Liverpool favorites to win Premier League again in U.S. odds - ESPN

For the first time since the 2015-16 season, the Premier League will begin with a club not called Manchester City atop the odds board in the United States.

Reigning champion Liverpool is the favorite to win the Premier League for the 2025-26 campaign, showing +175 odds at ESPN BET. Arsenal, the runner-up for last season, is second-favorite at +225, with Man City rounding out the top three at +350.

It's the first time during Pep Guardiola's tenure, which began ahead of the 2016-17 season, that the club has not been the favorite to win the league going into the campaign. It also marks the first time since 2011-12 that City was not one of the top two favorites, according to ESPN Research.

The lack of faith extends from the sportsbooks to the bettors themselves: Man City has just 11.2% of the bets and 7.6% of the handle in the league winner market at ESPN BET, fifth-most for each. BetMGM and DraftKings report the same fifth place ranking for the Citizens in the market with only slightly different metrics.

By contrast, one of the most well-supported clubs by bettors during the offseason has been Chelsea, which saw significant line movement as a result of action and its Club World Cup win in July. The Blues opened as long as +2500 at some sportsbooks and have since shortened to a consensus +800, with BetMGM reporting them as their largest ticket attractor at 19.3%.

«They were very impressive during the Club World Cup, including a dominant showing in the final against arguably the best team in Europe, PSG,» ESPN BET VP of sportsbook strategy & growth Adam Landeka said in an email. «They've also strengthened their squad considerably with the likes of João Pedro, Estêvão, Delap, Binoe-Gittens, Essugo and Hato during this transfer