THE EFL season has reached its business end with the promotion battles taking shape and the Championship playoff sides known.
As is the tradition, the campaign will conclude at Wembley, with the play-off semi-finals and finals to be played in front of fans if the government roadmap stays on track.
Fulham, Wycombe and Northampton Town were the promoted sides last year, but who will be participating in the play-offs this year and when will the games take place?
When are the EFL play-offs?
The EFL play-off dates are as follows:
Championship
Semi-finals
- Monday, May 17 – Championship A 1st leg (6pm)
- Monday, May 17 – Championship B 1st leg (8.15pm)
- Saturday, May 22 – Championship A 2nd leg (12.30pm)
- Saturday, May 22 – Championship B 2nd leg (5.30pm)
Final
- Saturday, May 29 (3pm)
League One
Semi-finals
- Tuesday, May 18 – League One A 1st leg (6pm)
- Wednesday, May 19 – League One B 1st leg (6pm)
- Friday, May 21 – League One A 2nd leg (7.45pm)
- Saturday, May 22 – League One B 2nd leg (7.45pm)
Final
- Sunday, May 30 (3pm)
League Two
Semi-finals
- Thursday, May 20 – League Two A 1st leg (6pm)
- Thursday, May 20 – League Two B 1st leg (8.15pm)
- Sunday, May 23 – League Two A 2nd leg (12.30pm)
- Sunday, May 23 – League Two B 2nd leg (6.30pm)
What TV channel are EFL play-off matches on and can I live stream them?
- Sky Sports hold exclusive rights to EFL coverage, including the play-off games.
- Matches will be shown live on channels such as Sky Sports Football and Sky Sports Main Event.
- Some matches may be shown on the Sky Sports Red Button if they overlap with others.
- To stream EFL play-off matches live, head to your Sky Go account.
- Non-Sky Sports subscribers can still watch all the action with a Now TV Day Pass from £9.99.
How many fans will be allowed to attend the EFL play-offs?
The EFL has announced that the play-offs will be held from Monday, May 17 – the date on which the government will allow fans to return to stadiums according to the current roadmap.
That means that ALL play-off matches will have fans attending as things stand.
The roadmap states: “The government will also allow some larger performances and sporting events in indoor venues with a capacity of 1,000 people or half-full (whichever is a lower number), and in outdoor venues with a capacity of 4,000 people or half-full (whichever is a lower number).
“In the largest outdoor seated venues, where crowds can be spread out, up to 10,000 people will be able to attend (or a quarter-full, whichever is lower).“
This can be taken to mean that the play-off finals at Wembley will be played in front of 10,000 fans unless otherwise specified.
However, it has yet to be confirmed whether participating EFL teams’ stadiums qualify as larger or smaller outdoor venues.
Will the play-offs have away fans?
Premier League CEO Richard Masters has declared that he intends for 500 away fans to attend the last two games of the season when fans return to stadiums.
However, the EFL has not made its intentions regarding away fans for the play-offs known yet.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
