The 2025-26 Premier League season is done and dusted — so what better time than right now to predict who will win it next time?Arsenal were crowned champions, overcoming Manchester City and improving on three consecutive seasons finishing as runners-up, and Mikel Arteta’s team look like they’ll enter 2026-27 with momentum and stability in their favour.City are coming to terms with the new era following the departure of the iconic Pep Guardiola, and they hope to replace him with Enzo Maresca, while Manchester United will continue under the stewardship of Michael Carrick, who succeeded Ruben Amorim at Old Trafford and oversaw their turnaround in the second half of the season.Liverpool were off the pace following their title win in the 2024-25 season and finished fifth, but still qualified for the Champions League, while Chelsea, who will also start next season under a new head coach in Xabi Alonso, ended up 10th in the table, missing out on Europe entirely.The men’s World Cup in the U.S., Canada and Mexico is about to take centre stage and there will doubtlessly be no end of drama in the summer transfer window — but we’ve thrown caution to the wind and asked 10 of our writers to boldly pick their 2026-27 champions anyway.Oliver Kay: ArsenalGenerally speaking, when a team has just won the league, it feels natural and sensible to predict they’ll go back-to-back even though only history tells us it is far easier than done. There is a risk that Arsenal suffer a drop, having finally reached the summit after an intense four-year slog, but they strike me as a team whose base level, under Arteta, will remain higher than everyone else’s.I’ve put Manchester City second, which reflects continuity rather than a dramatic upturn or downturn in the post-Guardiola era. Chelsea third? Yeah, I surprised myself with that one. It’s based on a) the Xabi Alonso appointment b) no European distraction c) the fact that big players such as Levi Colwill, Cole Palmer and Joao Pedro will get the summer off and d) the assumption that they have a rethink and actually address their various weaknesses by signing two or three grown-ups this summer. The third one is the biggest question mark.And just as Chelsea could benefit from no European fixtures, the demands of Champions League football might complicate things a little for Manchester United. Similarly, I suspect Bournemouth and others who have defied expectations this season might find life harder with European football to contend with. As for Liverpool, it all just looks and sounds rather messy at the moment. A big, challenging summer lies ahead at Anfield.Top five: Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea, Manchester United, Aston VillaDaniel Taylor: ArsenalI’m going for back-to-back Arsenal titles and I just hope that No 2 is more watchable than No 1 because, let’s be honest, it hasn’t been a great deal of fun this season.That’s a shame, bearing in mind the newly crowned champions have players with the skill level of Bukayo Saka, Eberechi Eze and Martin Odegaard. They know how to win games, though, and finishing top this season should rid them of the ‘second again’ anxiety that came to the surface, for example, when they lost at home to Bournemouth.Manchester City should be their strongest challengers again, even if I’ve yet to speak to any supporter of the club who feels encouraged about the thought of Enzo Maresca replacing Pep Guardiola.As for the chasing pack, I’m not sure the modern-day Manchester United have the mentality to win titles — Roy Keane was spot on about the embarrassing Bruno Fernandes assists claptrap — and I can’t realistically see Aston Villa, Chelsea, Liverpool or anybody else gaining an extra 20 to 25 points to be credible title challengers.Top five: Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United, Chelsea, Aston VillaPremier League champions Arsenal look to have a stable base for further success (Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)Dan Kilpatrick: ArsenalWith Guardiola having departed, question marks over the future of Arne Slot and doubts about Michael Carrick at the highest level, this feels like an easy call — even so far out.There are just too many uncertainties about every other possible title contender while Arsenal have the potential to get even better after a taste of silverware this season.If Arsenal sell well this summer — and they have lots of sellable assets, including Ethan Nwaneri and Myles Lewis-Skelly — and continue to be smart and ambitious in the market, they might have an even deeper squad next season.Manchester City are facing a period of transition, while it will surely be too soon for Alonso’s Chelsea to mount a serious title push.I suspect Carrick will prove a few people wrong at United but I can’t see them having the consistency to go the distance, while Aston Villa will be weakened if Morgan Rogers is sold.I can see Liverpool having a tough campaign as they transition away from their ageing stars.Top five: Arsenal, Manchester United, Chelsea, Man City, Aston VillaSarah Shephard: ArsenalIt goes against my every natural instinct to be optimistic about Arsenal but in this case, logic is telling me the current champions are in the best shape to do it again next season.They have consistency in the form of Arteta, a young squad whose belief will have been boosted exponentially by the success of this season, and maybe even the drive of still wanting to prove the doubters wrong after critics have labelled them “undeserving” of the league title.Look at the teams around them and almost all are in some kind of transition period (or about to be), when it comes to the team’s manager. While that makes it harder than usual to make any predictions about next season, it also leaves Arsenal in a position of strength, given the current stability throughout the club.As for the rest of the top five, I can see Manchester City going close again, regardless of Guardiola’s departure, based on how they strengthened as the season progressed. After that, I can see Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool completing the line-up, in that order.Top five: Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United, Chelsea, LiverpoolMatt Slater: ArsenalI am not saying Enzo Maresca is a bad coach. I’m just saying he is not the best coach.History suggests that losing a leader like Guardiola will have an impact. However, you will notice I am not brave enough to predict Manchester City dropping any lower than second (a points deduction would do the trick, but your guess is as good as mine on that front).I was tempted to put Manchester United above them but Carrick and Co. will have midweek football to deal with next season, so that may cost them a few points. Liverpool cannot be this bad again, surely? Villa to pip Chelsea to the Premier League’s bonus Champions League slot.Top five: Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United, Liverpool, Aston VillaMark Critchley: ArsenalIf Guardiola had decided to see out the final year of his Manchester City contract, I’d be backing him to build on a transitional year at the Etihad to win his seventh Premier League title.But he’s not, and with a set-piece-heavy tactical landscape set until the rules change or workarounds are discovered, it is hard for me to look past Arsenal retaining their crown.Alonso is the best of the new managerial appointments and a season outside of Europe’s top competitions will be an advantage for what is still a talented Chelsea squad.United benefited from free midweeks themselves this year and the transition to playing every three days will be more challenging for Carrick. Qualifying for the Champions League again would represent steady progress, though.Liverpool’s rebuild needs rebuilding and it is only natural to question whether Slot is the man to lead it, but you still expect they’ll have enough quality within their squad to at least scrape fifth.Top five: Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea, Manchester United, LiverpoolCerys Jones: ArsenalBased on Arsenal having the greatest stability of both manager and squad, my instinct is that they will retain their title. Having addressed the major questions over squad depth and established a robust and high-quality core of players, the main obstacle was psychological in my eyes, and they have now overcome that.Whether they have the succession plan in place to build this winning team into a longer-term dynasty is a question I’m much less convinced of.I agonised over the order of the two Manchester clubs. United’s success will depend enormously on how well they recruit to replace Casemiro and account for the double burden of European and domestic football, which City are much better placed to cope with. But my gut tells me the disruption of the World Cup is going to see City start the season slowly and the impact of Guardiola and key leaders in John Stones and Bernardo Silva leaving could be huge.Villa overcame enormous tests of character and depth this year and I back them to retain their Champions League place. Meanwhile, one year covering Chelsea has taught me that trying to predict anything about them is folly, but Alonso is an excellent coach and though they have not shown it at times, there is more than enough talent in their squad to reach the top five.I would love Bournemouth to continue their upward trajectory but I think the jump to double gameweeks and the loss of Andoni Iraola will present a setback.As for Liverpool: the fanbase, dressing room and head coach look to not be on the same page, and I think there is a good chance things get worse for them before they get better.Top five: Arsenal, Manchester United, Manchester City, Aston Villa, ChelseaManchester United improved in the second half of the season – but have work to do in the transfer market (Molly Darlington/Getty Images)Greg O’Keeffe: Arsenal“There will be no standing still” — the message from Stan and Josh Kroenke that should sound warning bells for the rest of the Premier League.While Arsenal have not always been fully convincing title-winners, they now wear that crown and the table doesn’t lie.Their owners do sound minded to rest on any laurels, perhaps aware their rivals, Manchester City, Liverpool and Chelsea, may all be going through transitional adjustment periods.If Andrea Berta and Arteta can attract even more quality depth to their squad this summer (they will be a compelling option to many a World Cup breakout star), they will have to be considered favourites to do it all over again in 2026-27.Top five: Arsenal, Manchester City, Aston Villa, Chelsea, Liverpool.Rob Tanner: Manchester CityThe fact that the title race went to the wire this season, and with a new winner after the supremacy of Manchester City in recent years, has been refreshing.Give or take a couple of seasons, City’s grip on the English title over the past decade has been cast-iron (they won six of the last eight before this season) and I think their dominance will resume.The only potential spanners in the works are Pep Guardiola walking away and whether the Premier League finally brings the 115 charges the club faces for alleged financial irregularities to the fore.But they have the financial power to buy whoever they want to go straight into the first team and, having watched a lot of academy football this season, they have been hoovering up top aspiring talent too. They have just won the FA Youth Cup again.Top five: Manchester City, Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester United, ChelseaPep Guardiola departs Manchester City as one of the Premier League’s most influential coaches (Alex Livesey/Getty Images)Max Mathews: ArsenalArsenal have the depth of squad, club-wide stability and winning aura to take the title again.Retaining the championship is arguably harder than winning it, in terms of re-climbing the same mountain once you’ve already reached the summit of after striving for it for five years.If Guardiola had stayed at Manchester City, that would likely have swung their way, but Enzo Maresca will likely struggle to replicate his impact.Liverpool surely cannot be as bad as they were this season, even if Slot remains in post, and will improve with Jeremy Jacquet and a new central midfielder.Chelsea under Alonso will start brightly before inevitably fading unless they solve their goalkeeping issue, while Newcastle will bounce back with fresh impetus under Eddie Howe.Manchester United and Aston Villa may well struggle with the additional demands of Champions League football, with Bournemouth, Brentford and Brighton not far behind.Top five: Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea, Liverpool, Newcastle