Arsenal finally ended their 22-year drought with the Premier League title 2025-2026, closing the historic season with an emotional trophy raising at Selhurst Park after a 2-1 victory over Crystal Palace.
Pressure has been relieved, the sun has appeared and cheering songs are echoing throughout North London. After spontaneous gatherings of fans and a group match at the headquarters when Manchester City stumbled in the middle of last week, Arsenal finally enjoyed the moment of raising the Premier League trophy.
The victory over Crystal Palace is no longer too important in terms of expertise. What remains more is the festive atmosphere and the historic moment of the London team.
After the end-of-season award ceremony and a show of gratitude from Crystal Palace, Arsenal players took turns stepping onto the field in enthusiastic cheers. The words "Champions 26" stand out on the uniforms of coach Mikel Arteta and the whole team.
Each player was called up to receive the medal before captain Martin Odegaard raised the championship trophy amidst red fireworks and glittering stripes covering Selhurst Park - a moment that will surely go down in Arsenal history.
That was the first time since 2004 that Arsenal was honored as the number one team in England. Arteta emotionally turned around with the trophy in his hand before raising it in the joy of the whole team. Arsenal's leadership, from Andrea Berta to Richard Garlick, also joined the festive atmosphere after a long and stressful journey.
This is also a beautiful ending for Kroenke Sports Enterprises - owners who were once strongly opposed by fans but ultimately reaped the fruits after many years of strong investment in Arteta and the team rejuvenation project.
Selhurst Park also became a symbol of Arsenal's journey of rise. In 2017, they lost miserably 0-3 here under Arsene Wenger in a crisis atmosphere. In 2022, Arteta also had to apologize to fans after a similar defeat.
Now, Arsenal is leaving Selhurst Park as the Premier League champion. Arteta made a series of squad changes when prioritizing preserving the force for the Champions League final against PSG. Kepa Arrizabalaga appeared in goal, Christian Norgaard started in midfield for the first time, and young talent Max Dowman went down in history as the youngest player to start in the Premier League at the age of 16.
Dowman also made his mark in Gabriel Jesus' opening goal before Noni Madueke doubled the gap at the beginning of the second half from a corner kick - Arsenal's 19th goal from set pieces this season.
Crystal Palace rallied strongly at the end of the match and Jean-Philippe Mateta narrowed the score to 1-2 in the 89th minute, but that could not prevent Arsenal from completing their 26th victory of the season.
Arteta's team finished the season with a 7-point gap from Man City and became the first team in Premier League history to spend the whole season without receiving a red card or being awarded a penalty.
More importantly, Arsenal has finally freed themselves from the pressure of the past to enter a new era, as the champion of England.
We had a great celebration last Tuesday. The atmosphere was great. Everyone was very happy. But we have an important final just one week away, so we will wait until after the match to organize a party" - Odegaard shared.
