Championship playoffs 2025: Fixtures, dates and teams in the race ...
Complete guide to the 2024-25 Championship playoffs, including dates, fixtures, teams and how to watch the games live on TV
www.goal.comHere’s the latest I can provide on the 2025 EFL Championship play-off final.
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Result and context: The 2025 Championship play-off final was held on 24 May 2025 at Wembley Stadium in London. Sunderland defeated Sheffield United 2-1 to secure promotion to the 2025–26 Premier League. This completed Sunderland’s return to the top flight for the first time since 2017.[1][3]
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Final details: The final is part of the EFL play-offs, which determine the third promotion spot after the regular season’s top two teams gain automatic promotion. The final is a single match at Wembley, with extra time and penalties used if needed. Sunderland’s two late goals clinched the win in stoppage-time of the second half. Attendance was 82,718.[3][1]
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Route to the final (summary):
- Semi-finals involved four teams (Sheffield United, Sunderland, Coventry City, Bristol City) with two-legged ties. Sheffield United advanced to Wembley with a 6–0 aggregate over Bristol City, while Sunderland progressed by beating Coventry City on aggregate to reach the final.[1]
- The semi-final results are summarized as: Sheffield United 3–0 Bristol City (first leg) and 3–0 second leg; Sunderland beat Coventry City 3–2 on aggregate after a 2–1 first leg and 1–1 second leg.[1]
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Context and significance: The win marked Sunderland’s return to the Premier League after an eight-year absence. The event is often called the “richest game in football” due to associated prize income for promotion. The final is historically hosted at Wembley and forms part of the series of play-off finals across the Championship, League One, and League Two.[3][1]
If you’d like, I can pull a concise timeline of the exact semi-final scorelines or provide a quick comparison of the 2024 and 2025 finals for context.