2025–26 EFL Championship
| Season | 2025–26 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 8 August 2025 – 2 May 2026 |
| Matches | 251 |
| Goals | 668 (2.66 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Adam Armstrong (Southampton) (11 goals) |
| Biggest home win | Coventry City 7–1 Queens Park Rangers (23 August 2025) |
| Biggest away win | Sheffield Wednesday 0–5 Coventry City (4 October 2025) |
| Highest scoring | Derby County 3–5 Coventry City (16 August 2025) Coventry City 7–1 Queens Park Rangers (23 August 2025) |
| Longest winning run | Coventry City (6 games) |
| Longest unbeaten run | Coventry City (12 games) |
| Longest winless run | Sheffield Wednesday (14 games) |
| Longest losing run | Norwich City Sheffield United (6 games) |
| Highest attendance | 32,740 Sheffield Wednesday 0–3 Sheffield United (23 November 2025) |
| Lowest attendance | 7,081 Sheffield Wednesday 0–1 Middlesbrough (22 October 2025) |
| Total attendance | 5,492,237 |
| Average attendance | 21,881 |
← 2024–25 2026–27 →
All statistics correct as of 19 December 2025. | |
The 2025–26 EFL Championship (referred to as the Sky Bet Championship for sponsorship purposes) is the 10th season of the EFL Championship under its current title and the 34th season under its current league division format.
The 2025–26 season consists of 33 weekend rounds, 9 midweek rounds, and 4 bank holiday rounds.[1]
Team changes
The following teams have changed division since the 2024–25 season:
To ChampionshipPromoted from League One Relegated from the Premier League |
From ChampionshipPromoted to the Premier League Relegated to League One
|
Stadiums and locations
- Note: Table lists in alphabetical order.
Personnel and sponsoring
| Team | Manager | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor(s) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Main | Other(s) | ||||
| Birmingham City | Chris Davies | Christoph Klarer[2] | Nike | Undefeated[3] | List
|
| Blackburn Rovers | Valérien Ismaël | Todd Cantwell | Macron | Watson Ramsbottom Solicitors | |
| Bristol City | Gerhard Struber | Jason Knight | O'Neills | Fever[5] | List
|
| Charlton Athletic | Nathan Jones | Greg Docherty[6] | Reebok[7] | RSK Group[8] | List
|
| Coventry City | Frank Lampard | Matt Grimes[9] | Hummel[10] | Monzo[11] | List
|
| Derby County | John Eustace | Lewis Travis[13] | Puma | FanHub | List
|
| Hull City | Sergej Jakirović | Lewie Coyle | Kappa | Corendon Airlines[14] | List
|
| Ipswich Town | Kieran McKenna | Dara O'Shea[15] | Umbro | Halo Service Solutions[16] | List
|
| Leicester City | Martí Cifuentes | Ricardo Pereira | Adidas[17] | BC.GAME[18] | List
|
| Middlesbrough | Kim Hellberg | Dael Fry | Castore[19] | Unibet[20] | List
|
| Millwall | Alex Neil | Jake Cooper | Erreà | MyGuava | List
|
| Norwich City | Philippe Clement | Kenny McLean | Joma[21] | Blakely Clothing[22] | List
|
| Oxford United | Gary Rowett | Cameron Brannagan | Macron | Baxi | List
|
| Portsmouth | John Mousinho | Marlon Pack | Nike | University of Portsmouth | List
|
| Preston North End | Paul Heckingbottom | Benjamin Whiteman | Castore | SpudBros[23] | List
|
| Queens Park Rangers | Julien Stéphan | Jimmy Dunne | Erreà[24] | CopyBet[25] | List
|
| Sheffield United | Chris Wilder | Japhet Tanganga | Erreà | Midnite[26] | List
|
| Sheffield Wednesday | Henrik Pedersen | Barry Bannan | Macron | Mr Vegas[27] | List
|
| Southampton | Tonda Eckert | Jack Stephens[28] | Puma[29] | P&O Cruises[30] | List
|
| Stoke City | Mark Robins | Ben Gibson | Macron | bet365 | TBA |
| Swansea City | Vítor Matos | Ben Cabango | Joma[31] | Reviva Coffee[32] | List
|
| Watford | Javi Gracia | Imrân Louza | Kelme | MrQ.com | List
|
| West Bromwich Albion | Ryan Mason | Jed Wallace | Macron[33] | Ideal Heating | List
|
| Wrexham | Phil Parkinson | James McClean | Macron[34][35] | United Airlines[36][37] | List
|
Managerial changes
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in the table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Norwich City | Jack Wilshere | End of interim spell | 3 May 2025 | Pre-season | Liam Manning[38] | 3 June 2025 |
| West Bromwich Albion | James Morrison | Ryan Mason[39] | 2 June 2025 | |||
| Watford | Tom Cleverley[40] | Sacked | 6 May 2025 | Paulo Pezzolano[41] | 13 May 2025 | |
| Hull City | Rubén Sellés[42] | 15 May 2025 | Sergej Jakirović[43] | 11 June 2025 | ||
| Southampton | Simon Rusk | End of interim spell | 25 May 2025 | Will Still[44] | 25 May 2025 | |
| Bristol City | Liam Manning[38] | Signed by Norwich City | 3 June 2025 | Gerhard Struber[45] | 19 June 2025 | |
| Middlesbrough | Michael Carrick[46] | Sacked | 4 June 2025 | Rob Edwards[47] | 24 June 2025 | |
| Sheffield United | Chris Wilder[48] | Mutual consent | 18 June 2025 | Rubén Sellés[49] | 18 June 2025 | |
| Queens Park Rangers | Martí Cifuentes[50] | 24 June 2025 | Julien Stéphan[51] | 25 June 2025 | ||
| Leicester City | Ruud van Nistelrooy[52] | 27 June 2025 | Martí Cifuentes[53] | 15 July 2025 | ||
| Sheffield Wednesday | Danny Röhl[54] | 29 July 2025 | Henrik Pedersen[55] | 31 July 2025 | ||
| Sheffield United | Rubén Sellés[56] | Sacked | 14 September 2025 | 24th | Chris Wilder[57] | 15 September 2025 |
| Watford | Paulo Pezzolano[58] | 8 October 2025 | 11th | Javi Gracia[58] | 8 October 2025 | |
| Southampton | Will Still[59] | 2 November 2025 | 21st | Tonda Eckert[a][60] | 2 November 2025 | |
| Norwich City | Liam Manning[61] | 8 November 2025 | 23rd | Philippe Clement[62] | 18 November 2025 | |
| Swansea City | Alan Sheehan[63] | 11 November 2025 | 18th | Vítor Matos[64] | 24 November 2025 | |
| Middlesbrough | Rob Edwards[65] | Signed by Wolverhampton Wanderers | 12 November 2025 | 2nd | Kim Hellberg[66] |
- ^ Eckert was initially named interim manager before being appointed on a permanent basis on 5 December 2025.
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Coventry City | 21 | 14 | 5 | 2 | 52 | 22 | +30 | 47 | Promotion to the Premier League |
| 2 | Middlesbrough | 21 | 12 | 6 | 3 | 33 | 22 | +11 | 42 | |
| 3 | Preston North End | 21 | 9 | 8 | 4 | 29 | 22 | +7 | 35 | Qualification for the Championship play-offs |
| 4 | Millwall | 21 | 10 | 5 | 6 | 25 | 29 | −4 | 35 | |
| 5 | Ipswich Town | 21 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 35 | 22 | +13 | 34 | |
| 6 | Hull City | 21 | 10 | 4 | 7 | 36 | 35 | +1 | 34 | |
| 7 | Stoke City | 21 | 10 | 3 | 8 | 28 | 20 | +8 | 33 | |
| 8 | Leicester City | 21 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 30 | 27 | +3 | 31 | |
| 9 | Queens Park Rangers | 21 | 9 | 4 | 8 | 28 | 33 | −5 | 31 | |
| 10 | Southampton | 21 | 8 | 6 | 7 | 35 | 30 | +5 | 30 | |
| 11 | Bristol City | 21 | 8 | 6 | 7 | 28 | 24 | +4 | 30 | |
| 12 | Derby County | 21 | 8 | 6 | 7 | 30 | 29 | +1 | 30 | |
| 13 | Birmingham City | 21 | 8 | 5 | 8 | 30 | 26 | +4 | 29 | |
| 14 | Watford | 21 | 7 | 8 | 6 | 30 | 28 | +2 | 29 | |
| 15 | Wrexham | 22 | 6 | 10 | 6 | 27 | 27 | 0 | 28 | |
| 16 | West Bromwich Albion | 21 | 8 | 4 | 9 | 25 | 28 | −3 | 28 | |
| 17 | Swansea City | 22 | 7 | 5 | 10 | 24 | 30 | −6 | 26 | |
| 18 | Charlton Athletic | 20 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 20 | 26 | −6 | 24 | |
| 19 | Sheffield United | 21 | 7 | 2 | 12 | 25 | 31 | −6 | 23 | |
| 20 | Blackburn Rovers | 20 | 6 | 4 | 10 | 20 | 26 | −6 | 22 | |
| 21 | Portsmouth | 20 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 17 | 27 | −10 | 20 | |
| 22 | Oxford United | 21 | 4 | 7 | 10 | 22 | 30 | −8 | 19 | Relegation to EFL League One |
| 23 | Norwich City | 21 | 4 | 5 | 12 | 24 | 34 | −10 | 17 | |
| 24 | Sheffield Wednesday[a] | 20 | 1 | 6 | 13 | 15 | 40 | −25 | −9 |
Updated to match(es) played on 19 December 2025. Source: EFL Official Website
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored; 4) Head-to-head results; 5) Wins; 6) Away goals; 7) Penalty points (sec 9.5); 8) Number of 12-point sending off offences; 9) Play-off (only if needed to determine promotion/relegation)[69]
Notes:
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored; 4) Head-to-head results; 5) Wins; 6) Away goals; 7) Penalty points (sec 9.5); 8) Number of 12-point sending off offences; 9) Play-off (only if needed to determine promotion/relegation)[69]
Notes:
Results
Season statistics
Top scorers
- As of 19 December 2025
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Adam Armstrong | Southampton | 11 |
| 2 | Joe Gelhardt | Hull City | 10 |
| Carlton Morris | Derby County | ||
| Brandon Thomas-Asante | Coventry City | ||
| 5 | Rumarn Burrell | Queens Park Rangers | 9 |
| Žan Vipotnik | Swansea City | ||
| 7 | Aune Heggebø | West Bromwich Albion | 8 |
| Oli McBurnie | Hull City | ||
| Kieffer Moore | Wrexham | ||
| Jay Stansfield | Birmingham City | ||
| Sorba Thomas | Stoke City | ||
| Morgan Whittaker | Middlesbrough | ||
| Haji Wright | Coventry City |
Hat-tricks
| Player | For | Against | Result | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jaden Philogene | Ipswich Town | Sheffield United | 5–0 (H)[70] | 12 September 2025 |
| Kieffer Moore | Wrexham | Coventry City | 3–2 (H)[71] | 31 October 2025 |
| Carlton Morris | Derby County | Sheffield United | 3–1 (A)[72] | 1 November 2025 |
| Divin Mubama | Stoke City | Bristol City | 5–1 (H)[73] |
Clean sheets
| Rank | Player | Club | Clean sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Carl Rushworth | Coventry City | 8 |
| 2 | Viktor Johansson | Stoke City | 7 |
| Radek Vítek | Bristol City | ||
| 4 | Michael Cooper | Sheffield United | 6 |
| Thomas Kaminski | Charlton Athletic | ||
| Arthur Okonkwo | Wrexham | ||
| 7 | Sol Brynn | Middlesbrough | 5 |
| Daniel Iversen | Preston North End | ||
| Lawrence Vigouroux | Swansea City | ||
| Christian Walton | Ipswich Town |
Discipline
Player
- Most yellow cards: 10
- Junior Tchamadeu (Stoke City)
- Most red cards: 1
- Twenty-three players
Club
- Most yellow cards: 51
- Derby County
- Most red cards: 2
- Birmingham City
- Leicester City
- Millwall
- Sheffield Wednesday
- Watford
- West Bromwich Albion
- Fewest yellow cards: 27
- Oxford United
- West Bromwich Albion
- Fewest red cards: 0
- Bristol City
- Coventry City
- Derby County
- Hull City
- Oxford United
- Queens Park Rangers
- Sheffield United
Awards
Monthly
| Month | Manager of the Month | Player of the Month | Ref | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| August | Rob Edwards | Middlesbrough | Josh Sargent | Norwich City | [74] |
| September | Kieran McKenna | Ipswich Town | Oli McBurnie | Hull City | [75] |
| October | Frank Lampard | Coventry City | Brandon Thomas-Asante | Coventry City | [76] |
| November | Ellis Simms | [77] | |||
See also
- 2025–26 Premier League
- 2025–26 EFL League One
- 2025–26 EFL League Two
- 2025–26 National League
- 2025–26 EFL Cup
- 2025–26 FA Cup
- 2025–26 EFL Trophy
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