Football writer Ben Bloom takes a look at everything you need to know about the Championship’s promotion-seekers, with three places in the 2025/26 Premier League campaign up for grabs.
The business end of the season has arrived, when the Championship’s leading sides fight it out for glory and a place in the Premier League.
As always, the champions and runners-up will be assured of their spots in the top tier with automatic promotion. Leeds United, Sheffield United and Burnley have been tussling over the top two places for much of the season; with eight matches remaining, only two points separate that trio.
Beneath them, a host of sides harbour hopes of securing a playoff place by finishing third, fourth, fifth or sixth in the Championship table.
Current Championship standings*
| Position | Team | GD | Pts |
| 1 | Leeds | +51 | 80 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Sheff Utd | +25 | 80 |
| 3 | Burnley | +41 | 78 |
| 4 | Sunderland | +18 | 69 |
| 5 | Coventry | +7 | 59 |
| 6 | West Brom | +14 | 57 |
| 7 | Bristol City | +8 | 57 |
| 8 | Middlesbrough | +9 | 54 |
* All clubs have played 38 of their 46 matches
The third-placed and sixth-placed teams will meet each other in a two-legged play-off semi-final, while the sides in fourth and fifth will do likewise. The two victors will then head to Wembley Stadium for the Championship playoff final, a winner-takes-all showdown on 24 May to seize the final Premier League spot.
Let's take a look at the sides who are currently in the Championship's top eight places, beginning with the front runners and promotion favourites.
First: Leeds United, 80 points
Relegated in 2022/23 after three seasons in the Premier League, Daniel Farke’s side finished third in last year’s Championship standings but missed out on an immediate return to the top flight when they were defeated by Southampton in the playoff final.
So far this season, Leeds' rise to the top of the Championship has been based on an abundance of goals. They have scored significantly more goals (76) than their rivals in a fascinating three-way tussle for the title, Sheff Utd (53) and Burnley (52). The next highest-scoring team are Norwich City with 60.
Leeds' goalscoring prowess is not dependent on one player. Joel Piroe has led the attack with aplomb, topping the club charts with 15 Championship goals, but Brenden Aaronson, Manor Solomon, Jayden Bogle, Pascal Struijk, Wilfried Gnonto and star man Daniel James have all notched at least five.
At the other end of the pitch, Leeds have only conceded 25 goals across their 38 matches so far, a tally only bettered by Burnley's incredible 11; this has contributed to the Championship leaders' incomparable goal difference of +51.
Farke is no stranger to earning promotion from the second tier as champions. He has done so twice before, winning the title with Norwich in 2018/19 and 2020/21.
Number of Premier League seasons: 15
Last Premier League season: 2022/23
Second: Sheffield United, 80 points
Sheff Utd have been the ultimate yo-yo club in recent years, not staying for longer than two seasons in either the Premier League or Championship since 2017/18.
The Blades finished bottom of the top flight last season, with Chris Wilder unable to keep them up after his appointment in December 2023 for a second spell in charge.
Wilder, a boyhood Sheff Utd supporter, has been credited with reconnecting the club with its fans this campaign, having taken them from League One to the Premier League during his previous stint at the helm.
Sheff Utd have won a competition-high 25 matches this season, with Vinicius Souza and Gustavo Hamer impressing in particular.
Wilder's side began the season with a two-point deficit for previous financial breaches, and an Easter Monday showdown with fellow title challengers Burnley could prove decisive.
Number of Premier League seasons: Six
Last Premier League season: 2023/24
Third: Burnley, 78 points
For Scott Parker’s Burnley, this season has been all about their defence. Over a period of 12 matches and more than 1,000 minutes – from Boxing Day until 4 March – Burnley did not concede a single Championship goal.
In the long history of the Football League, only Manchester United’s run of 14 successive clean sheets in 2008/09 lasted longer.
Burnley's defensive solidity has been built on newly called-up England goalkeeper James Trafford, who has combined with centre-back rocks Maxime Esteve and CJ Egan-Riley to concede a meagre 11 goals in 38 league matches.
Burnley, part-owned by NFL icon JJ Watt, remain firmly in the title race as they look to bounce back to the Premier League following last year’s relegation.
Number of Premier League seasons: Nine
Last Premier League season: 2023/24
Fourth: Sunderland, 69 points
For so long a mainstay of the Premier League, Sunderland experienced back-to-back relegations in 2016/17 and 2017/18 before spending four seasons in League One.
The Black Cats topped the Championship table for a period earlier this campaign, but they have faltered slightly of late and they now seem more likely to finish in fourth place – a position they have occupied since 26 November.
Sunderland manager Regis Le Bris has put his faith in a notably young team that includes Jobe Bellingham, who has been one of the league’s most impressive midfielders this campaign, and standout full-back Trai Hume.
French midfielder Enzo Le Fee made an immediate impact following his January loan move from Roma and could be crucial to their promotion hopes on his return from a current hamstring injury.
Number of Premier League seasons: 16
Last Premier League season: 2016/17
Fifth: Coventry City, 59 points
When Frank Lampard replaced the longest-serving EFL manager, Mark Robins, at the end of November, Coventry were hovering above the relegation zone in 17th place.
The subsequent upturn has been notable under a manager for whom many deemed this to be a final chance to impress in the dugout.
Coventry's run of form - 10 wins from their last 12 matches - has propelled Lampard’s side to the dizzying heights of fifth as they begin to dream of a possible return to the Premier League for the first time since 2000/01.
They still have to play four of the current top eight clubs, but have been boosted by the return of top scorer Haji Wright, who scored his ever first hat-trick in a 3-0 win over Sunderland last time out.
The American striker has 10 league goals despite missing almost four months with ankle-ligament damage.
Number of Premier League seasons: Nine
Last Premier League season: 2000/01
Sixth: West Bromwich Albion, 57 points
West Brom were beaten by Southampton in last year's playoff semi-finals, and are the current occupants of the last playoff spot on goal difference.
Carlos Corberan left West Brom before Christmas to take over at Valencia, with Tony Mowbray making an emotional return to the Hawthorns, having led the club to the Premier League during a previous spell as manager between 2006 and 2009.
Mowbray had stepped away from football management in February 2024 to undergo treatment for what was later revealed to be bowel cancer.
Now back at West Brom, he has stated that he hopes top scorer Josh Maja can return from injury in time to boost the club’s playoff push. In Maja’s absence, Southampton loanee Adam Armstrong has been tasked with scoring the goals., netting twice in eight appearances so far.
Number of Premier League seasons: 13
Last Premier League season: 2020/21
Seventh: Bristol City, 57 points
If Bristol City can navigate a route to and through the Championship playoffs, they would become the 52nd club to play in the Premier League, having not featured in England’s top flight since 1979/80.
The club have not participated in the Championship playoffs since their defeat to Hull City in the 2007/08 final, but manager Liam Manning has edged them ever higher up the table, from 12th at Christmas to their current position of seventh. They have lost just two of 16 league matches during that period.
Much of the Robins' joy has been built on their three-man centre-back partnership of Luke McNally, Rob Dickie and Zak Vyner. However, McNally was ruled out for the season when he suffered an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury last month.
Number of Premier League seasons: None
Last Premier League season: N / A
Eighth: Middlesbrough, 54 points
Free-scoring Middlesbrough are having to fight their way back into contention for promotion after they dropped from fifth to 13th place, following a dismal run of five successive league defeats across January and February.
Scoring goals has not really been a problem, with Finn Azaz proving to be one of the Championship’s standout attacking players, contributing to a league-high 21 goals this season (11 assists and 10 goals).
Tommy Conway and Emmanuel Latte Lath have also scored 10 times apiece in the league, while head coach Michael Carrick was boosted by the arrival of goalkeeper Mark Travers on loan from AFC Bournemouth in January.
After more than a decade in the Premier League from 1998/99, Middlesbrough were relegated in 2008/09 and have featured just once in the top flight since, being relegated again at the end of that 2016/17 season.
Blackburn Rovers, Watford, Millwall and Sheffield Wednesday all sit within three points of Carrick’s side, harbouring their own hopes of squeezing into the playoffs.
Number of Premier League seasons: 15
Last Premier League season: 2016/17
Key matches to look out for*
Friday 28 March
Sheffield United v Coventry City, 20:00 (GMT)
Saturday 29 March
Burnley v Bristol City, 15:00 (GMT)
Saturday 5 April
Coventry City v Burnley, 12:30
West Brom v Sunderland, 12:30
Tuesday 8 April
Bristol City v West Brom, 19:45
Middlesbrough v Leeds United, 20:00
Friday 18 April
Bristol City v Sunderland, 15:00
Coventry City v West Brom, 15:00
Monday 21 April
Burnley v Sheff Utd, 15:00
Saturday 26 April
Leeds v Bristol City, 15:00
Saturday 3 May
Coventry City v Middlesbrough, 12:30
*All kick-off times BST unless stated