It could be the most open Premier League title race in years as clubs spend big to take advantage

MANCHESTER, England (AP) — The Premier League is back after one of the most unpredictable seasons in recent memory saw Liverpool win a record-equaling 20th title, Manchester City go into meltdown and Manchester United hit new lows.

The new campaign kicks off on Friday and teams have spent big in an attempt to capitalize on what looks like being a wide open title race after City's dominance was ended.

Defending champion Liverpool hasn't stood still, with Florian Wirtz the pick of its signings for a fee that could rise to a British record $156 million.

Pep Guardiola's rebuild at City began in January with around $450 million spent since then on revamping a team that saw its four-year title-winning run snapped last term.

And perennial runner-up Arsenal has finally secured a top-class striker in Viktor Gyokeres as it looks to win its first title since 2004.

Chelsea has continued its heavy-spending policy under American owners Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital and, fresh from being crowned world club champion, will expect to challenge for the biggest prizes again.

Liverpool knows just how difficult it is to win back-to-back championships.

Not since 1984 has the club successfully defended the title and it is not alone in struggling to hold onto the trophy. Only Guardiola’s City — champion in six out of seven seasons between 2018 and 2024 — has managed to retain the title since Alex Ferguson's Man United retained its title in 2009.

But Liverpool coach Arne Slot already defied the odds by joining an elite group of coaches to win the title in their first year in the Premier League, following Jose Mourinho, Carlo Ancelotti, Manuel Pellegrini and Antonio Conte. He has brought in high-quality additions, with Wirtz and Hugo Ekitike adding more firepower to Liverpool's attack.

City endured a sudden and dramatic decline last season when its title defense unraveled before Christmas.

Defeat in the FA Cup final against Crystal Palace consigned City to its first trophyless season in eight years.

There were mitigating factors — mainly the injury to Ballon d'Or winner Rodri. But Guardiola's extensive rebuild, including the signings of Omar Marmoush and Rayan Cherki, suggest City's problems were more deeply rooted.

The last time Guardiola relinquished a title, he went on to win the next four. City's Premier League rivals have been warned.

No team has been more consistent than Arsenal over the past three seasons — but that still hasn't delivered a title.

The signing of Gyokeres could be the last piece of the puzzle. The Sweden striker outscored Kylian Mbappe, Haaland and Mohamed Salah last term. His overall record for Sporting Lisbon was 97 goals in 102 games. Arsenal will hope he can reproduce that form in England.

United recorded its lowest finish in the Premier League era (15th) last season, the most losses (18) and its lowest points total (42). Add to that the failure to qualify for any European competition and it was a year to forget.

Coach Ruben Amorim has vowed to bring the good times back. He's signed Premier League-proven forwards in Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo, along with highly rated Slovenia striker Benjamin Sesko. He's also had a full offseason to work with his squad -- something he was denied when hired midway through last season.

After winning two Portuguese titles at Sporting Lisbon, United is convinced he is the man to end more than a decade of decline since former manager Alex Ferguson retired in 2013.

After a chaotic start, Chelsea's U.S. owners are delivering results.

The revolving door of coaches has slowed down. The mega spending has not. And on the back of a season when Chelsea won the UEFA Conference League, qualified for the Champions League and won the newly expanded Club World Cup it looks like the two-time European champion is back among soccer's elite.

Arsenal faces a brutally testing start -- coming up against United, Liverpool, City and Newcastle in its first six games of the season, with three of those away from home.

United takes on Arsenal, City and Chelsea within its first five games.

In the past two seasons all three clubs promoted from the Championship have been relegated the following year.

Leeds, Burnley and Sunderland have their work cut out to avoid the drop.

Defending champion Liverpool kicks off the season on Friday against Bournemouth at Anfield.

The last day of the season is May 24, 2026.

James Robson is at https://twitter.com/jamesalanrobson

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Manchester United's Benjamin Sesko applauds the fans as he is introduced to the crowd before the pre-season friendly match at Old Trafford, Manchester, England, Saturday, Aug. 9, 2025. (Nick Potts/PA via AP)

Arsenal's Viktor Gyokeres acknowledges the fans at the final whistle after an Emirates Cup soccer match between Arsenal and Atletic Bilbao at Emirates Stadium, London, Saturday, Aug. 9, 2025. (John Walton/PA via AP)

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Coco Gauff and Venus Williams could meet in the second round of the Australian Open, another potential chapter in a tennis tale that started with a 15-year-old on her Grand Slam debut beating a seven-time major winner at Wimbledon.

Gauff thanked Williams for being such an inspiration for her career after that win at the All England Club in 2019, saying “I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for her.”

She followed it up with a first-round win at the Australian Open in 2020.

Now she’s the No. 3 seed and a two-time major winner. The 45-year-old Williams has a wild-card entry for the Australian Open, where she’s playing for the first time in five years.

The tournament starts Sunday at Melbourne Park. When the draw was conducted Thursday, Gauff was drawn to open against No. 91-ranked Kamilla Rakhimova and No. 576-ranked Williams — who made her Australian Open debut in 1998 and has twice reached the final — was drawn to face No. 68-ranked Olga Danilovic in the first round.

Williams is set to become the oldest woman to compete in an Australian Open main draw, surpassing the record previously held by Japan’s Kimiko Date, who was 44 when she lost in the first round at Melbourne Park in 2015.

To have any chance of facing Gauff again, she needs to do something she hasn't done in 2026: record a win. In the last two weeks, Williams played tournaments in New Zealand and in Hobart, losing in the first round at both.

After a 6-4, 6-3 win over Williams on Tuesday, Tatjana Maria said it was a tough one because “everyone loves Venus. I love her, too."

Gauff and Williams are in the same half of the draw as top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka, who won back-to-back Australian Open titles before losing last year's final to Madison Keys.

Sabalenka, who opened her season with a title in Brisbane last week, has a potential third-round meeting against 2021 U.S. Open winner Emma Raducanu.

Defending champion Keys, who lost her quarterfinal match at the Adelaide International to rising Canadian star Victoria Mboko in three sets on Thursday, was drawn into the same quarter as No. 6 Jessica Pegula, and No. 4 Amanda Anisimova.

No. 2-ranked Iga Świątek, seeking a career Grand Slam with her first title at Melbourne Park, is in the bottom quarter on that side of the draw and has a potential fourth-round match against four-time major winner Naomi Osaka.

Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic landed in the same half of the draw, setting up a potential semifinal between the defending champion and the 24-time major winner.

Djokovic, who has won 10 Australian titles but hasn't gone past the semifinals at Melbourne Park since 2023, played an exhibition against Frances Tiafoe on Rod Laver Arena hours after the draw was made. He withdrew last week from a warmup tournament in Adelaide to give himself more time to be ready for the Open.

Top-ranked Carlos Alcaraz is on the opposite side to Sinner and Djokovic, and has Tiafoe and local hope and sixth-seeded Alex De Minaur in his quarter of the draw.

AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis

Coco Gauff of the United States plays a forehand return during a practice session ahead of the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Baker)