10 EFL Championship stars set to explode in the 2026/27 season | OneFootball

FLW looks at 10 Championship stars who could be in for big seasons in 2026/27

The 2025/26 campaign is behind us, and already, people are trying to predict who will be in for a breakout season in 2026/27.

The Championship is littered with quality year upon year, ranging from wonderkids playing light years ahead of where they're expected to be (you can find a list of 10 of who we expect those to be below) and veteran heads who we all know and expect will be among the better players in the division.

But what about those who have shown quality in small bursts over the past year or two, and, with the right development, could be in for a breakout season that shoots them up into conversation surrounding a potential move to the Premier League sooner rather than later?

There are plenty who will be angling for that to be them next season, but here are 10 that we at FLW have picked out to keep an eye on.

August Priske

It's never easy coming into a new country and into a new league, let alone when you're a young and upcoming star and even more so when it's midway through the campaign.

August Priske arrived at Birmingham City in January with quite some fanfare after the Blues spent a reported £6 million to bring him to St Andrew's from Swedish side Djurgardens, where he netted 19 goals in 28 games in the 2025 Allsvenskan.

It's taken him a while to get used to new surroundings, and the Danish under-21 international wasn't immediately afforded starts, with Marvin Ducksh ahead of him.

But the 22-year-old started the final six games of the campaign, and Chris Davies' side looked good towards the end of the season with Priske leading the line. He also scored his first goal for the club on the final day against Portsmouth, which could be a good omen for next year.

The future of Marvin Ducksh is uncertain at St Andrew's, so with no distractions and a full pre-season behind him, Priske could be among the top scorers in the Championship next season.

Jaydon Banel

Jaydon Banel had a brilliant final month of the 2025/26 term on loan at Derby County, where he scored three times in six games, two of which were incredible solo efforts that just make you feel excited about what he can do in the future.

Burnley are set to be the side to benefit from that, as he returns to Turf Moor from that loan spell with the Rams, where it's expected that he'll at least be in the plans for their Championship return.

The 21-year-old Dutchman didn't play any part in the Clarets' promotion from the second tier two seasons ago, but if the likes of Jaidon Anthony or Loum Tchaouna both jump ship this summer, Banel could easily slot in and carry on where he left off at Derby.

Rubin Colwill

Rubin Colwill already has 139 Championship appearances under his belt for Cardiff City, but the attacking midfielder scored more times in his 31 League One games last season (8) than he did in those 139 (7).

The Bluebirds academy graduate needed that year in the third tier almost to prove that he can be a top attacking midfielder, and he returns to the Championship this season, much better suited to make an impact under Brian Barry-Murphy.

There will be questions asked initially about whether the 24-year-old can make the step-up to a level he wasn't at two years ago, but there's every possibility that Colwill will answer those questions emphatically.

Oscar Fraulo

A lot of questions are being asked about how Derby are going to replace some of their top loan stars, with midfield duo David Ozoh and Bobby Clark set to return to Crystal Palace and RB Salzburg, respectively.

The preferred outcome would be to retain them both, as Clark was nominated for the Championship's Young Player of the Season award, and Ozoh was solid in the engine room after an injury-disrupted 2024/25 campaign.

But, if Ozoh especially goes elsewhere or is used more prominently at Palace, January signing Oscar Fraulo will be the man to fill that gap and form the double pivot next to Lewis Travis in the midfield.

The 22-year-old signed from Bundesliga outfit Borussia Mönchengladbach midway through the campaign, and while he made 19 appearances, only two of them were from the off. Derby won both of those games, and the Dane scored in the 3-2 win over QPR in the penultimate outing of the season.

His last two full seasons have been spent at Utrecht, where he was a key player, and John Eustace may be angling to give him more of a chance akin to those Eredivisie years in 2026/27.

Leo Castledine

Leo Castledine hasn't got going in a Middlesbrough shirt just yet, after arriving at the Riverside in January as one of the top young EFL prospects following his loan spell at Huddersfield Town.

The Chelsea youngster was recalled from the Accu Stadium after netting eight in his final 10 league games for the Terriers and sent to the Championship promotion challengers.

But an injury shortly after his first start for the club ruled the 20-year-old out for over a month, and that derailed his momentum, as he failed to start another game in the season and was unused from the bench in the play-off final defeat against Hull City.

Castledine is still a young, exciting attacking midfielder, and with a full pre-season under his belt, getting used to Kim Hellberg's physically demanding style of football, he could be in for a breakout year in the Championship next term.

Camiel Neghli

It's looking increasingly likely that Millwall won't be starting next season with Femi Azeez in their squad after he exploded this past campaign with 11 goals, eight assists and a Championship Player of the Year nomination.

But, the focus at the Den in recent years has been to nurture talent to the point where they can sell them on for big fees, and they'll be looking for the next man up to shoulder that attacking load as and when the 24-year-old departs.

Camiel Neghli will likely be the man that Alex Neil turns to, as the 24-year-old Algerian has had a solid campaign playing either on the left or in behind the striker, starting every league and play-off game from mid-December until the end of the season, scoring five and assisting four.

Those are good numbers, but easily the numbers of the second creative option. With Azeez out of the club, the door will open further for Neghli to take more control of the Millwall attack.

If the Lions are to replicate or go one better than last season, then the former Sparta Rotterdam man will need to be in for a good campaign, something which he is capable of.

Mohamed Toure

Mohamed Toure only started seven Championship games after moving from Randers to Norwich City in January. In that time, he scored two hat tricks. Putting it plainly, a lot of people are excited, and rival clubs are scared, about what he can do in his first full season in England.

The young Aussie did have his injury problems in the short space of time he's spent at Carrow Road so far, missing a month with a muscle injury, but if he can stay fit and healthy, he'll easily be among the favourites for the Golden Boot.

There are plenty of players who could explode onto the scene next season at Norwich, but in the interest of fairness, we've just limited things to one player per team.

With Toure leading the line, plus a plethora of exciting prospects and Philippe Clement in the dugout, the ceiling is very high for this side.

Harvey Vale

Harvey Vale had a torrid time with injuries throughout his first year at QPR. He arrived in January 2025 from Chelsea, knowing that he couldn't play again that season, and he missed close to two months in the early stages of this past campaign, too.

His 2026, though, has been injury-free, and it's given a lot of Hoops fans excitement to see what the 22-year-old can do for a full year if he can stay out of the treatment room.

Vale started every game from mid-January all the way until the end of the season, scoring three and assisting four in that time, while winning three penalties along the way, too. He ended the campaign with four goals and five assists.

There are plenty of exciting talents in the QPR fold who could naturally progress to the next level next season under the guidance of Julien Stephan, but Vale clearly stands out from the rest.

Oliver Arblaster

There arguably wasn't a more exciting midfield talent going into the 2024/25 campaign than Sheffield United's Oliver Arblaster, captaining his boyhood side after breaking into the team as a fresh-faced 20-year-old in the Premier League the year before.

Unfortunately, an ACL injury curtailed his campaign in late November, and the numerous setbacks he faced throughout the summer and into the winter effectively wrote off this past season, too.

In the end, the 22-year-old spent over a year on the sidelines, returning to the fold last December, where he really struggled to get up to speed, never starting more than two straight league games and making just nine league starts overall.

Pre-season is going to be a massive help this summer for Arblaster, as he looks to be ready to hit the ground running immediately to begin the 2026/27 campaign.

Cameron Bragg

Southampton are having to begin next season in the Championship, after they were removed from the play-offs due to being found guilty of spying ahead of their play-off semi-final win over Middlesbrough.

With their second-tier status confirmed, there'll be some pressure from top-flight clubs coming in who will want to take some of their better players away from St Mary's.

Shea Charles could easily be one of those, and possibly even Casper Jander, too, which would open the door for 21-year-old academy graduate Cameron Bragg to play a more prominent role in the Southampton engine room next season.

The 21-year-old made 22 appearances in all competitions this season, starting in games against Arsenal and Manchester City in the FA Cup.

Having made just two sporadic cup appearances before this season, it's clear that Tonda Eckert rates him, and if the German is allowed to stay at St Mary's ahead of next year, then Bragg could easily be one of the first names on the teamsheet, allowing some other stars to depart and earn the club some money while not lowering the quality of the starting eleven.