Our selections for the 2025/26 League One season focus on two contenders hoping to be playing Championship football next season.
The 2025/26 League One season is already underway and 12 clubs opened the new season with victories.
On an action-packed weekend of action, there was not a single draw in the third tier and we now focus on two of the contenders in the race for promotion to the Championship.
League One outright tips
Luton Town – outright winner @ 100/30
After a couple of magical seasons, everything came crashing down on Luton last year and they suffered a second successive relegation.
The Hatters had hoped to dig in and consolidate after relegation from the Premier League, but former boss Rob Edwards could not steady the ship and left the club in January.
Matt Bloomfield failed to provide the spark they needed to avoid the drop and they finished 22nd in the Championship.
While the likes of Carlton Morris, Daiki Hashioka, Thelo Aasgaard, Alfie Doughty and Reece Burke have all left the club, Bloomfield has managed to sign Kal Naismith, George Saville, Jerry Yates and Nahki Wells.
Luton’s squad, on paper, is capable of playing in the second tier and the Hatters will hope to copy Birmingham City’s blueprint from last season and simply outclass their rivals.
They started the new season with a 1-0 win over AFC Wimbledon on Friday evening and they should be the team to beat in the third tier.
Stockport County – winner @ 7/1
From one Hatters fanbase to another and Stockport County should be in the mix again this season.
Dave Challinor’s team managed to keep pace with Birmingham and Wrexham for most of last season, before fading away at the business end.
They only finished five points behind the Dragons before losing out in the play-off semi-finals to Leyton Orient.
County’s success was built on their home form, as they won 16 of their 24 matches at Edgeley Park.
While Louie Barry has since returned to his parent club, Aston Villa, before subsequently joining Sheffield United on loan, Challinor has added some new faces in the final third.
Stoke City’s Nathan Lowe has joined on a season-long loan deal, while Malik Mothersille joined on a permanent basis from Peterborough United, scoring on his debut in Sunday’s 2-0 victory over Bolton Wanderers.
Stockport ended last season with a seven-match unbeaten run, winning six of those games and they showed no signs of a play-off hangover last weekend.
Challinor has got his side in such a good place and only Luton look like they have the quality to compete with them for this year’s League One crown.
Stockport finished best of the rest last season behind Wrexham and Birmingham and, if they can get Lowe firing on all cylinders in the final third, they can go all the way this time around.
