Premier League betting tips: The 2025/26 surprise package

As the Premier League season rolls on, Ladbrokes highlights the teams that could catch everyone's attention and become the 2025/26 surprise package.

Last season saw Nottingham Forest upset the odds and spend most of the season inside the top four, despite finishing 17th the season before, beating the likes of Liverpool and Man City on their way to Conference League qualification - which has now turned into Europa League football following Crystal Palace's demotion.

And Ladbrokes predicts there could be a similar story in the current campaign, with the likes of Everton and Crystal Palace looking primed to launch an unlikely European charge. So without further ado, let's have a look at Ladbrokes' candidates for the Premier League 2025/26 surprise package.

The first side we think could launch a surprise attack on the top four is Everton, with their new stadium bringing a fresh start for the Premier League ever-presents.

We have previously predicted Everton to qualify for Europe when we made one bold prediction for every Premier League side, and with their extensive list of players confirmed to be leaving the club this summer, the Everton re-brand is well and truly underway.

Since David Moyes rejoined the club in January, the Toffees have only lost a handful of Premier League games, and have done notably well against teams from outside of the top six. They may have got the campaign off to a poor start with defeat at Leeds, but a decent record since - and the quality of summer signings - has Everton fans dreaming.

The 2025/26 opening day fixtures fell less kindly for Crystal Palace, who secured a 0-0 draw at Chelsea, but Ladbrokes thinks the Eagles could finally escape mid-table and make a surprising push for the top four this season.

After winning the FA Cup for the first time in their history, Palace are already enjoying their first ever European campaign (with the Conference League awaiting them after being kicked out of the Europa League), but they have the quality to ensure last season's success wasn't just a flash in the pan. They're even early favourites to win the competition, and claim their first European trophy.

Oliver Glasner's side ended the 2024/25 season unbeaten in eight in all competitions, and have only lost a few games since December. If this momentum can continue - which it already has in the opening couple of months of 2025/26 - then the Eagles have every chance of staking their claim as the Premier League's surprise package.

A strong finish to the 2024/25 campaign saw Fabian Hurzeler's Seagulls finish as the best of the rest in eighth, just four points behind last season's surprise package Nottingham Forest - despite losing 7-0 to the Reds in February.

Not having any European football to manage alongside their Premier League games could work in Brighton's favour this season, with the lighter schedule giving them more recovery time and potentially allowing them to put real pressure on the likes of Newcastle and Aston Villa - who both had difficult starts this term.

Brighton have already beaten Man City this season, and having had a taste of Europa League football in the 2023/24 campaign, they will be keen to secure another European adventure on the south coast - but could the Seagulls go one better this time around and qualify for the Champions League?

Forest were undoubtedly the surprise package of the 2024/25 season, eventually being slightly disappointed with a seventh-place finish, and Ladbrokes thinks they could be a team to watch this season - but for all the wrong reasons.

With trips around the continent now added to their calendar, Forest's squad could feel the weight of at least eight additional games, which may harm their league form. They ended last season on a poor run, and as that couples up with all these additional games, we wouldn't be surprised to see them fighting at the bottom of the table.

Forest are among the favourites to be relegated, and are already on their third manager of the season having sacked both Nuno Espirito Santo and Ange Postecoglou. Now, Sean Dyche and his new team will need to be careful not to fade away too dramatically, with the veteran manager being brought in to steady the ship.

Finally, Ladbrokes predicts that Brentford could find themselves in a spot of bother next season, with the Bees among the favourites to face the drop down to the Championship.

Analysing their run-in, Brentford face the likes of Man United, Man City and Liverpool in what could prove to be a decisive run of fixtures to close out the season - and you fear for them heading into such a difficult stretch of games at such a crucial time.

Having lost manager Thomas Frank, club captain Christian Nørgaard and star men Bryan Mbeumo & Yoane Wissa, Brentford's outgoings could prove to be fatal as they look to extend their five-year stay in the top flight - although a steady start has seen their odds for the drop lengthen considerably in recent weeks.

View the latest football odds here.

All odds and markets are correct as of the date of publication.