southampton are no longer the big dogs in the Championship promotion race following the relegations of West Ham, Wolves and even Burnley, with the South Coast club potentially a wounded animal from the stresses of last season.

The Saints have done well to secure the permanent services of Cyle Larin and Daniel Peretz after impressive loan stints, however, the future of star attacker Leo Scienza is currently unclear.

Championship 2026-27 season preview: Wrexham, Birmingham among those to benefit from playoff expansion

Bolstered by American backing, Wrexham and Birmingham City are often packaged together by Championship commentators as two sides with dreams of reaching the Premier League and making a significant impact.

The Red Dragons and Blues finished seventh and 10th respectively last season, with both clubs will surely fancying their chances of making the playoffs in 2026-27 following its expansion to six teams.

As well as those sides involved in the so-called Hollywood derby, Millwall, Middlesbrough and Norwich City will also be looking to have a say in the promotion race, as well as Derby County and Sheffield United.

Championship 2026-27 season preview: Promotion race as predicted by AI

We asked ChatGPT to predict the winners of the 2026-27 Championship season, and the AI is backing West Ham to lift the second-tier title, with Burnley given the second spot in the top two.

The computer has predicted Wolves (third), Southampton (fourth), Middlesbrough (fifth), Birmingham (sixth), Norwich (seventh) and Sheffield United (eighth) to make up remainder the top eight, with Wolves going on to beat the Saints in the playoff final at Wembley.