Deportivo La Coruña
Deportivo have not competed in La Liga since 2018, but they were once regarded as part of Spain’s leading quartet alongside Barcelona, Valencia and Real Madrid. The Galician side regularly challenged near the top, recording nine top-three finishes between 1993 and 2004 and becoming champions in 1999. They also came close to reaching the 2004 Champions League final, only to be stopped by José Mourinho’s Porto. Deportivo later slipped into mid-table before suffering a far steeper decline that took them to the regional third tier in 2020. After four years, they returned to the second division and then made another major leap, improving from 15th in 2024-25 to secure automatic promotion last season. The celebrated period featuring Juan Carlos Valerón and Diego Tristán belongs to the past, but the club have demonstrated fresh ambition by recruiting Mallorca goalkeeper Leo Román and experienced forward Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang for their attempt to remain in La Liga. Deportivo are joined by other familiar names returning after lengthy absences: Segunda winners Racing Santander are back following 15 years away, while Málaga, relegated in 2018, also spent the 2023-24 campaign in the third tier.
Elversberg
As in several recent Bundesliga promotion battles, last season brought together fallen heavyweights and ambitious clubs from smaller communities. Schalke claimed the second-division championship after spending four of the previous five seasons at that level. Second-placed Elversberg come from a Saarland town with a population small enough to fit into the Veltins Arena four times. The club were still playing in the regional leagues in 2021-22 before making a remarkable rise under Horst Steffen. He left for Werder Bremen last summer after Elversberg narrowly missed promotion in the playoff, although his new role lasted only nine months. His former team continued progressing with Vincent Wagner, recruited from Hoffenheim’s reserve side. Elversberg will enlarge their ground during the campaign to satisfy the minimum capacity requirement of 15,000, while their introduction to the top flight will be immediate and demanding: Leverkusen and Bayern Munich are their first two home opponents.
Le Mans
French football has attracted numerous investors, from the wealthy owners of Paris FC to Strasbourg’s international ownership group, while a global football network is entering the competition through promoted Troyes. Another affiliated side, Lommel, will also join Belgium’s highest division this season. France’s other promoted club has followed a comparable path, with added celebrity involvement. Le Mans come from a city famous for motor racing, and their stadium is located within the renowned Circuit de la Sarthe. The team briefly competed in the top flight during the 2010s before financial problems caused a dramatic collapse. After working their way back to Ligue 2, Les Mucistes were purchased last August by Brazilian consortium OutField, whose project includes Novak Djokovic, Thibaut Courtois and Formula One drivers Felipe Massa and Kevin Magnussen. Despite their rapid progress, Le Mans intend to follow a measured strategy based on young talent, restoring the academy and investing in promising players rather than making extravagant signings.
Amedspor
Few clubs have endured a more difficult journey to their nation’s highest division than Amed SK, commonly known as Amedspor, who will play in the Turkish Super Lig for the first time this season. The club are based in Diyarbakir, a predominantly Kurdish city situated much nearer to Iraq and Syria than to Istanbul, and have increasingly become an important symbol of Kurdish identity. After years moving between Turkey’s third and fourth levels, the team began climbing quickly after adopting Amed, the Kurdish name for their city, as part of the club’s identity in 2014. That decision attracted a broader and more varied following, but it also provoked hostility. Supporters faced insults, threats and physical assaults from rival fans, prompting the Turkish football authorities to address the issue by preventing Amedspor supporters from attending away fixtures until 2020. Their arrival in the top division has renewed concerns about safety and possible disorder, although there are indications that longstanding divisions may be easing. Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has previously declined to use Diyarbakir’s Kurdish name, surprised many online by publicly congratulating Amedspor on their landmark promotion.
Wisla Krakow
Established 120 years ago, Wisla Krakow rank among Poland’s most successful clubs, having collected 14 league championships. Known as the White Star, they remained continuously in the top flight until 2022 and then spent four seasons outside it. Even during that period, they lifted the Polish Cup for a fifth time in 2024 while competing in the second division. Former player Jakub Blaszczykowski is now involved as a minority investor, and the club used its years away from the elite to reassess its operations, placing greater emphasis on data analysis and academy graduates. Wisla celebrated their return impressively last month with a 2-1 victory over Katowice, accompanied by a continuous red-and-white pyrotechnic display from the stands. Their fierce meeting with Cracovia, traditionally called the “Holy War”, has also returned to the schedule. Poland’s second-largest city now has three clubs in the leading division after Wieczysta Krakow earned promotion through the playoffs. Wieczysta are making their Ekstraklasa debut and will share Wisla’s stadium because their own venue falls short of competition standards.
FC Vaduz
Thun exceeded all predictions last season by winning the Swiss championship immediately after returning to the country’s highest division. Traditional contenders need not worry about Vaduz producing the same outcome this year. Although the club from Liechtenstein’s capital may compete in the Swiss top tier, the rules prevent them from becoming champions or taking a European qualification place reserved for a Swiss team. FCV instead participate in the Conference League by virtue of winning Liechtenstein’s domestic cup while also attempting to re-establish themselves at Switzerland’s highest level. Their promotion was secured in dramatic circumstances on the final day, when leaders Aarau surrendered a 2-0 advantage at home against Yverdon. Vaduz have lost their opening two matches of the new campaign, making an unexpected championship challenge appear improbable and easing concerns among Young Boys, Basel and the league’s administrators.
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