Leeds and Birmingham justifying pre-season favouritism with bet365 braced for big payout

While the Championship and League One are historically very competitive divisions, both look set to be won at a canter this time around.

bet365’s Sports and Trading expert Steve Freeth said: “Leeds United and Birmingham City were all the rage before a ball was kicked with each of them featuring in over 50,000 multiple bets in their respective outright market, while the pair of them appeared together in over 25,000 and their backers look to be in a great place with around a third of the season to play.

"Leeds, alongside Ipswich and Leicester, were streets ahead of the rest of the division last term, but only two teams can go up automatically, and Daniel Farke's men were the ones to miss out, falling to Southampton in the play-off final.

"It's hard to see them suffering a similar fate this season; Sheffield United's two-point deduction may yet prove crucial in the title race, and while Burnley have been incredibly water-tight, they aren't scoring nearly enough goals to pose a serious threat to the Championship leaders.

"Daniel Farke’s side opened up at 4/1 and are now trading at 1/6, while Blues are into 1/20 having been 7/2 in the summer.

“The early-birds who gobbled up the opening prices on the pair will be sitting on a nice double paying over 20/1. Despite them both needing a late equaliser at home in the first game they’ve showed their class since that sunny Saturday in August to deservedly sit top of their divisions in what will be anxious wait for us.

"Of course, we've seen a number of teams fall into the third tier expecting to bounce straight back with the likes of Sheffield United, Nottingham Forest and Southampton showing it's not always that simple.

"Birmingham won't be falling into that trap; having spent heavily in the summer it's a matter of time before their promotion is confirmed, with attentions then turning to claiming the title."

Liam Williams

• Leeds United F.C.
• League One
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