Betfair Traders Summer Series: Back favourites Leicester and 5/1 Sunderland for Championship promotion

• Foxes to bounce back at first time of asking

• Black Cats to end long promotion wait

• Leeds to fall short as Farke struggles amid chaos

Arguably the most competitive league in world football, the Championship provides unrivalled excitement year after year as 24 teams compete to reach the promised land of the English Premier League.

The 46 game season is a marathon, not a sprint. Keep within touching distance of the top towards the second half of the season and any team can make a run at the playoffs or promotion.

In recent years, we've seen runaway leaders dominate en route to league titles but the race for promotion is as competitive as ever and always provides an intriguing betting opportunity.

Tip 1 - Back Leicester City for promotion @ 5/42.25

Having spent the last nine seasons at England's top table, the Foxes' relegation last year ended the most glorious period in the club's history. Becoming Premier League Champions, FA Cup winners and mixing it with Europe's elite will live long in the memory.

A return to the Championship marks the start of a new era, with Enzo Maresca (pictured below) tasked with bringing them straight back up. The former Man City assistant experienced treble winning success last year as part of Pep Guardiola's staff and if the track record of other Pep disciples is anything to go by, Maresca could well be the man for the job here.

The departures of star players such as James Maddison, Harvey Barnes, Youri Tielemans and more seemed inevitable but Leicester still have a core group that are well above the Championship standard.

Additions such as Harry Winks and Conor Coady are a real signal of intent and you wouldn't put it past a 36-year-old Jamie Vardy to produce the goods as part of his last dance.

Tip 2 - Back Sunderland for promotion @ 5/16.00

The Black Cats returned to the Championship last year having spent the previous four years battling to get out of League One. Their sixh place finish was a surprise given key players in Dan Ballard, Aji Alese and Corry Evans all spent lengthy periods out of action.

The most notable absentee though was talisman Ross Stewart who only managed 11 starts all season - netting 10 times along the way. Man Utd loanee Amad Diallo rightly took many plaudits and will be missed, but Sunderland's other wide man Jack Clarke racked up 12 assists (joint most in Championship) and nine goals. He's sure to build on that going forward.

Sunderland's summer transfer business also looks very promising with investment in young talent prioritised. Jenson Seelt and Nectarios Triantis will bolster the defence while Jobe Bellingham and Luis Semedo come into attacking positions with big reputations.

Bradley Dack (pictured) has also been added to bring a wealth of experience to help younger talent.

A narrow aggregate defeat in the play-off semi-finals ended their run last time out but if they can get Ross Stewart back fit and gel together the new additions, Sunderland could well go closer this time.

Tip 3 - Lay Leeds Utd for promotion @ 3.55/2

Leeds are currently second in the betting to return to the Premier League at the first time of asking but 15/82.88 looks a little short to me.

Daniel Farke (pictured) is proven at this level and is probably the only real bit of good news to come out of Elland Road all summer. Behind-the-scenes dealings have been nothing short of shambolic. A prolonged take-over has resulted in limited incoming transfers.

Many big names have already left and it's likely a few more will find their way out before the window closes.

Plenty of talent should remain in the squad in the form of Georginio Rutter, Luis Sinisterra and Crysencio Summerville, although I feel expectations may be too heavy on these young shoulders.

The experience of Patrick Bamford, Luke Ayling and Liam Cooper will be vital but this trio are not at the same level as they were when they won the Championship three years ago.

The Leeds team that walked the Championship in 2019/2020 had several notable stars including Kalvin Philips, Ben White and Pablo Hernandez but most important of all was the man in charge, Marcelo Bielsa.

He worked miracles and was the biggest factor in that success. While Farke is highly accomplished, he is not close to 'El Loco'