The Championship play-offs provide fans with an end-of-season thrill, with four teams battling it out to see who can claim the ultimate prize of promotion to the Premier League. With the winner getting the chance to play against some of the biggest clubs in the world, and seeing a huge increase in revenue thanks to the lucrative TV deals on offer, it's a great way to end a long and difficult campaign.
The 2023/24 Championship campaign has come to an end, confirming the formation of the play-off semi-finals and possible promotion paths for the four clubs involved.
Leeds United will face Southampton after comfortable second-leg wins over Norwich City and West Bromwich Albion respectively.
Football FanCast looks ahead to details regarding the upcoming 2024 EFL Championship play-offs.
How the Championship play-offs work
The Championship play-offs consist of two semi-finals; The team that finished in third place plays for sixth, and the team that finished in fourth place plays for fifth.
One team wins each semi-final, played over two legs home and away, with the team leading on aggregate after 180 minutes of football (or more) progressing to the final. The team that finished lower will be at home in the first leg, while the team that finished higher will be at home in the return leg to decide.
In the event of a tie on the scoreboard after 180 minutes of football, the match will be decided by extra time and possibly penalties if the scores are level after another 30 minutes.
Whoever comes out on top in both games will meet at Wembley Stadium to fight for the Championship play-offs trophy and promotion to the Premier League. Extra time and penalties are required if both teams are tied at the end of 90 minutes, the losing team remains in the Championship.
The final standings of the EFL Championship
Four teams entered the Championship play-offs for the 2023/24 season after the end of the regular season.
Leicester City and Ipswich Town have officially stamped their rubber stamps; who were champions despite losing on the last day, and these confirmed their return to the top division after a 22-year absence.
In terms of play-off places, Ipswich's victory meant Leeds had to settle for the play-offs, while West Brom won on the final day to ease widespread fears of a top-six exit. Southampton and Norwich City are the remaining six.
|
Championship final table for 2023/24 |
|||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Pos |
The team |
P |
W |
D |
L |
GD |
PTS |
|
1 st |
Leicester |
46 |
31 |
4 |
11 |
+48 |
97 |
|
Second time |
Ipswich |
46 |
28 |
12 |
6 |
+35 |
96 |
|
3rd |
Leeds |
46 |
27 |
9 |
10 |
+38 |
90 |
|
4th |
Southampton |
46 |
26 |
9 |
11 |
+24 |
87 |
|
5 of |
West Brom |
46 |
21 |
12 |
13 |
+23 |
75 |
|
6 of |
Norwich |
46 |
21 |
10 |
15 |
+15 |
73 |
Related
Championship table – Latest EFL standings for the 2023/2024 season
The latest standings for the English Football League Championship 2023/2024.
Match dates for the 2024 tournament
The 2023/24 Championship play-offs will be held from 12-17 May 2024before the final Sunday 26th May.
|
The day |
Repair |
Time |
|---|---|---|
|
Sunday, May 12 |
Norwich City 0-0 Leeds United |
12 p.m |
|
Sunday, May 12 |
West Bromwich Albion 0-0 Southampton |
2.15 pm |
|
Thursday, May 16 |
Leeds United 4-0 Norwich City |
8 p.m |
|
Friday, May 17 |
Southampton 3-1 West Bromwich Albion |
8 p.m |
The 2023/24 Championship play-off final has been announced Sunday 26th Maywill start at 3pm.
The play-off final is part of the national stadium's busy summer schedule, with Wembley also hosting the Champions League final on June 1.
|
Championship play-off final 2023/24 |
|
|---|---|
|
The day |
26 May 2024 |
|
Time |
3 p.m |
|
Location |
Wembley Stadium |
|
Power |
90,000 |
Where to watch the 2024 Championship play-offs on UK TV and live streaming
The tournament play-offs will be broadcast live on Sky Sports, and on Sky Go if you want to stream online.
However, if you are based in the US, the Championship play-offs are available to watch and streamed live on ESPN+ and the ESPN network.
How and where to buy Championship final tickets
Leeds United
After their victory over Norwich City, Leeds were allocated 35,796 tickets for Wembley's East End, with prices ranging from £18.50 to £105. Tickets can only be purchased through the club's website and will be available for purchase in stages starting Saturday morning, as the table below shows.
|
Leeds United: Last match ticket details |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Section |
The day |
Time |
Tickets are open |
|
1 |
Saturday 18th May |
10.30am |
2023/24 Hospitality Members for the 2023/24 Season |
|
2 |
Monday 20th May |
10.30am |
2023/24 All My Leeds Members who have purchased a ticket for 9 or more games in the 2023/24 season. |
Both ticketing times close on 12pm Tuesday 21st May. If there are any tickets left at the moment, the club will announce the next steps on its website, where full ticket information can be found.
Southampton
Southampton will update their ticket details for the final in due course.
What is the number of Championship play-off finals
Often referred to as 'the richest game in football', the play-off final is worth huge sums of money for the winner as they get the chance to move on to one of the biggest and best leagues in the world.
Ahead of the 2020 Championship play-off final, Deloitte reported that the winners of the Championship play-offs could receive prize money of anywhere between £135m and £265m, depending on whether they can avoid immediate relegation from the Premier League.
How does Premier League prize money work?
Around £2.2m is awarded for each place in the table, with clubs receiving additional income through other sources of income such as sponsorship. A significant part of these additions are found in obtaining a piece of the broadcast pot, which grows every year.
To explain further, the broadcast pot depends on how many live TV matches the club is involved in, so the likes of Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool this year will get more than others, simply because the title race has led to the matches involving these sides being chosen for the selection of -TV.
A Premier League club is more attractive to sponsors than a club in the Championship, so there may be an opportunity to earn more money with this.
Parachute fees are explained
The Premier League used parachute payments in the 2006–07 season in an attempt to reduce the financial strain a relegated club would face if relegated to the Championship.
The Premier League pays relegated clubs from the English Football League on a systematic basis during the seasons following relegation. In their first season in the Championship, the club receives 55% of what it would have received under the Premier League's basic TV deal for each club. Then they earn 45% in the second year after the decline. In the third year, they will receive 20% if the team was in the Premier League for more than one season before being relegated.
Last year's Championship play-off final
After the conclusion of the 2022/23 Championship regular season, Luton Town, Coventry City, Middlesbrough and Sunderland are fighting for a place in the Premier League.
Luton eventually came back from the first leg to book their place in the Championship final with a 3-2 aggregate victory over Sunderland. Meanwhile, Coventry secured their place in the final by beating Boro 1-0 on aggregate.
And the final did not disappoint as a packed Wembley Stadium proved Luton won 6-5 on penalties after the two sides drew 1-1 at the end of normal and extra time.
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