The Premier League Table Has Never Looked This Crazy

Before the season started, the consensus prediction was straightforward: City would win it again, Liverpool would push them, and the bottom three would include the usual promoted clubs and a mid-table side having a bad year. The actual 2025/26 Premier League table, confirmed on Sunday evening, bore almost no resemblance to that prediction. What a league. What a season.

The Title: Arsenal End 22 Years

Arsenal finished on 86 points — the highest total by any team this season and three points ahead of Manchester City. They were top from Gameweek 14 and never relinquished the position for more than a single round of fixtures. Their title was not dramatic in its final moment — they confirmed it with a game to spare — but the consistency that produced it was extraordinary. A team that lost just four league games all season and conceded the fewest goals since City's dominant 2018/19 campaign.

The Top Four: Settled by the Narrowest of Margins

Behind Arsenal and City, the top-four race was decided on the final day by goal difference between Liverpool, Chelsea, and Newcastle United. All three finished on 71 points. Liverpool entered the final day needing a win and a Chelsea defeat to confirm their Champions League place. They won 4-0. Chelsea drew 2-2. Newcastle lost. Liverpool finish third by +11 goal difference over Chelsea's +9. It is the closest three-way finish to the top four in Premier League history.

The Relegation Story Nobody Saw Coming

Two of the three relegated clubs were not being discussed as relegation candidates in March. The season-ending collapses were rapid and brutal. West Ham's decision to sack their manager in April — replacing him with a caretaker who lost five of his seven games — was the kind of boardroom panic that relegation battles do not forgive. They go down with 32 points, which in any previous season of the last decade would have been enough to survive. This was not that season.

The Wildcard: Nottingham Forest's Top-Half Finish

The pleasant surprise of the season was Nottingham Forest finishing 8th — their highest final position in the Premier League era. A young manager, a cohesive playing style, and a fanbase whose passion and loyalty throughout the season was among the best in the division. Football sometimes rewards the right things. Forest this season is evidence of that.