Arsenal’s first title defence in 22 years has already taken a dent. The 3-0 defeat at Brighton cost them top spot to Manchester City, and the Premier League winner betting odds now have to account for a champion that has been beaten. Every defending champion of the Premier League era has faced the same five-game checkpoint, and their starts show how little, and how much, it can tell you.
Arsenal’s start: four wins, then Brighton
Mikel Arteta’s side won their first four league games, beating Coventry City 3-0, Aston Villa 1-0, Chelsea 2-1 and Sunderland 2-0. That run ended at the American Express Stadium on 19 September 2026, where Pascal Gross, Charalampos Kostoulas and Chema Andres scored for Brighton & Hove Albion. Arteta said afterwards that his side were “extremely poor technically”.
Arsenal have 12 points and sit second, three behind Manchester City, who have won all five of their games. Brighton are third on 10 points.
Their last title defence, in 2004-05, began with five straight wins. Arsenal still finished second that season, 12 points behind Chelsea.
Every defending champion after five games, ranked
The table ranks all 33 defending champions from 1993-94 to 2025-26 by points after their first five league games. Clubs level on points share a rank and are listed in season order. The first two seasons on the list had 22 clubs and 42 games, but the five-game marker is the same.
| Rank | Season | Defending champion | Points after five games | Final position |
| =1 | 2004-05 | Arsenal | 15 | 2 |
| =1 | 2005-06 | Chelsea | 15 | 1 |
| =1 | 2010-11 | Chelsea | 15 | 2 |
| =1 | 2011-12 | Manchester United | 15 | 2 |
| =1 | 2023-24 | Manchester City | 15 | 1 |
| =1 | 2025-26 | Liverpool | 15 | 5 |
| =7 | 1993-94 | Manchester United | 13 | 1 |
| =7 | 1997-98 | Manchester United | 13 | 2 |
| =7 | 1999-00 | Manchester United | 13 | 1 |
| =7 | 2018-19 | Manchester City | 13 | 1 |
| =7 | 2022-23 | Manchester City | 13 | 1 |
| =7 | 2024-25 | Manchester City | 13 | 3 |
| =13 | 2003-04 | Manchester United | 12 | 3 |
| =13 | 2006-07 | Chelsea | 12 | 2 |
| =13 | 2009-10 | Manchester United | 12 | 2 |
| =16 | 2000-01 | Manchester United | 11 | 1 |
| =16 | 2002-03 | Arsenal | 11 | 2 |
| =18 | 1994-95 | Manchester United | 10 | 2 |
| =18 | 2017-18 | Chelsea | 10 | 5 |
| =18 | 2019-20 | Manchester City | 10 | 2 |
| =18 | 2020-21 | Liverpool | 10 | 3 |
| =18 | 2021-22 | Manchester City | 10 | 1 |
| =23 | 1996-97 | Manchester United | 9 | 1 |
| =23 | 2012-13 | Manchester City | 9 | 2 |
| =25 | 2001-02 | Manchester United | 8 | 3 |
| =25 | 2007-08 | Manchester United | 8 | 1 |
| =25 | 2008-09 | Manchester United | 8 | 1 |
| =25 | 2014-15 | Manchester City | 8 | 2 |
| =29 | 1998-99 | Arsenal | 7 | 2 |
| =29 | 2013-14 | Manchester United | 7 | 7 |
| =29 | 2016-17 | Leicester City | 7 | 12 |
| =32 | 1995-96 | Blackburn Rovers | 4 | 7 |
| =32 | 2015-16 | Chelsea | 4 | 10 |
Arsenal’s 12 points would place them joint 13th on this list.
Perfect starts with no guarantee
Six defending champions have won all five opening games, and only two of them kept the title. Chelsea did it in 2005-06 and Manchester City in 2023-24.
Arsenal in 2004-05, Chelsea in 2010-11 and Manchester United in 2011-12 all finished second. Liverpool are the most recent example. They won their first five in 2025-26, then finished fifth on 60 points as Arsenal took the title.
Slow starts that still ended with the trophy
Manchester United won back-to-back titles from eight points, the lowest total of any champion that went on to retain the trophy. They were sixth after five games in 2007-08 and ninth in 2008-09, then finished on 87 and 90 points. In 1996-97 they drew three of their first five and still won the league.
The weakest title defences
Blackburn Rovers and Chelsea share the lowest total, four points. Blackburn lost three of their first five games in 1995-96 and finished seventh. Chelsea’s 2015-16 start included a 3-0 defeat at Manchester City, and they ended the season 10th on 50 points.
Leicester City had a better start in 2016-17, with seven points, but finished lower than any other defending champion. They came 12th on 44 points, a year after winning the league from pre-season odds of 5,000-1.
What 12 points has meant before
Three champions have had exactly Arsenal’s 12 points after five games, and none kept the title. Manchester United finished third in 2003-04 and second in 2009-10, while Chelsea were second in 2006-07.
Overall, 11 of the 33 defending champions retained the title, and eight of those had at least 10 points at this stage. Anyone wanting to bet on football for Arsenal’s next league game can weigh both sides of that record. Their start sits in the upper half of the list, but no champion on 12 points has gone on to keep the trophy.
