This research used the expectancy-value theory to examine the extent to which three classes of motivation antecedents predicted secondary-school students' expectancies of success in English. To this end, it investigated four general motivation orientations, two school-related achievement motives, as well as autonomous and controlled reasons undergirding motivation to study English. The results of exploratory structural equation modeling (N = 3615) show that studying English for autonomous reasons and having a motivation orientation that focuses on advancement and gains (i.e., a promotion orientation) were the strongest predictors of expectancies of success in this school domain. These results, which are consistent with recent findings examining expectancies of success in mathematics, have important implications for research, learning, and teaching.