Have promoted teams figured out how to be competitive in the Premier League?

There was a time not so long ago when the gulf, financial and otherwise, between the Premier League and the Championship was so wide that it could never be bridged. Indeed, in the 2024/25 and 2023/24 campaigns not one promoted team managed to make their place in the English top flight stick.

Last season, though, Leeds United and Sunderland bucked the trend. The former secured survival with games to spare while the latter finished seventh, qualifying for the Europa League in the process. The pair set a precedent now being followed by more promoted teams this season.

Hull City opened their Premier League campaign with a home win over Manchester United, backing it up by beating Coventry City in their next fixture. The Tigers were written off by many, and they still face a fight to remain in the division, but their first two fixtures have shown how competitive they will be.

Ipswich Town have also enjoyed a strong start. Gary O’Neill’s side overcame Sunderland on opening weekend and took the lead away to Manchester United before ultimately succumbing to a 5-2 defeat at Old Trafford. The Tractor Boys had opportunities to score more than just two against Michael Carrick’s side.

Between Hull and Ipswich, roughly $300m has been spent on transfers in the summer window. Both clubs have recognised the reality that promoted teams face no option but to rebuild if they are to stand any chance of staying in the Premier League. This is something Sunderland did to great effect last season.

The wealth of the Premier League means that promoted teams have the transfer funds to spend big. Hull, for example, splurged over $20m to sign defender Nobel Mendy from Rayo Vallecano with goalkeeper Konstantinos Tzolakis also arriving for a similar outlay from Olympiacos. 

Ipswich have spent even more in the summer transfer window, landing Julio Enciso in a $30m deal from Strasbourg. The Tractor Boys also got the checkbook out to sign Brazilian forward Emersonn from Toulouse when he had been linked with a number of other Ligue 1 clubs. The Premier League’s millions speak loudly.

Coventry haven’t had the same good fortune to start the 2026/27 campaign. Frank Lampard’s side were handed an extremely difficult opening fixture away to Arsenal. It was hardly a surprise that the defending champions got the better of The Sky Blues who suffered a 3-0 defeat in North London.

More disappointing was the aforementioned 1-0 home loss to Hull City, but Lampard will still hope that his team can bounce back to give themselves a chance of avoiding an immediate return to the Championship. Things might get worse for Coventry before they get better, though, with a trip to Manchester City this weekend.

The Premier League’s middle class has arguably never been stronger. Clubs like Bournemouth, Brentford and Brighton have shown what can be achieved when a coherent transfer strategy is implemented over a number of years. These three clubs are among the best run in English soccer at this moment in time.

Sunderland might have joined their ranks last season with Leeds also on a steep upward trajectory. The Black Cats will play in the Europa League this season and Leeds have their sights set on continental qualification this term. It is possible to move up the pecking order at the top of the English game.

Coventry, Hull and Ipswich all have reason to believe they can stay up. The latter two already have points on the board while the former have demonstrated their ability to consistently perform by surging to the Championship title last season. The Premier League might be better for their presence.