The 2025-26 Premier League season was one of the most gripping in recent years. Arsenal ended a long wait and reclaimed the title after 22 years, Manchester City said goodbye to Pep Guardiola with a domestic cup double, and three clubs went down to the Championship in a dramatic finish. Now, with the 2026-27 season kicking off on 21 August, the landscape looks entirely different: new managers in the biggest dugouts, record-breaking transfers, and three promoted clubs. In this article we go through everything that happened last season in plain terms, and everything awaiting fans of English football in Bahrain and across the Gulf in the new campaign.
Arsenal finished the season on 85 points, seven clear of second-placed Manchester City on 78. Mikel Arteta’s side were confirmed as champions with a round to spare, after City drew 1-1 at Bournemouth on 19 May. It is Arsenal’s fourth Premier League title, their fourteenth English league title overall, and their first since 2004. Manchester United took third place on 71 points and returned to the Champions League, while Aston Villa finished fourth and Liverpool fifth. Bournemouth and Sunderland claimed the two Europa League places, and Brighton secured a Conference League spot.
Erling Haaland scored 27 goals to win the Golden Boot for the third time in his career, finishing five ahead of Igor Thiago (22) and Antoine Semenyo (17). Bruno Fernandes broke the record for assists in a single season with 21, and was named Player of the Season. In goal, David Raya kept 19 clean sheets. Across the division as a whole, 1,045 goals were scored in 380 matches, an average of 2.75 per game, with Fulham against Manchester City (4-5) the highest-scoring fixture.
Among the other notable numbers: the biggest home win was Arsenal’s 5-0 against Leeds United in August 2025, while the biggest away win was Nottingham Forest’s 5-0 at Sunderland in April 2026. Aston Villa recorded the longest winning run with eight consecutive victories, while Bournemouth put together the longest unbeaten run at 18 matches — which explains their qualification for the Europa League.
Manchester City completed a domestic cup double: the League Cup at Arsenal’s expense in March, then the FA Cup with a 1-0 win over Chelsea at Wembley through a fine goal from Antoine Semenyo. In Europe, Arsenal reached the Champions League final in Budapest but lost to Paris Saint-Germain 4-3 on penalties after a 1-1 draw. Elsewhere, Aston Villa won the Europa League and Crystal Palace the Conference League, making it an exceptional season for English clubs on the continent.
At the other end of the table, West Ham United were relegated to the Championship for the first time since 2012 after a bitter fight with Tottenham that went to the final round, following Burnley and Wolverhampton down. Wolves endured a brutal season that included 19 consecutive matches without a win and 11 straight defeats, the worst figures of the campaign.
The headline event of summer 2026 was Pep Guardiola’s departure from Manchester City after ten eventful years. The club appointed Enzo Maresca as his successor on a contract running to June 2029 — his third spell at the Etihad, having previously worked with the youth team and then as Guardiola’s assistant. Chelsea, who finished the season ninth, brought in Xabi Alonso to lead a new project built around young players.
Liverpool have also begun a new era with Andoni Iraola, who arrives from Bournemouth, where Marco Rose has been appointed in his place. Manchester United confirmed Michael Carrick as permanent manager after he successfully returned the club to the Champions League. Fulham begin the season without a confirmed manager following Marco Silva’s departure, while promoted Coventry City are led by former Chelsea great Frank Lampard.
The summer window opened on 15 June and closes on 1 September at 23:00 UK time — 01:00 in Bahrain. These are the most significant deals so far:
• Manchester City: signed Elliot Anderson from Nottingham Forest for around €135 million, a record fee for a British player.
• Chelsea: added Morgan Rogers from Aston Villa, Giovanni Quenda and Marco Palestra, while selling Marc Cucurella to Real Madrid.
• Tottenham: spent heavily on Sandro Tonali, Matheus Fernandes, Jan Paul van Hecke, Marcos Senesi and Andrew Robertson.
• Manchester United: signed Youri Tielemans and André Santos to replace Casemiro in midfield.
• Aston Villa: covered the losses of Tielemans and Rogers by bringing in João Gomes and Johan Manzambi in a club-record deal.
• Liverpool: added defender Jérémy Jacquet and winger Victor Muñoz to the squad.
• Arsenal: have so far limited themselves to goalkeeper Illan Meslier and making Piero Hincapié’s move permanent.
Newcastle United, by contrast, face a difficult challenge after selling Anthony Gordon to Barcelona and Sandro Tonali to Tottenham, relying instead on young faces arriving from European leagues.
Coventry City return to the top flight after a long absence as Championship winners, accompanied by runners-up Ipswich Town. The third place went to Hull City, who overcame Middlesbrough in the play-off final at Wembley in front of more than 84,000 spectators.
• Community Shield: Sunday 16 August, Arsenal against Manchester City at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff.
• Opening fixture: Friday 21 August, Arsenal against Coventry City at the Emirates Stadium, 22:00 Bahrain time.
• The rest of the opening round: Hull City v Manchester United, Everton v Crystal Palace, Ipswich v Sunderland, Nottingham Forest v Leeds United, Brentford v Tottenham, Brighton v Aston Villa, Manchester City v Bournemouth, Newcastle v Liverpool, and Fulham v Chelsea.
• Final round: Sunday 30 May 2027, with all ten matches kicking off simultaneously.
• Winter window: 1 January to 1 February 2027.
• FA Cup final: Saturday 22 May 2027 at Wembley.
The season begins a full week later than usual to give players a rest period after the 2026 World Cup, and comprises 33 weekend rounds and five midweek rounds. The league has also confirmed that no two rounds will be played within less than 60 hours of each other over the Christmas and New Year period, easing the load on players.
Five English clubs are taking part in the Champions League this season: Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United, Aston Villa and Liverpool. Thanks to England’s strong European coefficient, these clubs enter directly into the expanded league phase, which begins between 8 and 10 September and runs until 27 January 2027. Bournemouth, Sunderland and Crystal Palace compete in the Europa League from 16 September, and Brighton in the Conference League from 15 October. This dual workload could play a decisive role in the title race, particularly for clubs with less depth in their squads.
Arsenal enter the season as champions with clear stability in both the coaching staff and the squad, which makes them the leading candidates to defend their position. But Manchester City, despite Guardiola’s departure, have a strong squad reinforced by the Elliot Anderson signing, and are counting on Haaland to maintain his scoring level. Liverpool begin a new phase with Iraola and his quick attacking style, and will need time to adapt despite having big names such as Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak.
Behind the big three, Manchester United look serious contenders for a top-four place after a positive season under Carrick, while Tottenham are counting on their heavy spending to restore their standing among the elite. Newcastle and Chelsea, by contrast, face significant question marks, and the relegation battle this season may be more open than usual with three promoted clubs lacking experience at this level.
In short, the 2026-27 Premier League season has every element of drama: a champion defending its title for the first time in two decades, giants beginning new eras under new managers, and record money in the transfer market. English football remains the first choice for supporters across the region, particularly with kick-off times well suited to evening viewing in Bahrain and the Gulf states. It all begins on 21 August, and the countdown has already started.
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