Coventry gain awaited promotion to Premier League after 25-year absence

Frank Lampard's Coventry have been promoted to the Premier League
Frank Lampard's Coventry have been promoted to the Premier LeagueGraham Hunt / ČTK / imago sportfotodienst

Coventry have been promoted to the Premier League, ending a 25-year hiatus from the top flight.

Frank Lampard's side needed just one point heading into Friday's Championship fixture at Blackburn, which they achieved with a 1-1 draw.

The draw at Ewood Park took the Sky Blues to 86 points, enough to guarantee them a top-two finish and automatic promotion with three games remaining.

Promotion is a symbolic moment for Coventry, who have endured a whirlwind recent history.

They were playing in League Two as recently as 2018 and have finally broken through the Championship ceiling after a couple of near misses.

In 2023, Coventry reached the play-off final at Wembley and agonisingly lost out in a penalty shoot-out to Luton.

Coventry missed the play-offs the season after and a poor opening to the last campaign saw popular manager Mark Robins replaced with Lampard.

He took over when they were 17th and a stunning recovery saw them surge into the play-offs, but it was heartbreak again as Sunderland beat them late in the semi-finals.

But Lampard made sure there wouldn't be another disappointment, having made Coventry a force to be reckoned with in his first full season at the helm.

They have been the pace-setters for the vast majority of the season, adopting a style that has them as the Championship's leading scorers.

A brief mid-season dip in form appears to have been the only blemish on an otherwise momentous campaign.