The final three promoted EFL teams will be decided this weekend, as the play-off finals take place at Wembley across the bank holiday weekend.
It’s Sheffield United v Sunderland in the Championship, Leyton Orient v Charlton in League One and Walsall v AFC Wimbledon in League Two.
Here, we preview all three games through a historical and statistical lens…
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Championship: Sheffield United v Sunderland (Saturday, 3pm BST)
Two former champions of England go head-to-head in the so-called richest game in world football, as Sheffield United and Sunderland battle it out for a return to the Premier League.
Following relegation last term, Sheffield United – who thrashed Bristol City 6-0 on aggregate in the semi-finals – are aiming to bounce straight back – under the boss who took them up to the top flight automatically six years ago, Chris Wilder.
As for Sunderland – whose semi was rather more dramatic, culminating in a 122nd-minute winner by Dan Ballard against Coventry – they’ve been out of the big time since 2017, spending four seasons in the third tier before starting to climb the pyramid again.
Both clubs have experienced the respective ecstasy and agony of play-off final victory and defeat, but they’ve only ever known the latter at this level.
Sunderland have lost two out of two second-tier play-off finals (although they did go up in 1990 despite defeat to Swindon, who were denied promotion due to financial irregularities), Sheffield United three out of three. Something has to give.
League One: Leyton Orient v Charlton (Sunday, 1pm BST)
Leyton Orient and Charlton meet in the first-ever all-London League One play-off final – and just the third such clash in any EFL play-off final.
Orient – who overcame Stockport County on penalties after a 3-3 aggregate semi-final draw – are one win away from playing second-tier football for the first time in 43 years, having recorded their lowest-ever league finish of 13th in the National League only seven years ago.
Meanwhile, Charlton – who edged past Wycombe Wanderers 1-0 in a tense semi – have only been away from the Championship for five years – and they know what it’s like to triumph in this very game: the Addicks came from behind to beat Sunderland with a 94th-minute winner in 2019.
That victory saw Charlton maintain their 100% record in one-legged play-off finals – they also defeated Sunderland in an all-time classic second-tier final in 1998 – but Orient have lost three out of three play-off finals in that format, most recently on penalties to Rotherham United at this level in 2014.
League Two: AFC Wimbledon v Walsall (Monday, 3pm BST)
The 2024/25 play-offs conclude with AFC Wimbledon and Walsall fighting to make it back to League One after two and five seasons away respectively.
Both sides came through their semi-finals relatively comfortably – Wimbledon beating Chesterfield 4-1 on aggregate and Walsall dispatching Notts County 2-0 – but the pressure cranks up a notch now.
That’s probably especially true for Walsall, who were flying at the turn of the year, sitting 12 points clear of second place in League Two – never mind the play-offs. The Saddlers did win their only previous one-legged play-off final (against Cardiff in the third tier), though that was back in 2001.
