Well, 2026 is shaping up to be quite the year already, and we’re barely into the second week.
Not only has the UK seen ‘proper snow’ but what is more fascinating, is that Arsenal are currently top of the English Premier League (EPL).
What’s even more shocking is the fact that, as of early Jan 2026, they are currently bookies favourites to win the league this season (odds taken from bet365).
The reason why this is shocking is not like when Leicester City won the title back in 2016.
Back then, Leicester were huge underdogs, and at the start of the season, the odds of them winning were literally 5,000/1 in some cases.
Arsenal, however, are not underdogs and certainly haven’t been underdogs for many generations now.
Just look at the Invincibles back in 2003 – 2004 under Wenger and what he achieved when they were literally unbeaten.
Since Arteta took charge in 2019, The Gunners have enjoyed moderate success, but always seem to come up short when it matters the most. Could this finally be the year that The Gunners secure the EPL title once more?
Bottle Jobs?
Ever since Mikel Arteta took charge of Arsenal in late 2019, the team have been consistently looking stronger with each passing season.
The Spaniard has enjoyed moderate success with the club, securing them an FA Cup, two Community Shields, and strengthening the squad immensely, bringing in names such as Trossard and Saka.
Not only that, but he has also secured 2nd place finishes in the table for three consecutive seasons.
Now, to most, finishing 2nd in the EPL, when you’re up against the likes of Manchester City, Chelsea, and Liverpool is quite the achievement.
To fans on social media however, as well as certain bookmakers (yes, we’re looking at you, Paddy!) they became laughing stocks and were branded ‘bottle jobs.’
For a number of seasons now, The Gunners have started off strong and have opened up an impressive lead at the top of the table.
As the months progressed however, and the title finally looked to be within reach, they began dropping easy points and failing to capitalise when their rivals (City or Liverpool) also dropped points.
Usually, the wheels would begin to fall off around Christmas, and by March, their lead would be gone. By May, it would all be over, and they’d once again have to settle for 2nd place.
Could the 2025/26 season finally be the one? As of this writing (Jan 9th) Arsenal sit top of the table with a 6-point lead over Man City.
They did, however, fail to widen the gap to 8 points after drawing 0-0 with Liverpool on Thursday night, in one of the season’s most boring games.
Despite this, bookies still have them as favourites this year.
Could Arsenal Do the Double?
Under Mikel Arteta, The Gunners are looking like strong title contenders. In fact, there’s a good chance that they could win multiple trophies this season, and a quadruple is not out of the question, especially after reaching the semi-finals of the Champion’s League last season.
Bet365 are currently giving odds of 66/1 for Arsenal to win the EPL, the FA Cup, the League Cup, and the Champion’s League.
Because the squad has looked so strong, and because their two fiercest rivals have not been firing on all cylinders for the last couple of years, there is a growing optimism that Arsenal could not only secure the EPL title, but they could even secure a double.
Now, like we mentioned, a quadruple is not out of the question, nor is a treble (obviously) but realistically, if Arsenal are going to secure multiple trophies this year, a double is the most likely.
BetVictor are currently offering 9/2 odds for Arsenal to win the EPL and the Champions League. If they could pull this off, this would be their first double in more than two decades.
Interestingly, Arsenal are actually favourites to win the Champions League too, with Paddy Power offering 8/2 odds.
Considering Real Madrid, PSG, Barcelona, Bayern Munich, and the other usual Champions League suspects are all in contention, that shows just how impressive The Gunners are looking this year.
Arsenal Favourites to Win the EPL
Despite the fact that The Gunners have come agonisingly close to securing the title three times in as many years, they’ve narrowly missed out to their rivals T’up north as both City and Liverpool have proved to be thorns in their sides.
With the squad looking stronger than ever, and the bookies backing them, Arsenal could finally bring the EPL title home to the Emirates.
But just what sort of odds can we expect? Well, amongst others, both BetFred and Bet365 currently have Arsenal as 4/1 favourites to secure the silverware.
Even Paddy Power are open to the idea, though are offering slightly more bearish odds of 5/1.
So, will Arsenal do their usual and throw the title away for another season, or can they bring the title home to London? Only time will tell, but with 5 months left of the season, we’re likely in for an exciting ride.
Featured Image credit: Nelson Ndongala on Unsplash
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