SERIE A 2025/26: Who will win the Scudetto? | OneFootball

With just a few days remaining until the start of the 2025/26 Serie A season, everybody wants to know: which team is going to win the Scudetto?

Ever since Juventus claimed their ninth consecutive league title in 2020, no team has been able to win back-to-back championships, with Inter, Milan, Napoli, Inter (again) and Napoli (again) crowning themselves as kings of Italy in the past few years. After a mouth-watering title race that saw Napoli and Inter compete until the final day for the ultimate prize, all signs point to it being a free-for-all between a myriad of sides this upcoming season.

Napoli

Despite losing creative talisman Khvicha Kvaratskhelia to Paris Saint-Germain midway through the season, Napoli managed to beat the odds and wrestle the title from Inter’s grasp thanks to a sensational debut season from Serie A MVP Scott McTominay. Combined with the arrival of Kevin de Bruyne, Napoli look set to have one of the best midfield units in Europe as well as a refurbished rearguard as they prepare for their season campaign under Antonio Conte.

The two biggest questions will be – 1) Can they go from not playing in Europe to balancing the UEFA Champions League with domestic commitments, and 2) Can they handle the loss of Romelu Lukaku? The Belgian striker spearheaded Napoli to the championship with 14 goals and 11 assists in 38 matches, but he will be out for 3-4 months after injuring his thigh in a friendly preseason. The onus will be on the club to find a new striker to compete with new arrival Lorenzo Lucca as Napoli seek to build on last season’s momentum?

Inter

If there was one phrase to sum up Inter’s 2024/25 season, it would be ‘So close, and yet, so far.’ Inter returned to the biggest match in club football after two years, only to lose 5-0 to Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Champions League Final. They lost to archrivals Milan in the Coppa Italia semi-finals and the Supercoppa Italiana Final, whilst they also missed out on the Scudetto by a razor-thin margin.

And whilst they did manage to finish atop Group E after drawing to Monterrey and defeating Urawa Reds and River Plate, their FIFA Club World Cup journey ended in the Round of 16 after the Nerazzurri lost 2-0 to Fluminense. Whilst it seemed that Inter would lose deep-lying playmaker Hakan Çalhanoğlu after he exchanged in a war of words with Lautaro Martínez, they have been able to keep hold of the entirety of their spine as they enter a new era under Cristian Chivu. This, combined with the signings of Luis Henrique, Ange-Yoan Bonny and Petar Sučić should put them in good standing to compete for the title once again.

Juventus

It has been a gradual fall from grace for Juventus. Just a few years after having Italian football in a stranglehold, Juve have regressed into mediocrity, finishing fourth in back-to-back seasons before succumbing to a seventh-place finish in 2022/23, followed by a third-place finish in 2023/24 and a fourth-place finish in 2024/25. Not only have Juve been able to find stability at the managerial position, going through four different managers (one interim) since the start of 2024, but they haven’t even been able to mount a viable title challenge.

With no new signings apart from Jonathan David on a free transfer and João Mário in a swap deal for Alberto Costa, Juve will be seeking to get the wheels in motion and build to their squad in the final weeks of the summer transfer window, with Randal Kolo Muani and Edon Zhegrova linked as potential targets. However, in order to give Igor Tudor some additional ammo, Juve will first need to free up space in their squad and get rid of unwanted players like Dušan Vlahović and Douglas Luiz.

Milan

Last season, Napoli were able to recover from a disastrous ninth-place finish – one which saw them miss out on Europe – and ride their new manager bounce to a fourth Scudetto. Milan will be looking to follow in their footsteps following a catastrophic 2024/25 season. The decision to sack Stefano Pioli and replace him with Paulo Fonseca backfired tremendously, with the Portuguese coach being dismissed midway through the season.

His replacement Sérgio Conceição managed to guide them to instant silverware, but he wasn’t able to convince over a long-term period and rescue them from midtable mediocrity, with the Rossoneri placing eighth and missing out on Europe. In order to breathe new life into this team, Milan have brought in one of the most successful managers in Serie A history in Massimiliano Allegri, having already won five Scudetti at Juve as well as one with Milan. Allegri will be overtaking a Milan team that is in transition after losing two key pillars in Tijjani Reijnders and Theo Hernández, and that opened their campaign with a 2-0 win against Serie B side Bari in the Coppa Italia. 14 years after guiding Milan to glory, can Allegri deliver them to the promised land once again?

Zach Lowy I GIFN