The Championship is always enthralling, and there is no reason why the 2024-25 season should be any different.
Since its rebranding in 2004, there have been 14 different winners in the second tier. Half of those former champions will be competing in the latest edition.
Thirty-eight different teams have finished in the top six of the Championship. In that same period, the Premier League has only had 15, showing just how competitive this division is.
But of equal interest, the fight to remain in the second tier is always intriguing.
Here, we use Opta data to pick out the key storylines.
Leeds out to rectify play-off woes
Leeds, who lost to Southampton in the play-off final, became the only team to accumulate 90 points in a season yet fail to secure promotion, with Leicester City and Ipswich Town finishing on 97 and 96 respectively.
While the significant losses of Crysencio Summerville and Archie Gray will prove to be a bitter blow, Daniel Farke still has an abundance of talent at his disposal.
Georginio Rutter remains a Leeds player, and was a crucial part in their (ultimately doomed) promotion push, ranking eighth for the most goals and assists in the division last year (22).
But, relegated trio Sheffield United, Burnley and Luton Town will pose a significant threat to Leeds' title ambitions, as they hope to return to the Premier League at the first attempt.
All three clubs have managed to keep the majority of their squads from last season intact, with the only significant change coming in the dugout at Turf Moor.
Scott Parker returns to management following Vincent Kompany's departure to Bayern Munich, and boasts an impressive pedigree from his time in the second tier.
Parker has won two promotions from the Championship with Fulham and Bournemouth, triumphing in 48 of the 92 games he has managed in the division (D25 L19).
Norwich City also look strong contenders, having finished as the Championship's fifth-highest scorers last year with 79 goals, but the loss of Gabriel Sara is significant.
Sara's creative flair saw him produce 121 chances, only bettered by Sorba Thomas (123) and Leif Davies (125), as he finished the campaign with 13 goals and 12 assists.
Mark Robins and Coventry City will also be right in the mix after finishing in the top 10 in the last two seasons, including a memorable FA Cup run last term.
Rooney to keep the Pilgrims afloat?
At the opposite end of the table, all eyes will be on Wayne Rooney as he embarks on his latest managerial venture, this time with Plymouth Argyle.
Rooney endured a disastrous tenure with Birmingham City last season, winning two of his 15 games in charge (D4 L9), surviving just 83 days in the St. Andrew's dugout.
The 38-year-old has performed well in the Championship previously, though, almost keeping Derby County up during the 2021-22 season despite a 21-point deduction.
But arriving at a side that won the second-fewest number of away games (three) and also shipped 70 goals last term, Rooney's task at Home Park is a tough one.
Rooney's former club Derby, along with Portsmouth and Oxford United, are the new boys, and they have been welcomed into the Championship with a difficult opening round of fixtures.
While the Rams' start is slightly kinder, with an away trip to Blackburn Rovers followed by a home game against Middlesbrough, Portsmouth and Oxford were not so lucky.
Pompey travel to Leeds for their opening encounter, and they face the three relegated Premier League sides in their opening seven fixtures.
Oxford's 25-year wait for second-tier football sees them start at beaten play-off semi-finalists Norwich, with games against Burnley and Luton following soon after.
Blackburn's upcoming season largely hinges on whether top scorer Sammie Szmodics remains at Ewood Park following his stellar performances in the division last year.
Szmodics scooped the Golden Boot last season with 27 goals in 44 appearances, outperforming his expected goals (xG) by 4.6 while also creating 49 chances.
The 28-year-old has been linked with a move away from the club and should Rovers lose his goals, it could prove to be a difficult nine months.
Tyrhys Dolan and Arnor Sigurdsson offer a different kind of attacking threat, but the pair managed just 10 goals between them in the division last campaign.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Alfie Doughty - Luton
One of the standout performers for Luton last season was full-back Alfie Doughty, and he will be key again for the Hatters this season.
Doughty registered two goals and eight assists and was one of many players expected to depart Kenilworth Road this transfer window, though for now he has stayed put.
The 24-year-old attempted the most crosses (340) in the Premier League, 89 of which were completed, which was the joint-highest alongside Pascal Gross.
Joe Rodon - Leeds
While Leeds have sold Summerville, Gray and Glen Kamara, they have strengthened with the arrival of one of last year's standout performers.
Joe Rodon made a loan switch from Tottenham permanent after helping Leeds keep 19 clean sheets in his 46 appearances.
The Welsh international won more aerial duels (132) than anyone in the Leeds squad last year, while 3,050 completed passes was a total only bettered by fellow defensive partner, Ethan Ampadu (3,138).
Matt Grimes - Swansea
Matt Grimes has become a mainstay in the Swansea side after three consecutive loan spells and, under the guidance of Luke Williams, the midfielder perfectly fits the former Notts County manager's possession-based style of play.
Grimes attempted the fifth most passes in the Championship last year (3,714), completing 3,291 of those for a pass accuracy of 88.61%.
He also made 535 passes into the final third, a total only bettered by new Stoke City goalkeeper Viktor Johansson (641) during his time with Rotherham.
Macaulay Langstaff - Millwall
One player that will be looking to make his mark in the Championship this season is new Millwall striker, Macaulay Langstaff.
Signed from Notts County, Langstaff scored 28 times last season, claiming his third Golden Boot in as many years while averaging a goal every 143 minutes.
Despite underperforming his xG by 4.33 and missing the most big chances in League Two last year (29), should he be given the service, he should tally up the goals.
Jack Clarke - Sunderland
After being tipped for a move to the Premier League for much of last year, Jack Clarke could be the difference between a good season, or a great season for Sunderland.
Clarke netted 15 goals in 33 league appearances before an ankle injury halted his scoring streak, missing six games and failing to find the back of the net upon his return.
The 23-year-old created the seventh-highest number of chances (91) in the division last season, while also completing the most dribbles (148 from 267 attempted), 47 more than Player of the Season Summerville (101).
Hurtig the hero after late goal sends Arsenal into Champions League quarters
Lina Hurtig's 89th minute winner ensured Arsenal progressed to the quarter-finals of the Women's Champions League after edging Juventus 1-0 on Thursday.
After being frustrated for large parts of the encounter, Hurtig bundled home from close range after Martina Lenzini's poor clearance to book the Gunners' place in the last eight.
Despite Arsenal dominating the early exchanges, it was Juventus who had the first sight of goal, though Eva Schatzer's effort was easy for Daphne van Domselaar to gather.
In a first half that saw just two shots on target, both coming from the visitors, Renee Slegers' substitutes proved to be the difference for Arsenal.
Slegers introduced Beth Mead, Stina Blackstenius and Hurtig late on, with the latter somehow putting Kim Little's cross over the bar from five yards out.
However, the Swede would atone for her earlier error, combining with fellow substitute Blackstenius to net against her former club and send them out of the competition with two group games remaining.
Meanwhile, in Group D, Barcelona edged closer to the quarter-finals of the competition with a convincing 4-1 victory over St. Polten at the Generali Arena.
The reigning champions are still three points behind Manchester City following their 2-1 win over Hammarby, and know a win against the Swedes next month will see them progress.
Kika Nazareth opened the scoring in the 20th minute after capitalising on a mistake by Kamila Dubcova, notching her second nine minutes later from close range.
Barca found themselves three goals up at the break when Vicky Lopez netted her first goal in the competition to put the result beyond doubt.
There was also a landmark moment for Alexia Putellas, who netted her 200th goal for the club with a well-taken effort into the far corner.
Valentina Madl took some of the shine off an otherwise impressive display from the visitors, who have now taken their tally to 20 goals from their four matches in the competition.
Guardiola agrees two-year contract extension with Man City
Pep Guardiola will be Manchester City manager for at least two more seasons after 2024-25, after he signed a two-year contract extension on Thursday.
The 53-year-old was coming to the end of his City deal, which was due to expire at the end of the current campaign, but he has opted to remain at the Etihad Stadium.
The deal itself will take Guardiola's tenure at the club to over a decade, making him City's longest-serving manager since Les McDowall in 1963.
There had been suggestions that he may leave at the end of the season following the announcement that director of football Txiki Begiristain was on his way out.
Guardiola was strongly linked with the England job after Gareth Southgate resigned in the wake of their Euro 2024 final defeat, but the Football Association appointed Thomas Tuchel last month.
“Manchester City means so much to me," Guardiola said. “This is my ninth season here; we have experienced so many amazing times together. I have a really special feeling for this football club.
“That is why I am so happy to be staying for another two more seasons.
“Thank you to everyone for continuing to trust and support me – The Owner, The Chairman Khaldoon, Ferran, Txiki, the players and, of course, the fans… everyone connected to Manchester City. It has always been an honour, a pleasure and a privilege to be here.
“I have said this many times before, but I have everything a manager could ever wish for, and I appreciate that so much.
“Hopefully, now we can add more trophies to the ones we have already won. That will be my focus.”
Having been appointed in 2016, Guardiola is by some distance Manchester City's most successful manager of all time, having won 18 major trophies during his time at the club.
That list includes their first-ever Champions League triumph in 2023 and six Premier League titles, including an unprecedented four on the spin.
He also boasts a 72.04% win percentage across all competitions, which is unsurprisingly the highest of any full-time City manager in history.
Shaw at the double as Man City progress in Champions League
Khadija Shaw scored twice as Manchester City beat Hammarby 2-1 to seal their place in the Women's Champions League quarter-finals.
Gareth Taylor's team entered Thursday's game with a perfect record in Group D, and their fourth win in as many European matches ensured they finished in the top two.
Shaw—the leading scorer in the Women's Super League this season with eight goals—put them ahead in the 31st minute, driving into the area after taking in Yui Hasegawa's pass before seeing her shot deflect into the top corner.
Shaw was booked for celebrating in front of the home fans despite appearing to have objects thrown at her from the stands, and Hammarby should have levelled when Julia Blakstad fired wide 10 minutes later.
The hosts did draw level three minutes into the second half as Ellen Wangerheim tapped home while City's Laura Blindkilde Brown was down appealing for a free-kick.
That parity was short-lived, though, as Shaw blasted into the top corner from 25 yards out, taking her overall tally for this season to 12 goals in all competitions.
In Group C, meanwhile, Bayern Munich lost their perfect record as they played out a 1-1 draw with Valerenga, boosting Arsenal's hopes of topping the pile.
Jovana Damnjanovic came off the bench to put Bayern ahead 15 minutes from time in Norway, but Elise Thorsnes headed home following an 88th-minute corner to snatch a point for the hosts.
Arsenal could now move within a point of Bayern when they face Juventus in Group C's other match later on Thursday.
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