The sheer absurdity of the 2025-26 Championship season

On the final day of the Championship season, automatic promotion to the Premier League and the last spot in the playoffs were still up for grabs. Hull City, Wrexham and Derby County all had designs on making the playoffs, while one point separated Millwall from Ipswich Town in second place.

English football’s second tier is routinely described as the most competitive league in the world. That there was still jeopardy heading into the final fraught moments of the season is typical for this league, but this campaign has surely been one of the most roller-coaster seasons yet.

Ultimately, Hull City took the final playoff spot and will face Millwall over two legs in the semifinals (first leg on Friday at 3 p.m. ET / 8 p.m. BST), with the winner taking on one of Southampton or Middlesbrough (first leg Saturday at 7:30 a.m. ET / 12:30 p.m. BST) in the most lucrative game in football — the Championship playoff final, on May 23 at Wembley.

With Coventry City already planning for life in the Premier League and Ipswich securing the second automatic promotion spot, the playoffs will offer the final chapter of this frankly ridiculous campaign. Here are some of the reasons this season has been so memorable.

Hollywood story needs a Part 2

Wrexham were chasing a fourth successive promotion this season, having reached England’s second tier for the first time in 43 years. They completely reshaped their squad in the offseason, and after another campaign of glitz and Hollywood glamour, they finished seventh. Memorable moments included their 5-3 victories over Sheffield United and Ipswich and their FA Cup third-round penalty shootout win over Nottingham Forest; praise has to go to Phil Parkinson for the job he has done. At the Racecourse Ground on Saturday following their 2-2 draw with Middlesbrough there was disappointment, but also pride at what they had achieved.

Frank Lampard back in the big time

After a 25-year absence, Coventry are back in the Premier League just eight years after they were in the fourth tier of English football. Lampard found a home in the West Midlands in his first job since leaving the interim role at Chelsea in 2023 and has worked wonders with the Sky Blues. Their 7-1 walloping of QPR back in August set the tone for the rest of the season, with Haji Wright, Ephron Mason-Clark, Brandon Thomas-Asante, Victor Torp and Matt Grimes all excelling.

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Relegated in February

Sheffield Wednesday never stood a chance. They had 18 points deducted this season and started the campaign with just 12 senior players. Fans invaded the pitch midway through their 5-0 trouncing by Coventry in October, and by the end of that month, the club was in administration. By February 2026, the club were on a record winless run, soon to be relegated by local rivals Sheffield United.

They finished the season with a record 40 league matches without a win, though they finally got that elusive victory on the last day of the season. Reflecting the club’s chaos, they fielded six different keepers over the course of the 46-game campaign.

The points deductions

Sheffield Wednesday weren’t the only team to have points taken off them this year. West Brom had two points deducted, but stayed up thanks to miracle man James Morrison, who steered them to a 10-match unbeaten run. They had seven clean sheets in that spell despite a tiny squad littered with injuries. The other team to have points taken from them were Leicester City, who were deducted six in February for profit and sustainability breaches.

Speaking of Leicester, this campaign was meant to be one of celebration, 10 seasons on from when they won the Premier League. Instead, it has finished with them relegated, and one of their highest earners, Harry Winks, exchanging volleys of verbal abuse with fans. They’re managed by Gary Rowett, who started the season at Oxford United — meaning he holds the unwanted “honor” of managing two relegated teams in one campaign.

Stoking the rivalries

Midfielder Marcelino Núñez followed in the footsteps of Sol Campbell (Tottenham Hotspur to Arsenal) and Carlos Tevez (Manchester United to Manchester City) in swapping one club for its fiercest rival. At the end of the August transfer window, Núñez infuriated the entire Norwich City fanbase by moving 45 miles from Carrow Road to Portman Road, while Ipswich fans were left giddily wondering just how much schadenfreude it’s possible to gobble up. Ipswich then completed a double derby win for the first time in 33 years.

Drop it like it’s hot

We’re used to celebrities being the faces of teams, and this year we saw Snoop Dogg given a royal welcome at Swansea City, where he’s a co-owner. He was paraded around the Liberty Stadium ahead of their match with Preston, but the whole charade did not amuse opposition manager Paul Heckingbottom: “I think just the smell of weed in the tunnel is the only thing where we realized something was different.”

Welcome back, Roy

Similar to many of the other stories from this season, Bristol City pulled a rabbit out of the hat in March when new CEO Charlie Boss sacked Gerhard Struber and appointed 78-year-old formerly retired manager Roy Hodgson as his successor through to the end of the season. Sir Alex Ferguson told Hodgson he was “mad” to take the job, but he did a decent job at Ashton Gate and led the team to a top-half finish.

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Tonda Eckert’s breakthrough at Southampton

OK, be honest — how many of you outside of Hampshire had heard of former Germany analyst Eckert at the start of the season? Back then, he was Southampton’s under-21 head coach, with Will Still in charge of the first team.

But fast forward a few months and Still was gone, while Eckert had impressed as interim and landed the job on a full-time basis. He led the club to the FA Cup semifinals — a run that included knocking Arsenal out at the quarterfinals — and into the playoffs. On a personal note, Eckert scooped back-to-back Manager of the Month awards in February and March to add to his growing reputation.

The Tigers’ roar

Few would have put Hull in the playoff picture at the start of the season. Manager Ruben Selles was sacked, with Sergej Jakirovic the man appointed as his replacement. Given they are under a transfer embargo (excluding free transfers and loan deals) until January 2027, it was remarkable they reached the playoffs — and in such last-minute fashion, just as it looked like it was going to pass them by. Oh, and striker Oli McBurnie is now a certified Hull legend.

– Ogden: Leicester’s fall from grace: From PL champions to League One
– Hamilton: Wrexham made to wait as PL promotion hopes ended
– Connelly: Soccer’s Watchability Rankings: How much fun is your team?

Brady Blues

Only three clubs in the Championship spent more on transfers than Birmingham this season, but it wasn’t enough to get them promoted for the second season running. Tom Brady’s side saw a documentary broadcast — which included a withering assessment of former manager Wayne Rooney’s coaching technique from Brady — and ended up in midtable with the fourth-best home record in the league and fourth-worst away from home.

The Lions’ pride

Millwall’s run to finish third was astonishing. They were on the brink of automatic promotion until the last day, but now have to go through the playoffs. They last played in the top tier of English football in 1990, aka the “dark ages” before the start of the Premier League.

Director of football Steve Gallen has done a fine job, with manager Alex Neil working hard to expertly knit it all together. The team has a strong fighting spirit — center back Jake Cooper has been key — while they also kept the most clean sheets in the league (18). Forward Femi Azeez has been outstanding, and Josh Coburn and Tristan Crama have also impressed.

Zan Vipotnik, goal scorer extraordinaire

In this season of surprises, who would’ve predicted Swansea’s Slovenian striker would end up as the league’s top scorer? Last season, he finished with seven goals. This term, he has landed a new deal through to 2030 amid talk of Premier League clubs eyeing him up and finished with 23 goals.

Say hello, wave goodbye

Back in June, Middlesbrough welcomed Rob Edwards on a three-year deal. Five months later, he had led them to second in the table. All was well. Then Wolverhampton Wanderers came knocking, and Edwards packed his bags and left. The two clubs could well pass each other this summer — Middlesbrough will be hopeful of sealing promotion under Kim Hellberg, while Wolves were relegated back to the second tier after a dismal season.

All is forgiven

Chris Wilder loves Sheffield United and is quick to forgive. He was dismissed by the club last June, and ex-Hull manager Selles was appointed. Selles had a hellish 10-week spell in charge and was sacked on Sept. 14, 2025. Wilder was welcomed back with open arms — the third time he had taken charge of the club.

The playoff picture

Again, like so many of the above, you can count on one hand the number of people who would have predicted this quartet reaching the playoffs. Millwall, who have never reached the Premier League, will travel to Hull, with their transfer embargo. Southampton, who started the season with just two wins from their first 13 matches, will host Middlesbrough, who were top of the league in January but had a collapse of form. It’s just wonderful randomness, but as is the way with the Championship, expect plenty more drama as we see who will be the third side joining Coventry and Ipswich in reaching the promised land.