Forest fairytale, Bournemouth miracle? Every PL team in the European run-in

With the season approaching its business end, a lot of the attention will focus on the race to secure Champions League football. While the title race and relegation battle seem all but over, the makeup of England’s European contingent looks set to go to the wire.

As it stands, it is not set in stone how many English teams will be involved in next season’s Champions League, partly owing to the amount of Premier League teams still left in this year’s European competitions.

That can make the picture for the Champions League spots a rather murky one, but all will become clear in the end. Here, we take a look at the race and which clubs stand a chance of performing on the continental stage in 2025/26.

How many teams will England have in the 2025/26 Champions League?

At present, England will almost certainly have five teams in next season’s Champions League. In addition to the standard four places, English clubs’ performances this year mean that, bar a ridiculous set of results, they will earn a fifth slot via one of UEFA’s European Performance Spots.

With only two out of seven English clubs out at this late stage, they have the best coefficient value for the season, ahead of Spain, who are near-certainties for the other slot, as well as Italy and Germany.

There is a scenario where they have as many as seven in the Champions League alone, though that would rely on some bizarre combinations, one of which includes Spurs winning a trophy.

Joking aside, any team still alive at the quarter-final stage is in with a shout, and with competition winners qualifying automatically, league position would not be a factor. Therefore, Tottenham, Manchester United and Aston Villa could win a European trophy and nab a place regardless of their final league position.

Who will qualify for the 2025/26 Champions League?

For the purpose of this article, let’s assume there will be five Champions League qualifiers, as expected.

With such an open race for all three European competitions, there are only a few certainties with nine games remaining. There will be several Premier League sides targeting a top-five finish, but who is in the best position to claim a Champions League spot?

Below is the current state of play, including every remaining fixture for the teams in contention.

Liverpool (1st, 70 points, +42 GD)

The most likely outcome for this season is Liverpool

winning the league, and therefore claiming another Champions League berth for 2025/26.

The Reds were knocked out in the round of 16 this year despite topping the all-new league phase, though with a Premier League title win under their belts, they will surely already be making plans for a deeper run next term.

Only a disaster will plunge Arne Slot’s side out of title contention, even with rivals Arsenal still to visit Anfield.

Arsenal (2nd, 58 points, +29 GD)

Arsenal may be left to settle for second place once again this term, though their place in next season’s Champions League looks relatively safe.

As it stands, they have an 11-point gap between them and sixth-placed Newcastle United, and Mikel Arteta’s side arguably have a kinder run-in than others. It would be a shock if they require a result of any kind heading into the final day, when they visit a doomed Southampton.

Nottingham Forest (3rd, 54 points, +14 GD)

Only Nottingham Forest’s inexperience throws their Champions League credentials into doubt, as Nuno Espirito Santo’s side remain on the verge of completing a historic campaign.

Six clear of fourth-placed Chelsea as we approach April, Forest are in what would be a pretty strong position for a seasoned European contender.

But off the back of escaping relegation last year, Forest have confounded critics all season, and will need to dig deep to return to Europe’s premier club competition next term.

Still navigating an FA Cup run, the Reds have a decent stretch of fixtures to end the season – though all eyes could well be on the City Ground on the final day, when they take on a Chelsea side potentially needing to fulfil European ambitions of their own.

Chelsea (4th, 49 points, +16 GD)

Title contenders earlier in the year, Enzo Maresca’s Chelsea are now set to settle for a Champions League place at best.

Their place in that competition is far from certain, though, as the Blues are now just six points ahead of 10th-placed Bournemouth. Four of their last nine opponents this term are top-half rivals and must also face Spurs and Man Utd before the season’s end.

Chelsea may yet get Europa League football back at Stamford Bridge as they seek Conference League glory later this year.

Man City (5th, 48 points, +15 GD)

Manchester City’s title defence is going down with a whimper, so much so that it is still unclear which European competition they will qualify for next term.

As it stands, they are poised to take England’s fifth Champions League spot, though a positive end to the year could still see them qualify more comfortably.

But City have shown their vulnerabilities all too often this term, and with the Citizens in the midst of a tight race for European football, they could just as easily plummet further down the table if they are unable to see of the challenges of Newcastle et al.

Newcastle United (6th, 47 points, +9 GD)

Newcastle United are guaranteed some form of European football thanks to their EFL Cup triumph in March, though they will be hoping to return to the Champions League having got a taste for it last season.

While they currently trail the likes of Manchester City and Chelsea, they have played a game fewer than all their main rivals, meaning a top-four place is in their hands.

However, with trips to Aston Villa, Brighton and Arsenal still to come, they will have to pull out all the stops to secure Champions League football for 2025/26.

Brighton & Hove Albion (7th, 47 points, +6 GD)

Having been left in 10th place after an eighth Premier League game without a win in early January, Brighton hardly looked like making a success of Fabian Hurzeler’s first campaign in charge.

But a chastening 7-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest appeared to transform the Seagulls’ season, with the south coast side winning six of their following seven in all competitions, with their only failure coming in a draw against reigning champions City.

Suddenly, European football is on the cards once again, and a route via the FA Cup is also still possible.

Fulham (8th, 45 points, +5 GD)

Fulham have been consistently impressive all year, and stand a chance of a top-seven finish which would mark a first return to Europe since the 2011/12 season.

Also still in the FA Cup, there are a number of routes available to Marco Silva’s side, though the cup may be their most realistic given that they must still face four of the current top five in the run-in, including Manchester City on the final day.

A Champions League slot therefore looks like a longshot, but finishing 8th could yet mean a European place if an English club takes home one of the European trophies.

Aston Villa (9th, 45 points, -4 GD)

Aston Villa have had a year to remember, with the Villans into the Champions League quarter-finals having been a Championship outfit just six years ago.

However, the destiny of next season is still undetermined, as they have been unable to maintain the levels that saw them finish fourth last term.

That said, a solid run in the league should secure European football of some kind, while the only way they can guarantee Champions League football at this stage is going all the way – which likely means defeating PSG, Real Madrid and Barcelona.

Unfortunately, cup opponents Preston North End and Southampton are the only two sides they will face that are not involved in the race for Europe, meaning every single clash is crucial as far as their European hopes are concerned.

Bournemouth (10th, 44 points, +12 GD)

Perhaps the biggest outsiders for Champions League football in the Premier League are Bournemouth, who had been floating around fifth place until losing three of their last four top-flight games.

However, Andoni Iraola’s Cherries are still well within a shout of securing a European place, with England’s likely fifth Champions League slot providing a slim chance of the ultimate prize.

Trips to Arsenal and Man City look ominous, but they have upset the big boys before this season, and a strong run-in will almost certainly be enough for a first European campaign in their history.

Teams with an outside chance

Manchester United (Europa League quarter-finalists)

While the route to the Champions League via the league is closed off to the vastly underperforming Red Devils, Manchester United could yet be mixing it with the big boys again next year by taking home the Europa League.

Ruben Amorim’s side are into the last eight after seeing off Real Sociedad in the last 16, and a tie with Lyon has them just five matches away from another European trophy.

Sitting 11 points off fifth, winning the Europa League is the only way to salvage what has been a tumultuous campaign.

Tottenham Hotspur (Europa League quarter-finalists)

Also in desperate need for success are Tottenham Hotspur, who may yet turn a terrible domestic campaign into one of continental glory with victory in the Europa League.

The Lilywhites are set to face Eintracht Frankfurt for a place in the last four, and with Ange Postecoglou’s side languishing in 14th place at the time of writing, a Europa League triumph is the only way into the Champions League next season.

Of course, it would also mark a first major trophy in nearly two decades.