| Season | 2009–10 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Newcastle United 1st Championship title 3rd2nd tier title |
| Promoted | Newcastle United West Bromwich Albion Blackpool |
| Relegated | Sheffield Wednesday Plymouth Argyle Peterborough United |
| Matches | 557 |
| Goals | 1,446 (2.6 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Peter Whittingham (22) |
| Biggest home win | Reading 6–0Peterborough |
| Biggest away win | Bristol City 0–6Cardiff City |
| Highest scoring | Peterborough 4–4Cardiff Derby 5–3Preston Bristol City 5–3Barnsley |
| Longest winning run | Newcastle United (7 games, twice)[1] |
| Longest unbeaten run | Nottingham Forest (19 games)[1] |
| Longest losing run | Plymouth Argyle (7 games)[1] |
| Highest attendance | 52,381[2] Newcastle United 2–2Ipswich Town |
| Lowest attendance | 4,995[1] Scunthorpe United 4–0Peterborough United |
| Average attendance | 18,119[2] |
2010–11 → | |

The2009–10 Football League Championship (known as theCoca-Cola Championship for sponsorship reasons) was the sixth season of the league under its current title and eighteenth season under its current league division format. It started on 7 August 2009.[3]
Promoted toPremier League
Relegated toLeague One
Relegated fromPremier League
Promoted fromLeague One
Note: "Amendments to the laws of the game 2009–2010" also applied[5]
1 Ground contains someterracing
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Queens Park Rangers | End of caretaker spell | 9 April 2009 | Pre-season | 3 June 2009 | ||
| Reading | Resigned | 12 May 2009 | 5 June 2009 | |||
| Watford | Signed byReading | 5 June 2009 | 15 June 2009 | |||
| Swansea City | Signed byWigan Athletic | 15 June 2009 | 23 June 2009 | |||
| West Bromwich Albion | Signed byCeltic | 16 June 2009 | 30 June 2009 | |||
| Barnsley | Sacked | 29 August 2009 | 24th | 11 September 2009 | ||
| Middlesbrough | 20 October 2009 | 3rd | 26 October 2009 | |||
| Peterborough United | Mutual consent | 9 November 2009 | 24th | 14 November 2009 | ||
| Plymouth Argyle | Promoted to business support | 10 December 2009 | 23rd | 10 December 2009 | ||
| Sheffield Wednesday | Sacked | 13 December 2009 | 22nd | 8 January 2010 | ||
| Reading | Mutual consent | 16 December 2009 | 21st | 27 January 2010 | ||
| Queens Park Rangers | 16 December 2009 | 14th | 17 December 2009 | |||
| Preston North End | Sacked | 29 December 2009 | 16th | 6 January 2010 | ||
| Queens Park Rangers | Mutual consent | 14 January 2010 | 20th | 1 March 2010 | ||
| Peterborough United | Sacked | 1 February 2010 | 24th | 1 February 2010 | ||
| Crystal Palace | Signed byQueens Park Rangers | 1 March 2010 | 21st | 2 March 2010 | ||
| Bristol City | Mutual consent | 18 March 2010 | 16th | 22 April 2010 | ||
| Peterborough United | 6 April 2010 | 24th | 6 April 2010 |
A total of 24 teams contested the division, including 18 sides remaining in the division from last season, three relegated from thePremier League, and three promoted from League One.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Newcastle United(C, P) | 46 | 30 | 12 | 4 | 90 | 35 | +55 | 102 | Promotion to thePremier League |
| 2 | West Bromwich Albion(P) | 46 | 26 | 13 | 7 | 89 | 48 | +41 | 91 | |
| 3 | Nottingham Forest | 46 | 22 | 13 | 11 | 65 | 40 | +25 | 79 | Qualification forChampionship play-offs |
| 4 | Cardiff City | 46 | 22 | 10 | 14 | 73 | 54 | +19 | 76 | |
| 5 | Leicester City | 46 | 21 | 13 | 12 | 61 | 45 | +16 | 76 | |
| 6 | Blackpool(O, P) | 46 | 19 | 13 | 14 | 74 | 58 | +16 | 70 | |
| 7 | Swansea City | 46 | 17 | 18 | 11 | 40 | 37 | +3 | 69 | |
| 8 | Sheffield United | 46 | 17 | 14 | 15 | 62 | 55 | +7 | 65 | |
| 9 | Reading | 46 | 17 | 12 | 17 | 68 | 63 | +5 | 63 | |
| 10 | Bristol City | 46 | 15 | 18 | 13 | 56 | 65 | −9 | 63 | |
| 11 | Middlesbrough | 46 | 16 | 14 | 16 | 58 | 50 | +8 | 62 | |
| 12 | Doncaster Rovers | 46 | 15 | 15 | 16 | 59 | 58 | +1 | 60 | |
| 13 | Queens Park Rangers | 46 | 14 | 15 | 17 | 58 | 65 | −7 | 57 | |
| 14 | Derby County | 46 | 15 | 11 | 20 | 53 | 63 | −10 | 56 | |
| 15 | Ipswich Town | 46 | 12 | 20 | 14 | 50 | 61 | −11 | 56 | |
| 16 | Watford | 46 | 14 | 12 | 20 | 61 | 68 | −7 | 54 | |
| 17 | Preston North End | 46 | 13 | 15 | 18 | 58 | 73 | −15 | 54 | |
| 18 | Barnsley | 46 | 14 | 12 | 20 | 53 | 69 | −16 | 54 | |
| 19 | Coventry City | 46 | 13 | 15 | 18 | 47 | 64 | −17 | 54 | |
| 20 | Scunthorpe United | 46 | 14 | 10 | 22 | 62 | 84 | −22 | 52 | |
| 21 | Crystal Palace | 46 | 14 | 17 | 15 | 50 | 53 | −3 | 49[a] | |
| 22 | Sheffield Wednesday(R) | 46 | 11 | 14 | 21 | 49 | 69 | −20 | 47 | Relegation toFootball League One |
| 23 | Plymouth Argyle(R) | 46 | 11 | 8 | 27 | 43 | 68 | −25 | 41 | |
| 24 | Peterborough United(R) | 46 | 8 | 10 | 28 | 46 | 80 | −34 | 34 |
| Semi-finals | Final atWembley | ||||||||||
| 6 | Blackpool | 2 | 4 | 6 | |||||||
| 3 | Nottingham Forest | 1 | 3 | 4 | |||||||
| 6 | Blackpool | 3 | |||||||||
| 4 | Cardiff City | 2 | |||||||||
| 5 | Leicester City | 0 | 3 | 3 | |||||||
| 4 | Cardiff City (p) | 1 | 2 | 3 | |||||||
| Leicester City | 0–1 | Cardiff City |
|---|---|---|
| (Report) |
Blackpool win 6–4 on aggregate
| Cardiff City | 2 – 3 (a.e.t.) | Leicester City |
|---|---|---|
| Chopra Whittingham | (Report) | |
| Penalties | ||
| Chopra McCormack Ledley Kennedy | 4–3 | |
Cardiff City 3–3 Leicester City on aggregate. Cardiff City win 4–3 on penalties
Blackpool are promoted to the Premier League
Fixtures for the 2009–10 season were announced byThe Football League on 17 June 2009.[3][7]
| Home \ Away | BAR | BLP | BRI | CAR | COV | CRY | DER | DON | IPS | LEI | MID | NEW | NOT | PET | PLY | PNE | QPR | REA | SCU | SHU | SHW | SWA | WAT | WBA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barnsley | 1–0 | 2–3 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 2–2 | 1–3 | 0–3 | 0–1 | 1–3 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 3–1 | |
| Blackpool | 1–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 3–0 | 2–2 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 3–1 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 2–0 | 4–1 | 3–0 | 1–2 | 5–1 | 3–2 | 2–3 | |
| Bristol City | 5–3 | 2–0 | 0–6 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–5 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 4–2 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–3 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 2–1 | |
| Cardiff City | 0–2 | 1–1 | 3–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 6–1 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 0–0 | 4–0 | 1–1 | 3–2 | 2–1 | 3–1 | 1–1 | |
| Coventry City | 3–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 3–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–3 | 2–1 | 3–2 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–4 | 0–0 | |
| Crystal Palace | 1–1 | 4–1 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 0–3 | 3–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 0–2 | 1–3 | 0–4 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 3–0 | 1–1 | |
| Derby County | 2–3 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–3 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 3–0 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 5–3 | 2–4 | 2–1 | 1–4 | 0–1 | 3–0 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 2–2 | |
| Doncaster Rovers | 0–1 | 3–3 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 3–3 | 0–1 | 1–4 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 4–3 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 2–1 | 2–3 | |
| Ipswich Town | 1–0 | 3–1 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 3–2 | 1–3 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 0–4 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 3–0 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 0–3 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | |
| Leicester City | 1–0 | 2–1 | 1–3 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 3–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 4–0 | 1–2 | 5–1 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 2–1 | 4–1 | 1–2 | |
| Middlesbrough | 2–1 | 0–3 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 3–1 | 0–1 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 3–0 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–5 | |
| Newcastle United | 6–1 | 4–1 | 0–0 | 5–1 | 4–1 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 2–1 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 3–1 | 3–1 | 3–0 | 1–1 | 3–0 | 3–0 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 2–0 | 2–2 | |
| Nottingham Forest | 1–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 3–2 | 4–1 | 3–0 | 5–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 3–0 | 5–0 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 2–4 | 0–1 | |
| Peterborough United | 1–2 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 4–4 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 0–3 | 1–2 | 3–1 | 1–2 | 2–2 | 2–3 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 3–2 | 3–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 2–3 | |
| Plymouth Argyle | 0–0 | 0–2 | 3–2 | 1–3 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 4–1 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 1–3 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 | |
| Preston North End | 1–4 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 3–0 | 3–2 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 2–2 | 0–1 | 3–2 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2–2 | 1–2 | 3–2 | 2–1 | 2–2 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 0–0 | |
| Queens Park Rangers | 5–2 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 1–5 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 4–0 | 4–1 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 3–1 | |
| Reading | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 3–0 | 2–4 | 4–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 6–0 | 2–1 | 4–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–3 | 5–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | |
| Scunthorpe United | 2–1 | 2–4 | 3–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 3–2 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 2–1 | 2–2 | 4–0 | 2–1 | 3–1 | 0–1 | 2–2 | 3–1 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 2–2 | 1–3 | |
| Sheffield United | 0–0 | 3–0 | 2–0 | 3–4 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 3–3 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 4–3 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 3–0 | 0–1 | 3–2 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2–2 | |
| Sheffield Wednesday | 2–2 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 3–1 | 2–0 | 2–2 | 0–0 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 1–3 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 0–2 | 4–0 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 2–1 | 0–4 | |
| Swansea City | 3–1 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 3–2 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 0–3 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 3–0 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 0–2 | |
| Watford | 1–0 | 2–2 | 2–0 | 0–4 | 2–3 | 1–3 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 3–3 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 3–1 | 3–0 | 3–0 | 3–0 | 4–1 | 0–1 | 1–1 | |
| West Bromwich Albion | 1–1 | 3–2 | 4–1 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 3–1 | 3–1 | 2–0 | 3–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–3 | 2–0 | 3–1 | 3–2 | 2–2 | 3–1 | 2–0 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 5–0 |
|
|
| Hat-tricks | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Nationality | For | Against | Result | Goals scored | Date | Ref |
| Shola Ameobi | Nigeria | Newcastle United | Reading | 3–0 | 3 | 15 August 2009 | |
| Michael Chopra | England | Cardiff City | Plymouth Argyle | 3–1 | 3 | 18 August 2009 | |
| Kevin Nolan | England | Newcastle United | Ipswich Town | 4–0 | 3 | 26 September 2009 | |
| Michael Chopra | England | Cardiff City | Derby County | 6–1 | 4 | 29 September 2009 | |
| Peter Whittingham | England | Cardiff City | Sheffield United | 4–3 | 3 | 24 October 2009 | |
| Darius Henderson | England | Sheffield United | Bristol City | 3–2 | 3 | 28 November 2009 | |
| Robert Earnshaw | Wales | Nottingham Forest | Leicester City | 5–1 | 3 | 5 December 2009 | |
| Freddy Eastwood | Wales | Coventry City | Peterborough United | 3–2 | 3 | 12 December 2009 | |
| Paul Gallagher | Scotland | Leicester City | Scunthorpe United | 5–1 | 3 | 13 February 2010 | |
| Month | Manager of the Month | Player of the Month | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manager | Club | Player | Club | ||
| August | Chris Hughton | Newcastle United | Shola Ameobi | Newcastle United | [26] |
| September | Chris Hughton | Newcastle United | Leon Best | Coventry City | [27][28] |
| October | Dave Jones | Cardiff City | Peter Whittingham | Cardiff City | [29][30] |
| November | Chris Hughton | Newcastle United | Darren Ambrose | Crystal Palace | [31][32] |
| December | Billy Davies | Nottingham Forest | Lee Camp | Nottingham Forest | [33][34] |
| January | Alan Irvine | Sheffield Wednesday | Charlie Adam | Blackpool | [35][36] |
| February | Nigel Pearson | Leicester City | Paul Gallagher | Leicester City | [37] |
| March | Brian McDermott | Reading | Gylfi Sigurðsson | Reading | [38][39] |
| April | Chris Hughton | Newcastle United | Kevin Nolan | Newcastle United | [38][40] |
During a game between Bristol City and Crystal Palace,Freddie Sears scored a goal that ricocheted off thestanchion and went back out, but the linesman didn't see the goal and so it was disallowed.[41] Crystal Palace managerNeil Warnock called for a replay.[42] Following the game, the three officials were suspended until it could be solved.[43]
The tie betweenPlymouth and Barnsley was abandoned after 58 minutes because of heavy rain affecting the pitch. Barnsley were winning 4–1 and managerMark Robins argued that it was a "let off" for Plymouth and that the travelling Barnsley fans should be reimbursed.[44] The postponed match took place on 30 March, where it ended in a 0–0 draw.[45]
On 27 January 2010, the Football League had announced that Crystal Palace had been placed intoadministration andSheffield firm P&A Partnership were appointed as administrators for the club. Palace were docked ten points and dropped from 9th to 21st.[46] They managed to survive another season in the Championship, but only after drawing 2–2 with Sheffield Wednesday on the final day and confined Wednesday to League One football in 2010–11.[47]