The Championship play-off final between Coventry and Luton may not feature the big-name teams that many were hoping for, but both sides have earned their spot in the final. Despite the presence of well-known teams such as Middlesbrough, Sunderland, Blackburn, West Brom, Watford, Norwich, and QPR in the second tier, Coventry and Luton were not expected to be among the frontrunners for promotion. However, their journey to the final cannot be denied. The winning team in the final will receive at least £170m over the next three seasons, a figure that could rise to over £290m if the successful club avoids relegation after the first season in the Premier League. For Coventry and Luton, these sums are equivalent to a lottery and Euromillion win rolled into one, especially given their financial struggles over the last 15 years.
Only five years ago, in 2018, Luton and Coventry were playing each other in League Two. Both sides secured promotion to the third tier that season as they continued their respective journeys from the abyss. Luton’s troubles began in 2008 when the club received a 30-point deduction for matters involving player transfers. This led to their inevitable relegation from the EFL. Luton then spent five seasons in non-league football before returning to the Football League in 2014. For Coventry, their problems began in 2012 when the club was relegated from the Championship and forced to groundshare with Northampton Town due to legal issues around unpaid rent at the Ricoh Arena from ownership group, Sisu. The club went into liquidation in 2013 but was bought back by Sisu, who pledged to buy a new stadium for Coventry. However, this plan was abandoned after just a few months. The next four years were fraught with off-field legal battles, before the Sky Blues suffered relegation to League Two in 2017. Mark Robins took charge of Coventry that year and masterminded their journey back to League One in 2018, before getting them promoted to the Championship again in 2020.
Coventry and Luton met again in League One, with Luton having won back-to-back promotions in 2018 and 2019 to send them from League Two back to the Championship. The Wembley final will be the perfect opportunity for both sides to put their past struggles behind them and look to the future. For one team, that future is in the Premier League. The final will be exclusively live from Wembley Stadium on talkSPORT this Saturday at 4:45 pm, with commentary from Sam Matterface, Dean Ashton, and Ian Holloway.