Bayer Leverkusen’s BayArena – Source: Unsplash
The 2025/26 season looms on the horizon, with familiar powerhouses perched atop the European football mountaintop, their crowns still gleaming from last season’s success. All of the continent’s ‘Big Four’ champions have strengthened significantly this summer. Liverpool have added Florian Wirtz, Napoli secured the signature of Kevin De Bruyne, and Luis Diaz is heading to Bayern Munich. But while the champions may well be gunning up to defend their crowns, a whole host of contenders have the reigning kings firmly in their sights.
Four reigning champions move into the new campaign as the hunted. But what of the hunters closing in? Here is each champion’s biggest rival heading into the 2025/26 season.
Arsenal
Liverpool’s triumph last season came easier than many thought it might, with injuries ravaging both Manchester City and Arsenal, allowing The Reds to bulldoze through to claim their second crown in five years. Now, online betting sites make them the favorites to go back-to-back. The popular Bovada betting site has the reigning champions listed as the 2.80 frontrunners to claim the title again, but it’s the 3.25-priced second favorites Arsenal that have captured our attention.
The Gunners, tormented by three straight near-misses, are now more than narrative darlings—they’re on their way to becoming a juggernaut. Declan Rice is the anchor, logging an astounding 3500 minutes at a 90% completion clip, orchestrating from deep. Martin Ødegaard’s 2.5 key passes per match and Bukayo Saka’s 12 goals and 14 assists in an injury-hit season power Arsenal to second place in the table for the third straight year.
Now, however, the ten-point gap to champions Liverpool could shrink fast: Viktor Gyokeres joins after smashing a goal every 110 minutes in the Portuguese top flight – 97 in 102 appearances to be precise – instantly filling the gap that cost Mikel Arteta so dearly last term.
Depth has been addressed as well. Exciting winger Noni Madueke and Brentford pressing machine Christian Norgaard infuse new energy, while a squad seasoned by heartbreak exudes gritty maturity. Every metric points to an Arsenal side engineered not just to challenge—this time, to conquer. The pressure is on, but so is the belief: Is this finally the campaign where they end their 22-year drought?
Real Madrid
Last season, Barcelona asserted total authority—three domestic trophies, four head-to-head victories over rivals Real Madrid, and Hansi Flick was hailed as strategist supreme with his ultra-high line. But dynasties fracture, and Los Blancos have armed for an arms race rarely seen in La Liga’s storied annals.
Xabi Alonso’s arrival signals a seismic change. His Leverkusen side won the Bundesliga without losing a single game two years ago, employing a high line of their own that suffocated the opposition. Real attack remains fearsome, too. Kylian Mbappé, the continent’s most fearsome forward, heads into the new campaign after bagging 44 goals and winning the European Golden Boot in his debut season at the Bernabeu. Jude Bellingham brings drive through central midfield, while Vinícius Jr. remains La Liga’s uncontested dribble king.
Defensive frailties? Addressed. Trent Alexander-Arnold, who created 12 goals for Liverpool last season, offers both stability and world-class delivery from right-back. On paper, Madrid have erased last year’s sole strategic soft spot. Now, the pressure is on to deliver.
Does Barcelona hold the psychological edge? Perhaps. But in terms of raw squad value and attack potency, Los Blancos may now have the upper hand.
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Inter Milan
The Scudetto is back in Naples, and the numbers are as dazzling as the football. Napoli had the staunchest defence in Serie A last term, conceding just 27 goals in 38 games, and that led them to the title. Now, they have added Kevin De Bruyne in a bid to secure more creativity at the other end of the field, hammering home the message that the reigning champions are not planning to loosen their grip.
But Inter Milan, last year’s architects of their own downfall, aren’t fading quietly. Dominant for two-thirds of the campaign, Inter’s collapse remains an autopsy subject for fans and rivals alike. Enter new manager Cristian Chivu, inheriting a side boasting Italy’s sharpest ball-playing defender in Alessandro Bastoni, a midfield engine in Nicolo Barella, and Lautaro Martinez, their prolific captain who is quickly closing in on 200 goals for the Nerazzurri.
If Chivu can successfully recalibrate the game management and sharpen the attack, Inter have not just quality but the kind of pain-driven motivation that’s defined many turnarounds in Italian football history. On paper, Napoli are kings; on the pitch, Inter’s revolution is brewing.
Bayer Leverkusen
The Bundesliga remains Bayern Munich’s kingdom—a dynasty evidenced by 13 of the last 14 title lifts. The one outlier? Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen invincibles of 2023/24. Last season, they were game in their attempt to retain their title, but ultimately their rivals from Bavaria were too hot to handle. This year, they will be gunning to take the fight to them again.
Leverkusen’s challenge now? Resilience in the face of radical change. Xabi Alonso—gone. Florian Wirtz, their creative axis, and Jeremie Frimpong, their winged terror, have departed. Erik Ten Hag, famed for crafting Ajax’s exhilarating run to the Champions League semifinals in 2019, is now at the helm. Malik Tillman’s arrival injects fresh attacking impetus after a 15-goal, 9-assist year at PSV.
Can Ten Hag rebuild identity from broken continuity? Bayern remain the pacesetters, relentless and rich in alternatives, but Leverkusen have shattered the glass ceiling once already. Tactical discipline, young legs, and managerial bravado—if those ingredients catch fire, the Bundesliga could witness another near-miracle. Or will Bayern’s unyielding machine simply neutralize the threat before it truly emerges?
