Beating Bournemouth 4–1 was the perfect way to say farewell to a year of change, but 2025 was still undoubtedly one to celebrate. There was hardly a dull moment in TW8; however, significant departures and a major reshuffle from front to back will be how it will be remembered most. Thankfully, most of that churn is now behind us, and with the club in a more settled position of relative safety and Premier League security, this feels like the right time to look ahead.
Ask Brentford fans what would make them happy football-wise in 2026 and you understandably don’t get one unanimous answer — you get a glorious mix of ambition, nostalgia, petty west London rivalry and FA Cup-induced daydreaming. From Brisbane to Braemar Road, Bees fans had their say, and the responses paint a picture of a fanbase that knows how far we’ve come, but still wants more.
On the face of it, it’s not a complicated question… What would actually make being a Brentford fan in 2026 feel properly satisfying — not just acceptable, but joyful… more than just pure survival, yet less than signing Erling Haaland? So Beesotted thought we’d ask the Bees faithful via our myriad WhatsApp groups and thriving Twitter and Facebook feeds.
What came back was pure West London realism: hopeful without getting carried away, ambitious but grounded, nostalgic in the right places — and absolutely loaded with FA Cup fever and Fulham-related spite.
Let’s not mess about — the FA Cup is top of the pile.
This magical competition has got its hooks into many of us, it would appear. For Bees fans Russell Turner, Kevin Hennessy and Ken Bromage, there’s no two ways about it — they want to win it. Ian Westbrook is even clearer, saying he just wants to see Brentford lift a major trophy in his lifetime. No long-term strategy chat, no “good run” nonsense — just silverware before he croaks it.
Others are happy to take the more scenic route. Jay Bee wants a semi-final and a Wembley day out — though admits that if we got that far and didn’t make the final, it would feel like football cruelty of the highest order. Nigel Miller spells it out perfectly: a bit of luck with the draw, a run to at least the semi-finals, an improving style of play and a comfortable 10th-place finish — with Kevin Schade catching fire and banging in 12 second-half goals along the way. That’s not asking too much for 2026, is it?
Andy Baylis is refreshingly honest, admitting that over a league season we probably can’t better top 10 — but cup football is different. “Bugger me,” he says, “those playoffs may have scarred me,” but they also gave him a taste for knockout drama and eventual final-day victory he wants to repeat. Matt Allard, Marc Biggs and Steve Head don’t overcomplicate it — FA Cup semi-final… and then let’s see.
Ali Mulally fancies a Cup run led by a back-from-the-dead Josh Dasilva, while Jim Rourke makes the sensible point that the real trick is banking enough Premier League points early on so we can stop rotating half the team out of the Cup and actually have a proper go at it. That sounds like a plan!
Rob Brown sums it all up with classic Brentford fan efficiency — beat Fulham and take the FA Cup seriously. In that order.
As for the league — fans want comfort, not heart palpitations.
There’s no clamour for title challenges or such nonsense talk. What people want is a season that feels under control. Bob Burgess paints a lovely picture: a comfortable mid-table finish, an unbeaten run at home in 2026, Romelle Donovan emerging as a genuine breakout star — and Fulham going down. Obviously.
Jay Bee, Sean Algar, Peter Madden and Lewis Holmes all talk about lofty top-half finishes, while Steve C adds a bit of spreadsheet logic to the dream — top half, 12 points clear of 18th, Igor Thiago finishing as top scorer outside the so-called Super Six, and at least one £60m summer sale to keep the whole thing ticking over nicely.
Dr Will and Alex Drake both land in that sensible 8th–12th bracket, with Drake neatly listing his demands — reinforce the attack, give the FA Cup a proper go, and finish 12th or better. Tony Old Mead delivers one of the most grounded takes of all, arguing that 12th–15th would be a cracking result after last summer’s clear-out. He wants Keith Andrews to really start shaping the team style-wise, contracts sorted one way or another, an active summer — and like many others, he just wants to see Josh Dasilva running at a scared defence again.
At the bolder end, BR3N7FORD wants us sniffing around the top six before our best youngsters “get bored and start eyeing up bigger pay packets,” while Nicky Ferguson says the quiet bit out loud — Europe!
If there’s one thing fans agree on without hesitation, it’s this — play the kids.
Kieran Maher-Smith kicks it off by calling for more minutes for Nunes, Konak, Arthur and Donovan. That idea gathers pace quickly. Dr Will talks about strengthening the squad by playing and developing young talent, not blocking it. Jon Restall wants to see genuine progression from B-team players, also naming Donovan, Konak and Arthur as the ones everyone’s watching.
Daniel Buzzard makes the sustainability argument with real feeling. Brentford didn’t get here by playing safe — “we were told we’d be doomed when we trusted Keith Andrews, and look how that turned out.” If the club is serious about its identity, he argues, it has to accept the bumps that come with trusting youth.
Bob Burgess tips Donovan as a breakout star, while Robin Hood goes full folk hero, predicting Donovan will score the winner against Fulham that guarantees we finish above Spurs. You can already hear the Bees Up Fulham Down! song echoing around the Gtech.
Sara Lowenthal wants Andrews to be braver — especially with Benjamin Arthur — and hopes the eventual return of Fabio and Milambo from injury next summer reminds everyone what we’ve been missing.
Goals help. A lot.
Several fans agree that happiness in 2026 involves Igor Thiago hitting 20-plus goals. Richard Mewes wants the front three to click like a new BMW — with Thiago netting 20 and Damsgaard finally finding his rhythm. Sean Algar ups the stakes — Thiago on 20+, Schade on 15+, Damsgaard back to last season’s form — and adds that anyone calling for Championship football again should have their season ticket quietly reallocated. There’s a surprising number of those still yearning for the old lower league days, as we will read later.
Beesarmy wants Thiago hitting 20 while we beat Spurs on New Year’s Day — and casually throws in “seeing Hendo holding the World Cup”, because ambition is free. We’d all drink to that, even if few could afford to actually be in the ground in the States in July.
Recruitment still matters!
Tommy L Yeah! wants a monster centre-back. Jim Levack wants a tricky winger to feed Thiago. Chris Page boils it down to two attacking midfielders and a striker. David Wilson worries about the midfield engine room and wants real upgrades if we’re serious about progressing.
Paul “Yeti” Deller, obviously not one for subtlety, wants a proper “nasty bastard of a centre-mid — someone who just wants to give out a right shoeing, protect Damsgaard, and generally make life unpleasant — plus a ten-year deal for Kayode while we’re at it.”
Some happiness is about familiar faces and overdue recognition.
Lewis Coghlin, Nick Kilby, Ali Mulally and Tony Old Mead all want Josh Dasilva back and properly involved — not just fit, but flying. Steve C wants Keith Andrews to get the recognition he deserves, while Victor Shieh just wants what he describes as an inevitable moment when Ethan Pinnock rises above everyone and nods home a Kayode missile. Meanwhile Brentford Buzz wants even more familiar faces and demands the return of Ivan Toney and Thomas Frank!
And yes — Fulham. They get a few mentions!
Rob Brown, Bob Burgess, Robin Hood and Anthony Harris all make it clear. Fulham misery would bring genuine joy. Relegation is ideal, but any form of suffering will do.
The matchday stuff still matters too — because football isn’t just the football.
Philip N wants chips back at the Gtech. Lou Boyd wants a return of beef burgers. Mkwultra wants red seats. Naomi Fairman, having endured her second brown away kit in a decade, politely but firmly asks for literally any other colour. Liberal Nick just wants kick-off times that allow people to actually get to games — radical thinking, that. But he does live in Devon.
And finally, the pull of Griffin Park never really goes away.
Jan Smith dreams of waking up to find the Premier League was all a bad dream — Griffin Park still standing, Gillingham away tomorrow. David Terry wants a time machine to take us back to GP too, while Sandra Allardyce wants no VAR, no stolen TAPS, the family-friendly club restored — and a few people quietly moved on, singling out Jon Varney for a P45, which doesn’t seem very ‘season of goodwill’ to me.
So, after all that… what would make Brentford fans happy in 2026?
Progress without panic. Youth without fear. Goals, cup runs, Fulham tears, edible food and sensible kick-off times — and maybe, just maybe, a trophy to stick in the cabinet. Although we may need a cabinet first to be honest.
Personally, assuming our top-flight status is assured, I’d love to see the Bees complete their Premier League Top Trumps and win away at Anfield and Old Trafford in 2026.
Come On You Bees!
Dave Lane
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