Championship final day 2026: Everything you need to know
After 45 bruising, brilliant, occasionally bewildering games, the Championship season arrives at its final day on Saturday with enough drama packed into one afternoon to fuel a Netflix documentary series. One side has already popped the champagne. Literally everyone else is still sweating. Welcome to one of the greatest days in English football.
Championship clubs have it all still to play for on this thrilling final day
The Sky Blues are back
Before we get to the chaos, let’s talk about Coventry. Frank Lampard’s side have been crowned champions with 92 points and a goal difference of +48, returning to the top flight for the first time since their relegation in 2001, ending a 25-year exile from the Premier League. For a club that has spent significant chunks of that period in genuine financial turmoil, at one stage groundsharing with Birmingham City and almost dropping out of the Football League entirely, this is the kind of story that reminds you why sport matters.
Lampard’s men simply outscored everyone this season, with USMNT striker Haji Wright contributing significantly throughout the campaign. On the final day they travel to Watford, a match entirely free of consequence for the champions, who will be in full party mode. The rest of the division does not have that luxury.
🔵 𝗣𝗥𝗢𝗠𝗢𝗧𝗘𝗗!
— 365Scores (@365Scores) April 17, 2026
Coventry City are officially back in the Premier League! 🏆🔥
Led by Frank Lampard, the Sky Blues complete a brilliant journey and secure their place among England’s elite.
A season to remember and a new challenge awaits. 💪 pic.twitter.com/HcxV20JpmQ
One spot, three clubs, no margin for error
The second automatic promotion place is still completely open, and the permutations heading into Saturday are delightfully complicated. Ipswich Town go into the final day in the driving seat with 81 points and a goal difference of +30, Millwall are level on points but 13 goals worse off, and Middlesbrough sit one point behind on 79.
Ipswich face a QPR side in mid-table with nothing to play for. Millwall’s opponents Oxford United have already been relegated. Middlesbrough, meanwhile, face the toughest assignment of all: a Wrexham side still fighting for a playoff spot. Kieran McKenna’s Ipswich are firmly in control of their own destiny. A win guarantees promotion. A draw is enough if Millwall fail to win and Middlesbrough do not win by six or more goals.
Millwall’s situation is similarly straightforward on paper, if not emotionally. The Lions have never been in the Premier League and have not been in the top tier of English football since 1990. Beat a relegated Oxford side at the New Den and hope Ipswich slip up. That is all they can do. The crowd will be deafening.
Middlesbrough require the most extraordinary combination of results: win, Ipswich lose, and Millwall fail to win. Alternatively, win by six or more goals, Ipswich draw, and Millwall drop points. A six-goal winning margin is not impossible, but it requires a series of events that even the most optimistic Teessider would hesitate to bank on. Still, Kim Hellberg’s side have strung together some impressive recent form, and stranger things have happened on the final day of a Championship season.
Ipswich, it is worth noting, were relegated from the Premier League last season, and now stand on the brink of going straight back up. Football is nothing if not cyclical.
The playoffs: where Wrexham’s fairytale continues
Third through fifth are all certainly confirmed for the playoff semi-finals, with Southampton among those in the mix. But the race for sixth is an entirely different story, and it features perhaps the most romantic subplot in English football.
Wrexham currently occupy sixth place, with Hull in seventh and Derby in eighth, all three clubs harbouring hopes of the final playoff berth. Wrexham are eyeing an astounding fourth promotion in four seasons, having been playing non-league football as recently as 2023. Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney’s project has become one of the defining stories of modern football, and reaching the Championship playoffs in just their second season at this level would be the latest chapter in a remarkable ascent.
The irony is that Wrexham’s path to securing sixth runs directly through Middlesbrough, the same Middlesbrough who desperately need to win that game themselves to have any chance of automatic promotion. Both teams need three points from the same fixture. Derby and Hull are at home to mid-table sides with nothing to play for, meaning Wrexham face comfortably the most difficult task of the three playoff contenders.
Wrexham will secure a playoff spot with a win, provided Hull do not win by one more goal than they do. A draw is enough if both Hull and Derby fail to win. It is the kind of scenario that makes a second screen on a Saturday afternoon absolutely mandatory.
Leicester: a club in freefall
While clubs at the top end celebrate and plan, spare a thought for Leicester City. On 22 April 2026, Leicester were relegated to League One after a 2-2 draw with Hull City, confirming a second successive relegation that sends the club into the third tier of English football for the first time since 2009.
The club had been deducted six points in February 2026 for breaching Profit and Sustainability Rules, an appeal against which was dismissed in April. That deduction proved decisive. A side that lifted the Premier League trophy in 2016, reached the Champions League quarter-finals, and won the FA Cup in 2021, will now be playing at places like Stevenage and Barnsley next season. The contrast is almost too stark to process.
📉 LEICESTER CITY’S NIGHTMARE IS COMPLETE.
— 365Scores (@365Scores) April 21, 2026
After a draw with Hull City, the Foxes are officially relegated — from the Championship to League One.
From Premier League champions in 2016 to third-tier football in 2026. 💔 pic.twitter.com/XdMPkgQJsE
Leicester drop to League One alongside Oxford United and Sheffield Wednesday. West Bromwich Albion, who were deducted two points on 24 April 2026 for PSR breaches and face a further ongoing hearing, have provisionally secured safety, though the outcome of that hearing could yet complicate things further.
(Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images)
FAQs
When is the final day of the Championship 2025/26 season? All 12 Championship fixtures take place simultaneously on Saturday, 2 May 2026, with kick-off at 12:30pm.
Who has already been promoted from the Championship in 2025/26? Coventry City have been promoted as champions, returning to the Premier League for the first time since 2001.
Which clubs are fighting for the second automatic Championship promotion spot? Ipswich Town, Millwall, and Middlesbrough are all still in contention on the final day. Ipswich are in pole position going into Saturday.
Which teams have been relegated from the Championship in 2025/26? Leicester City, Oxford United, and Sheffield Wednesday have all been relegated to League One.
Why were Leicester City relegated from the Championship with a points deduction? Leicester were deducted six points in February 2026 for breaching Profit and Sustainability Rules. Their appeal was rejected in April 2026, and they were relegated shortly after.
Is Wrexham in the Championship playoffs? Wrexham currently sit in sixth place and can secure a playoff spot on the final day. They need a win, or for Hull City and Derby County to both fail to win.
When is the Championship playoff final in 2026? The Championship playoff final takes place at Wembley Stadium on Saturday, 23 May 2026.
What has Wrexham’s recent promotion record been? Wrexham have achieved three successive promotions since 2023, climbing from the National League to the Championship. A playoff place this season would represent a fourth promotion in four years.
By Nicky Helfgott – NickyHelfgott1 on X (Twitter)
Keep up with all the latest football news and Premier League news on 365Scores!
