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 Wembley Stadium was the venue for eachplay-off final | |
| Season | 2024–25 |
|---|---|
| Premier League (Promoted) | Sunderland |
| EFL Championship (Promoted) | Charlton Athletic |
| EFL League One (Promoted) | AFC Wimbledon |
←2024 2026 → | |
TheEnglish Football League play-offs for the2024–25 season (referred to as theSky Bet Play-Offs for sponsorship reasons) were held in May 2025 with all finals being staged atWembley Stadium inLondon.
The play-offs begin in each league with two semi-finals which were played over two legs. The teams who finished in 3rd to 6th place in theChampionship andLeague One and the 4th to 7th-placed teams inLeague Two competed. The winners of the semi-finals advanced to the finals, with the winners gaining promotion for the following season.[1][2][3]
All finals were kicked off one minute late, with the extra minute added to highlight the Every Minute Matters campaign, a collaboration between EFL sponsorSky Bet and theBritish Heart Foundation which focused on the importance of learningCPR.[4]
TheEnglish Football League play-offs have been held every year since 1987. They take place for each division following the conclusion of the regular season and are contested by the four clubs finishing below the automatic promotion places. The fixtures are determined by final league position – in the Championship and League One this is 3rd v 6th and 4th v 5th, while in League Two it is 4th v 7th and 5th v 6th.
The final table was confirmed after the final matchday on 3 May 2025. Going into the final day,Sheffield United andSunderland had already confirmed both their place and finish in the play-offs at 3rd and 4th, respectively.Bristol City,Coventry City,Milwall,Blackburn Rovers, andMiddlesbrough were all in the hunt for the last two spots. Coventry City leapfrogged Bristol City to 5th after beatingMiddlesbrough which eliminated them from reaching the play-offs. Despite their draw with relegation-threatenedPreston North End,Bristol City finished 6th afterBlackburn Rovers drew againstSheffield United andMillwall lost to title challengersBurnley.
| Final league position – Championship | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 3 | Sheffield United | 46 | 28 | 8 | 10 | 63 | 36 | +27 | 90 |
| 4 | Sunderland | 46 | 21 | 13 | 12 | 58 | 44 | +14 | 76 |
| 5 | Coventry City | 46 | 20 | 9 | 17 | 64 | 59 | +5 | 69 |
| 6 | Bristol City | 46 | 17 | 17 | 12 | 59 | 55 | +4 | 68 |
Sheffield United won 6–0 on aggregate.
| Sunderland | 1–1 (a.e.t.) | Coventry City |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
|
Sunderland won 3–2 on aggregate.
The final table was confirmed after the final matchday on 3 May 2025. Going into the final day,Stockport County,Wycombe Wanderers andCharlton Athletic had already qualified for the play-offs. Charlton leapfrogged Wycombe on the final day after the Addicks beat Burton Albion, while the Chairboys lost to Stockport. The final day also saw a two-way battle betweenLeyton Orient andReading for the final spot, withLeyton Orient ahead on goal difference.Reading lost toBarnsley whileLeyton Orient beatHuddersfield Town to put the O's in the last play-off spot.
| Final league position – League One | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 3 | Stockport County | 46 | 25 | 12 | 9 | 72 | 42 | +30 | 87 |
| 4 | Charlton Athletic | 46 | 25 | 10 | 11 | 67 | 43 | +24 | 85 |
| 5 | Wycombe Wanderers | 46 | 24 | 12 | 10 | 70 | 45 | +25 | 84 |
| 6 | Leyton Orient | 46 | 21 | 13 | 12 | 82 | 64 | +18 | 78 |
| Stockport County | 1–1 (a.e.t.) | Leyton Orient |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
|
| Penalties | ||
| 1–4 | ||
3–3 on aggregate, Leyton Orient won 4–1 on penalties.
Charlton Athletic won 1–0 on aggregate.
The final table was confirmed after the final matchday on 3 May 2025. Going into the final day,Bradford City,Walsall, andNotts County had already secured a play-off place but they could still gain automatic promotion.Notts County eliminated themselves from automatic contention after losing to championsDoncaster Rovers.Bradford City then clinched the lone remaining automatic promotion spot with their 96th minute winner againstFleetwood Town, condemningWalsall - who were beatingCrewe Alexandra - to the playoffs. The remaining two places were under contention betweenAFC Wimbledon,Salford City,Grimsby Town,Chesterfield andColchester United.AFC Wimbledon clinched their spot with a win againstGrimsby Town, eliminating the Mariners and leapfroggingNotts County in the process.Chesterfield beatAccrington Stanley to clinch the final playoff spot afterSalford City andColchester United could only draw against relegatedCarlisle United andBarrow respectively.
| Final league position – League Two | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 4 | Walsall | 46 | 21 | 14 | 11 | 75 | 54 | +21 | 77 |
| 5 | AFC Wimbledon | 46 | 20 | 13 | 13 | 56 | 35 | +21 | 73 |
| 6 | Notts County | 46 | 20 | 12 | 14 | 68 | 49 | +19 | 72 |
| 7 | Chesterfield | 46 | 19 | 13 | 14 | 73 | 54 | +19 | 70 |
| Walsall | 2–1 | Chesterfield |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
|
Walsall won 4–1 on aggregate.
AFC Wimbledon won 2–0 on aggregate.
| AFC Wimbledon | 1–0 | Walsall |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
