The road to the richest game in sport is underway as the Championship playoffs kicked off on Thursday on Paramount+ to see who will join Leeds United and Burnley in the Premier League next season. Sunderland, Coventry City, Sheffield United, and Bristol City are all on the road to Wembley Stadium for the promotion playoff final, which takes place on Saturday, May 21. The English Football League playoffs can all be found on Paramount+ as it will be quite a path to see who can make their way up the divisions.
History has already been made with Leeds United capturing the Championship title over Burnley on goal difference, but what’s even more astonishing is that both clubs accumulated 100 points. It’s the first time ever that two clubs have accumulated 100 points in the same division. Along with Birmingham City’s 100th-season, where they broke a world record for the most points in a season with 111, this is also the most teams ever to accumulate 100 points in the EFL at the same time.
The EFL playoffs can be a serious grind with 12 teams vying for only three promotion spots in each division, so every kick matters. In the Championship, Coventry have been in strong form under Frank Lampard, who oversaw a run of eight wins in nine matches from January to March to push the Sky Blues up the table. They’ll have a tough job in getting past Sunderland, but with the wobbles that the young Black Cats have experienced to end the season, form will favor Lampard’s men. After falling out of the race for the title, Sheffield United will need to take the playoff route to return to the Premier League, but if it doesn’t happen, they can take solace in Leeds United losing the playoff final last season before winning the league this season. Bristol City, meanwhile, needed to stage a dramatic two-goal comeback on Saturday to secure their place in the playoffs with a draw against Preston North End.
Sunderland till they return?
Wrexham isn’t the only Hollywood story in the EFL, with Sunderland having their own TV special following their journey after relegation from the Premier League in 2017. They took a tumble, landing all the way in League One, but now back in the Championship, the Black Cats are thriving under young players like Jobe Bellingham and Chris Rigg. Being a young team, they have hit a wall as of late, but if they can hold things level in a tough away trip facing Coventry, there’s a chance that they could make it to the final behind the Stadium of Light.
Carnage in League One
The race for the final spot in the Championship will be a fight as the League One playoffs are set. Stockport County and Leyton Orient have been some of the hottest teams in soccer, while Charlton have also pushed up the table. Promotion playoffs can favor the hottest team in the division, but when three of the four teams have been playing excellent soccer as of late, it could make for quite an affair to see who makes their way to the Championship.
Leyton Orient will be led by an American forward who has been lighting it up in Charlie Kelman. With 21 goals and five assists, the England-born United States youth international will be a key man that they look to in what will be a battle to join Wrexham and Birmingham City in the Championship.
Let’s take a look at how the EFL shook out and the playoff schedules, which can all be seen on Paramount+ :
Promoted to the Premier League
- Burnley
- Leeds United
Qualified for Championship Playoffs
- Bristol City
- Sheffield United
- Coventry City
- Sunderland
Championship playoff schedule
Thursday, May 8
- Bristol City 0, Sheffield United 3
Friday, May 9
- Coventry City 1, Sunderland 2
Monday, May 12
- Sheffield United 3, Bristol City 0
Tuesday, May 13
- Sunderland vs. Coventry City, 3 p.m. ET (Paramount+)
Saturday, May 24
Relegated to League One
- Luton Town
- Plymouth Argyle
- Cardiff City
Promoted to the Championship
- Birmingham City
- Wrexham
Qualified for League One playoffs
- Stockport County
- Charlton Athletic
- Wycombe Wanderers
- Leyton Orient
League One playoff schedule
Saturday, May 10
- Leyton Orient 2, Stockport County 2
Sunday, May 11
- Wycombe Wanderers 0, Charlton Athletic 0
Wednesday, May 14
- Stockport County vs. Leyton Orient, 3 p.m. ET (Paramount+)
Thursday, May 15
- Charlton Athletic vs. Wycombe Wanderers, 3 p.m. ET (Paramount+)
Sunday, May 25
Relegated to League Two
- Cambridge United
- Shrewsbury Town
- Bristol Rovers
- Crawley Town
Promoted to League One
- Doncaster Rovers
- Port Vale
- Bradford City
Qualified for League Two playoffs
- Walsall
- AFC Wimbledon
- Notts County
- Chesterfield
League Two playoff schedule
Sunday, May 11
- Chesterfield 0, Walsall 2
- Notts County 0, AFC Wimbledon 1
Friday, May 16
- Walsall vs. Chesterfield, 3 p.m. ET (Paramount+)
Saturday, May 17
- AFC Wimbledon vs. Notts County, 7:30 a.m. (Paramount+)
Monday, May 26
Relegated to the National League
- Carlisle United
- Morecambe
This news was originally published on this post .
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