Football betting tips: Championship
1pt e.w. Sheffield United to win the title at 66/1 (Coral, Ladbrokes, 1/4 1-3)
Just 89 days after he was sacked, Chris Wilder has returned to Sheffield United for his third spell at the club, hopefully bringing this silly summer in S2 to an end.
His Blades side went within a whisker of the Premier League last season. Their tally of 92 points (without the two-point deduction) was the club's Championship record and enough to get automatic promotion in six of the last eight seasons, even enough to win the title in one.
United’s 6-0 demolition of Bristol City in the play-off semi-final was the most emphatic at the level and it looked for all the world Wilder would end the Blades play-off hoodoo.
This was their 10th attempt, they’d lost in the semis five times and in the final on four occasions heading into the clash with Sunderland and despite going 2-0 up (yes I’m bitter with VAR), lost 2-1 thanks to a 95th minute Tom Watson winner.
Heartbreak aside, United were in a good position to challenge this campaign, however, the owners wanted to take the club in a different direction and - to put it mildly - it hasn’t really worked out.
Five games into the new campaign, United are rock bottom of the Championship with no wins, no points and 11 goals conceded.
They haven’t scored a league goal on their travels, they’re a point worse off than crisis club city rivals Sheffield Wednesday and four points adrift of safety. Nine points off the play-offs and 13 off the title pace.
So, why am I so giddy? Christopher John Wilder’s back.
Just look at how happy Sydie Peck and Tyrese Campbell are to see him.
CW with his squad 👋 pic.twitter.com/tnfIiOgo6J
— Sheffield United (@SheffieldUnited) September 16, 2025
It’s not the first time he has entered Bramall Lane at a time of strife either.
In his last spell he inherited a side rock bottom of the Premier League in December 2023 and after a summer of immense squad churn managed to spring a promotion challenge.
In 2016, he followed Nigel Adkins - who was not a popular Blades manager - taking over a side that had finished 11th in League One and won the title the following season with 100 points.
Building Sheffield United 3.0 looks just as tricky for Wilder as it was in 2016 and 2023 but he has already shown he is up for the job.
His first task will be restoring some belief into the side ahead of Saturday’s clash with Charlton but it does feel that there are some very winnable fixtures on the horizon for the Blades.
At 66/1, I am backing SHEFFIELD UNITED TO WIN THE TITLE. Each-way terms pays out to third place at 1/4 odds (16.5/1).
For context, the Blades are 13/1 for promotion, 16/1 to finish in the top two and 7/2 to finish in the top six.
Yeah it is ambitious but the title is where the value lies at the time of writing. Ipswich, the current 10/3 favourites, are only six points ahead of United.
Wilder and United are a match made in heaven. He has a good squad at his disposal and comes in with the odds stacked against him which is when he usually causes the most damage.
Odds correct at 1250 BST (16/09/25)
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