We preview the EFL League Two season ahead and pick out the best bets for the season.
League TwoSee All Odds
League Two heads into the 2026/27 season with something it rarely has: genuine uncertainty at the top. There is no runaway favourite, no Wrexham-style financial juggernaut and no Stockport-style squad that looks obviously too good for the division. Instead, the promotion race appears wide open, with Salford City, Bristol Rovers, Port Vale, Chesterfield, York City and Grimsby Town all beginning the campaign with realistic ambitions of finishing in the top three.
That balance is reflected in the market. Salford are favourites after missing automatic promotion by a single point and then losing 3-0 to Notts County in the play-off final, but they are still available at 11/2. Barnet opened the summer as joint favourites despite finishing eighth last season, a sign of how closely matched this division looks on paper.
EFL League Two Winner Odds
EFL League Two Outright Winner Tip
Salford are impossible to ignore. Missing automatic promotion by one point and then losing the play-off final has clearly sharpened the club’s focus, and the summer recruitment has been among the most ambitious in the EFL.
Macauley Langstaff arrives with a proven League Two Golden Boot pedigree, while Luke Molyneux brings League One quality. Those additions significantly raise the ceiling of a squad that was already one of the strongest in the division.
There are questions about how quickly the new management setup will settle, but Salford’s attacking talent gives them a margin for error that few rivals possess.
Best Bet – Salford City to win League Two
The squad depth, financial backing and proven goalscorers make Salford the strongest outright case in a wide-open market.
EFL League Two Relegation Tips
Walsall look vulnerable. The Saddlers have changed direction again by appointing Lee Grant, and while the former Manchester United coach is highly regarded, his previous managerial experience at Huddersfield offered little evidence that he can quickly build a promotion-winning side.
The recruitment has lacked the impact signings made by many of their rivals, and there is a growing sense that Walsall have stalled after two seasons that promised more than they delivered. In a division where several traditionally smaller clubs have improved, standing still can be dangerous.
Best Bet – Walsall to be relegated
A lack of momentum, managerial uncertainty and limited attacking upside make Walsall a live relegation candidate.
EFL League Two Top Scorer Tips
Max Watters is the most backed bet via oddschecker and stands out as an excellent value play. Port Vale scored only 36 goals in 46 League One matches last season, the lowest total in the division, and their entire summer strategy has been built around fixing that problem.
Watters has already shown he can score heavily in League Two, netting 13 goals in 15 games for Crawley during the first half of the 2020/21 season before earning a move to the Championship with Cardiff. He also began last season brilliantly with Dundee United, scoring four goals in his first five games before a serious hamstring injury disrupted his campaign.
Back in League Two, joining a Port Vale side that has added Onel Hernandez, Mo Faal and further attacking reinforcements, he looks well placed to lead the line for one of the division’s stronger promotion contenders.
Best Bet – Max Watters Top Scorer
A proven League Two scorer now leading a promotion-chasing attack makes Watters one of the standout player bets in the market.
EFL League Two Predictions
- Winner: Salford City
- Relegated: Walsall
- Top Scorer: Max Watters
Salford finally have the firepower to turn near misses into automatic promotion, Walsall look worryingly short of momentum, and Watters has the pedigree and opportunity to win the Golden Boot.
