The new Championship campaign is upon us as another season of ups and downs awaits.
Following Coventry City, Ipswich Town and Hull City’s promotion last term, who will reach the Premier League this time around?
Wolves are one of three relegated sides returning to England’s second-tier alongside Burnley and title favourites West Ham United, who are already using the transfer window to ensure their return.
Meanwhile, Lincoln City, Cardiff City and Bolton Wanders join the division following promotion from League One earlier this year.
This season will also see the play-offs expanded to eight teams, with more than half the division harbouring realistic promotion hopes.
The fallout from Southampton’s Spygate scandal also continues to loom as the Saints begin the campaign with a four-point deduction.
Ahead of the season’s kick-off, here is where all 24 clubs stack up in talkSPORT’s predicted Championship standings.
Birmingham
Chris Davies’ side achieved a respectable 10th place finish on their Championship return last season.
The Birmingham boss has once again been backed in the transfer market with more than £10million spent already.
However, it is the free transfer arrival of former Middlesbrough captain Dael Fry which could prove the most impressive.
A serious play-off push may be required to maintain the support of fans for Davies after periods of discontent last term, though.
A change in the dugout for Blackburn this summer has done little to lift the spirits amongst supporters at Ewood Park.
Tony Mowbray is now in his second spell in charge, replacing Michael O’Neill, who steered Rovers to safety at the end of last term.
Their 20th place finish represented the second time in three seasons that the club had ended the campaign in the bottom six.
With just two new additions to the squad, a difficult season awaits for Rovers’ long-suffering supporters.
Bolton return to the Championship after a seven-year absence following their League One play-off triumph in May.
The Trotters are managed by former Stoke and Plymouth boss Steven Schumacher.
However, his squad remains limited on Championship experience despite the arrival of six new faces this summer.
Former loanees Mason Burstow and Amario Cozier-Duberry scored a combined 20 league goals last term and without them Bolton could be staring at an immediate return to the third-tier.
An exciting summer off the pitch has caused renewed optimism amongst the fanbase at Ashton Gate.
The Robins saw their play-off hopes fade last term before Gerhard Struber was sacked, with Michael Skubala now in place as his successor.
He has since brought in strikers Lorent Tolaj and Dom Ballard to bolster his attack, with the former scoring in an impressive friendly win over Newcastle United.
Repeating their sixth place finish from two seasons ago may prove a step too far, though, but another play-off push looks on the cards.
Burnley have clinched an instant return to the Premier League in each of their last two seasons at this level.
However, their is a feeling of the unknown around Turf Moor this summer under new boss Nicky Hayen.
A title winner in Belgium, Hayen will be getting his first taste of English football this season.
The departures of several key players, including Maxime Esteve, Jaidon Anthony and Axel Tuanzebe, could prove to keep the Clarets out of the top two.
Another of the newly-promoted sides, Cardiff finished second in League One last season under Brian Barry-Murphy.
As a result, they returned to the Championship at the first time of asking having finished bottom in 2024/25.
Just one top half finish in their last four seasons at this level suggests it could be another relegation battle for the Bluebirds this time around.
Barry-Murphy has put together a young side with plenty of exciting homegrown talent, though, which should have enough to survive.
Charlton avoided relegation on their return to the Championship last season.
Despite winning just one of their final nine matches, Nathan Jones’ side ended the campaign six points above the drop zone.
The Addicks have since added Championship experience to their squad in the form of Karlan Grant and Danny McNamara.
Another strong start to the campaign may be crucial to build a gap between themselves and the wrong end of the table.
The Rams only missed out on a place in the play-offs on the final day of the season in May.
Their eighth place finish marked their highest for seven years as John Eustace’s side came agonisingly close to extending their campaign.
With the new format expanding the play-offs to eight teams, Derby would have qualified if they had been introduced a year earlier.
The permanent signing of former loanee Bobby Clark, Sammie Szmodics’ return and the promising arrival of Filip Bilbija could see another tilt for the top eight on the cards this term.
Few outside of Lincoln would have predicted the Imps would win the League One title last season.
However, the club’s first season in the second-tier for 66 years is already threatening to turn sour.
Promotion-winning manager Skubala has departed, with head coaches Chris Cohen and Tom Shaw replacing him in a dual-role.
Meanwhile, heavy pre-season defeats to lower league opposition is also a cause for concern.
