Season 6 - EFL1 - Mid-Season Review

Published: September 8, 2025

The Title Race

Two lengthy unbeaten runs see Tony Ayre's Juventus and Ant Harris' Bayern Munich leading the division; the Italians are thirteen league games without defeat and have been top since Round 13, while Bayern sit just two points back on their own ten game unbeaten run. Last season's dominant champions PSG are the highest league scorers, but the transition to young goalkeeper Mike Penders has seen them leak goals at other end (they've conceded more than anyone else in the top 9) and they are ten points off the pace in 5th.

The two Madrid teams are third and fourth, with Real two points clear of their city rivals but six points back from Juventus. An excellent five consecutive wins for Atletico has put the Champions League holders into some level of contention with half the season remaining, but they have the formidable presence of PSG on their shoulder. Last season's league runners-up Fiorentina are down in 6th, with Inter Milan close behind in 7th.

Outside the top seven

With all of last season's top 7 in those positions (albeit different ones), there are limited opportunities for teams from midtable to break into those precious Champions League spots. Marseille are well down the division after a managerial change, and there are several teams ready to strike should any of the 'bigger' sides fall by the way side in the second half of the campaign. It was looking bleak for Rangers, who had just two wins in the opening thirteen games of the season, but went unbeaten in their next six with four wins to catapult up the division into 8th. Real Sociedad are only outside the CL positions on goal difference, whilst Roma, who have spent a fair chunk of the first half of the season within the top 8, are down in 10th after four defeats in their last six.

HD King is trying to restore Barcelona to their former glory days after succeeding Matias Finkelstein, and they too are within touching distance of the CL spots at the top of the bottom half, alongside Benfica, who are having an impressive season after promotion. Bayer Leverkusen are doing a sterling job in 13th, with Tim Davey using all of his managerial experience to guide his young team away from danger at the bottom of the division. Sporting Lisbon have lost five of their last six in the league and are sliding away from CL contention.

The Fight for Survival

It's been tough sledding for Shakhtar Donetsk who are managing to deny team's victories on multiple occasion with ten draws this season (no team has managed more in EFL1), but the reality is that they are still yet to win in the league this season. They are seven points off safety, and the situation isn't much better for the ageing Sevilla, who have won just twice and are only a point ahead of their Ukrainian rivals. Union Berlin are closer to safety after advancing through the EFL2 play offs in Season 5, and will hope the arrival of esteemed manager Lee Clark will secure them top flight status for another season.

The three teams all in imminent danger of being caught by those below, are AC Milan, Lens and the underperforming Marseille. The French side have the league's leakiest defence, and only Sevilla have lost more than them in the first half. Evan Singh will be under pressure from the board to improve their form, and make back some of the eight point gap they have to the CL places. AC Milan and Lens just haven't won enough games of football to maintain their security yet, and will be hoping for some early points on the board to create more breathing space between them and the bottom three.