Insights into the world of sports through betting
Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium - Source: Unsplash
Arsenal have come close to the Premier League title in each of the last three seasons, finishing as runners-up on each occasion. Manchester City denied them in both 2023 and 2024, while a rampant Liverpool romped to glory in 2025. However, as we tick into 2026 and into the second half of the ongoing English top-flight campaign, it feels as though The Gunners will never have a better chance of ending their 22-year drought.
Matchday 20 saw Mikel Arteta's men open up their biggest lead to date at the division's summit. Their Declan Rice-inspired 3-2 victory away at Bournemouth, coupled with Manchester City's second straight draw, this time a 1-1 stalemate at home to Chelsea, has pushed Arsenal six points clear. As a result, online betting sites have duly responded, installing the Gunners as the overwhelming favorites to win the Premier League title in May.
The latest odds make the current table toppers a short-priced 1.25 frontrunner to claim the crown, and the popular parlay calculator at Thunderpick shows just how far clear Arsenal are of the chasing pack... at least in betting terms. While a £100 bet on the Gunners would pay just £25 in winnings, the same wager on their closest challengers would yield a mighty £300.
So, despite what both the bookies and the current standings indicate, can anyone stop Mikel Arteta's side from reaching the promised land? Here are the current contenders.
Heading into the season, many considered Manchester City as a distant third favourite behind reigning champions Liverpool and perennial runners-up Arsenal. That was certainly strange territory for Pep Guardiola's once all-conquering side.
The iconic Spanish manager has worked hard to rebuild the Blues over the last 12 months, bringing in the likes of Rayan Cherki, Tijjani Reijnders, and Gianluigi Donnarumma in the summer, as well as Omar Marmoush and Nico González last January. There were initial teething problems as City won just two of their opening five games of the campaign, with defeats following in October and November on the road against Aston Villa and Newcastle.
But Guardiola's side would rally in the wake of that 2-1 reverse at St. James' Park, reeling off six straight wins to charge back into the title race and briefly claim top spot in the Premier League table. However, back-to-back draws and a slew of injury concerns have left the Blues reeling.
A goalless draw at Sunderland wasn't seen as a catastrophe, but the recent stalemate with Chelsea certainly was. The Londoners headed to the Etihad managerless and in miserable form, but a last-gasp equalizer from Enzo Fernandez secured a scarcely believable 1-1 draw. Add to that the fact that two of City's starting defenders, namely Ruben Dias and Joško Gvardiol, both suffered potentially lengthy injuries, and it's clear that there is now plenty of cause for concern.
City are now in second place, six points adrift of Arsenal and a 3/1 shot to reel in the Gunners. They have twice achieved that before, overturning points deficits in both 2022/23 and 2023/24 to pip the North Londoners to the title. Could they do the same again this term? Time will tell.
Aston Villa's resurgence over the last three years under manager Unai Emery beggars belief. The Spanish boss has led the Villans from relegation contenders to European mainstays, finishing in the top seven in each of the last three campaigns, including a fourth-place finish in 2023/24, securing UEFA Champions League football. But are they genuine title challengers? One look at the table suggests that they are.
Villa currently find themselves in third place, rallying from a miserable start in which they had to wait until matchday four for their first goal of the season and matchday six for their first win. They have won 12 of their 14 games since then, however, including knocking off Arsenal at Villa Park on December 6th. The Gunners did get their revenge, though, thumping Emery's men 4-1 on December 30th and bringing them crashing down to earth.
Still, the Villans have bounced back. They beat Nottingham Forest last time out, a result that took them level on points with second-placed Manchester City. 28/1 odds show that they are certainly a wildcard, but under Emery, anything seems possible.
Heading into the campaign, Liverpool were the overwhelming favorites to retain the title they won so impressively last term, with the signings of Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz only strengthening their position at the top of the betting charts. Five straight wins to begin the season, each more dramatic than the last, indicated that the Reds were rightly the frontrunners. But their stunning collapse throughout the autumn, in which they lost six games in seven, has left them a million miles adrift of runaway leaders Arsenal.
But as Liverpool midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai recently said, the title isn't won in January. There is indeed still a long way to go, and the Reds remain undefeated since November 22nd, despite a flurry of draws. 14 points may well seem like too much of a mountain to overturn, but the Anfield faithful remain optimistic, despite their lengthy 100/1 odds.
