After an eventful soccer offseason filled with back-to-back FIFA Club World Cup Matches, Europe’s major soccer leagues are kicking back into gear. Last year, my now-graduated predecessor, Rohan Bhatia, correctly predicted just one out of five league-winners. After such a disappointing prediction, I’m here to redeem The Campanile’s image with my own (I hope) correct predictions of the top three finishers in each of the top five European soccer leagues: the English Premier League, Spain’s LaLiga, Italy’s Serie A, Germany’s Bundesliga and France’s Ligue 1.

Premier League

I predict reigning English champions Liverpool will win back-to-back titles. After the first six games of the season, Liverpool is currently  in second place with 15 points. On top of that, Liverpool had what most would consider one of the most complete summer transfer windows, spending nearly £450 million, according to Sky Sports, in order to acquire star players including Florian Wirtz and Jeremie Frimpong from Bayer Leverkusen, Eintracht Frankfurt’s Hugo Ekitike and, most importantly, Newcastle’s star striker Alexander Isak. So far, Liverpool leads the league in average possession rate and is tied for second in goals per match.

In second place, I have Manchester City. Although many expect Arsenal to challenge them for the title, I don’t think the Gunners have what it takes to beat a healthy City side. Last season, City was riddled with injuries — most notably affecting 2024 Ballon d’Or winner Rodri — which led them to a lackluster finish. But now, with Erling Haaland and Jeremy Doku looking sharp, City’s attack is firing again. While Arsenal signed Victor Gyökeres, the winner of France Football’s Gerd Müller Trophy, he looks sluggish, and I don’t see them maintaining their second place.

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LaLiga

Next up, in LaLiga, which had one of the closest races last year, I think Real Madrid will take home the trophy. Despite adding Kylian Mbappé last season, Real Madrid fell short to F.C. Barcelona last year, but their summer signings — Dean Huijsen, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Alvaro Carreras — will help reinforce its defense. In addition, with Xabi Alonso now managing the team, Madrid’s tactical structure looks stronger.

Barcelona will finish second and Atlético Madrid third. Despite finishing first last season, Barcelona’s summer transfers did not impress me compared to Madrid’s additions. Atlético, led by Julián Álvarez — second in LaLiga’s top scorer list — look strong, but they do not compare to Barcelona and Real Madrid.

Serie A

In Italy, Napoli should finish on top. Napoli has the second highest expected goals in Serie A, and they have added Kevin De Bruyne who will assist the team in finishing in first place. In second, I have A.C. Milan, led by top scorer Christian Pulisic and ranking second in touches inside the opponent’s box. Inter Milan will finish in third place. Inter Milan has the highest goals scored per match in the Serie A and has the second highest average possession rate. Although they currently sit fifth in the table, they will turn it around.

Bundesliga

In Germany, Bayern München will easily take home the crown. So far this season, Harry Kane has been unstoppable and has already tallied 11 goals in the Bundesliga. Combined with Michael Olise and Luis Díaz’s playmaking, no other team stands a chance. In second place, I predict Borussia Dortmund. Although Borussia Dortmund is not level with Bayern Munchen, it is looking strong, especially after a 4-1 Champions League win against Athletic Club Bilbao. Finally, in third, I’m predicting Eintracht Frankfurt, who rank second in goals per match.. While its defense is not the strongest, its attack convinces me, and the team will be able to secure third place.

Ligue 1

Finally, in France’s Ligue 1, there is only one team who could possibly win: Paris Saint-Germain. Fresh off its first Champions League title and with Ousmane Dembélé winning the Ballon d’Orr PSG, it is unstoppable. However, as we saw, Olympique Marseille just beat PSG, and I think they will come in second place. The team also just thrashed Ajax 4-0 in the Champions League, and have the man with the most goals and assists in Ligue 1, Mason Greenwood. Lyon will end up in third place — it ranks third for least goals conceded per match in Ligue 1 and first in clean sheets. With this strong offense and defense on both ends of the pitch, it will end in third place.

Final Predictions:

Premier League: Liverpool

LaLiga: Real Madrid

Serie A: Napoli

Bundesliga: Bayern München

Ligue 1: Paris Saint-Germain

Ultimately, several teams are looking strong this year, and as we have seen time and time again in soccer, things always seem to have more twists and turns than one would expect.