When the totals are totted up at the end of the 2025/26 season, it might not matter who happened to be at the top of the table on Christmas Day. As the festive fixture frenzy rolls around, there always seems to be something vaguely significant about which side is top of their respective division on Christmas Day, and so, in that spirit, we’ll take a look through the lower divisions at the promotion-chasing sides who are currently at the top of their particular tree.
Championship – Coventry with Cushion at Championship Summit
Prepping for Boxing Day. pic.twitter.com/gciVxm8XHQ
— Coventry City (@Coventry_City) December 24, 2025
Frank Lampard has been rebuilding his managerial reputation at Coventry City and as things stand, his side are six points clear at the Championship summit. They’ve only managed one win in the last four league matches, giving Middlesbrough the chance to close the gap a little, but the Sky Blues are still the side to beat in the second tier.
Coventry, who won the FA Cup back in 1986/87, have been out of the Premier League for a long time. They were last a top-flight side in the 2000/01 season, when Gordon Strachan was in the dugout, and the likes of current Wales boss Craig Bellamy and John Hartson were charged with getting the goals to keep them up. If Lampard leads Coventry to the Premier League this season, he’ll go down as a club legend. They are certainly in an excellent position with 48 points on the board from their 22 games so far.
League One – Cardiff Cling on to Top Spot Despite Recent Loss
Preparing for our Boxing Day battle at CCS #CityAsOne pic.twitter.com/0EBDXk81HH
— Cardiff City FC (@CardiffCityFC) December 23, 2025
Cardiff have played in the Premier League more recently than the current Championship leaders, but Brian Barry-Murphy’s men currently play in the third tier. At least they are making solid strides towards returning to the Championship, and they are three points clear at the top of League One. Lincoln, in second place, and Bradford, one point further back in third, are not going to give up the fight anytime soon and it promises to be an exciting 2026 in the third tier.
League Two – Tight at the Top in Fourth Tier Tussle
8️⃣ wins in our last
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas pic.twitter.com/oSdEWNiar6
— Bromley FC (@bromleyfc) December 24, 2025
If the League One title race looks exciting, League Two’s could be explosive. At the time of writing, there are two sides on 40 points, with leaders Walsall ahead of Swindon Town on goal difference. Next up, we have Bromley on 39 points, Notts County in fourth place on 38, MK Dons and Salford City on 36, and Chesterfield completing the top seven on 35 points.
Any of those sides could feasibly grab one of three automatic promotion places up for grabs, and even the four sides below them (Cambridge United, Fleetwood Town, Crewe Alexandra, and Colchester United) could force themselves into the mix as they’re all within nine points of the leaders.
National League – Rochdale Holding Off Forest Green Challenge… For Now
Post-Christmas action on the way #rafc pic.twitter.com/YXGZmVCPYd
— Rochdale AFC (@officiallydale) December 24, 2025
There might be three automatic promotion spots in the fourth tier, but for those clubs trying to propel themselves into the Football League, there is just one automatic place available. To gain promotion from the National League to League Two is one hell of a task, and the battle for the single automatic place is hotting up already. Rochdale will be top of the table at Christmas, with 49 points from their 20 games. Forest Green Rovers, managed by BBC pundit and former Strictly Come Dancing contestant Robbie Savage, are hot on their heels, however. Rovers also have 49 points as things stand, but they have played three more games than the current leaders.
With York City (48 points), Boreham Wood (47), Carlisle United (46), and Scunthorpe United (43) all still eager to challenge for top spot in the coming weeks, it promises to be a hard-fought promotion race. If Rochdale win their games in hand, they’ll be sitting pretty, but in this ever-competitive division, there are no guarantees.
A Word About Arsenal
Although we’ve been focusing on the lower leagues, it’s worth mentioning that Arsenal will be at the top of the Premier League on Christmas Day. They are only two points clear of Manchester City, with Aston Villa – who are having a fantastic campaign – just a point further back in third.
Arsenal fans will already be feeling tense after watching their side settle for the runners-up spot in each of the last three seasons. But given the squad depth and the exceptional performances this term, we think it might finally be the year Mikel Arteta leads the Gunners to the Premier League title. That said, they have been top of the Premier League at Christmas four times before and have never converted that into a title. We fancy it just might be fifth time lucky!