Frank Lampard named Championship manager of the season after leading Coventry City back to Premier League

Key facts

• Coventry City secured automatic promotion to the Premier League with a 1-1 draw at Blackburn on Friday, ending a 25-year absence from the top flight.
• Frank Lampard was named Championship manager of the season at the EFL Awards, beating Millwall's Alex Neil, Hull City's Sergej Jakirovic and Middlesbrough's Kim Hellberg.
• Middlesbrough midfielder Hayden Hackney, 23, won the Championship player of the season award with five goals and eight assists.
• Coventry were relegated from the Premier League in 2001, lost their stadium, and came within half an hour of extinction before being bought by hedge fund Sisu in 2007.
• The club were forced to play home matches in Northampton (2013-14) and Birmingham (2019-2021) amid legal disputes over their stadium.
• Four Coventry players made the Championship team of the season: goalkeeper Carl Rushworth, wing-back Milan van Ewijk, captain Matt Grimes, and striker Haji Wright.

From text-a-sub ridicule to Premier League return

Coventry City's extraordinary journey from the depths of League Two to the Premier League, sealed with a 1-1 draw at Blackburn on Friday, is a story of survival, resilience, and ultimately, triumph. The club that was once ridiculed for a proposed 'text-a-substitute' scheme to generate revenue now stands on the cusp of top-flight football after a 25-year absence. The idea, attributed to Canadian digital guru Leonard Brody who joined the board when Sisu took over in 2007, was never seriously considered, Brody insists. "That whole texting conversation was taken out of context of more of a brainstorming conversation that was happening with a reporter," he said in a video call from Canada. "It's not something we were ever going to do or take seriously." Yet the anecdote has become part of football folklore, symbolising the club's desperate attempts to stay afloat.

Lampard's transformative impact

Frank Lampard took charge of Coventry in November 2024 with the club languishing 17th in the Championship. The former Chelsea and England midfielder immediately instilled a winning mentality, guiding the Sky Blues to the play-offs that season, where they suffered a last-gasp semi-final defeat to Sunderland. That disappointment, Lampard said, became fuel for the current campaign. "I got emotional in the moment for sure [after sealing promotion at Blackburn]," Lampard told BBC Football Daily's 72+ EFL podcast. "I think sometimes when you work so hard for something, when you manage to achieve it, you think about the players that you work with and you think about the fanbase and what they've gone through. I'm very proud." His efforts earned him the Championship manager of the season award at the EFL Awards, beating Millwall's Alex Neil, Hull City's Sergej Jakirovic and Middlesbrough's Kim Hellberg.

The dark years: financial ruin and exile

Coventry's fall from grace began in the mid-1990s when plans for a new stadium collapsed. Relegation from the Premier League in 2001 hit a financially stretched club hard. The council took over the Ricoh Arena, and when Coventry moved out of Highfield Road in 2005 after 106 years, they no longer owned a stadium, paying £1.3 million a year in rent. The club was "half an hour away from disappearing" before Sisu stepped in, recalls Claudio Cardellino, a fan since 1970. "I don't think they realised how hard it was to run a football club. We were millions in debt." Sisu's chief executive Joy Seppala was hands-on, and commodities trader Onye Igwe was installed to run the club. Brody said: "They inherited a house on fire and they had to put out the fire. The goal was to put out the fire and give the club solid foundations. And that took a lot of work."

Legal battles, points deductions, and fan protests

Sisu became embroiled in a series of legal disputes that reached the high court as they tried to wrest control of the stadium from the council and later from Wasps, the rugby club that took over in 2014. Against a backdrop of administrations, points deductions, and transfer embargoes, Coventry were twice exiled from their own city, playing in Northampton in 2013-14 and Birmingham from 2019 to 2021. Supporters protested vehemently. There was a pitch invasion during a home match against Sheffield United, tennis balls were thrown on when Millwall visited, and plastic pigs were hurled onto the turf against Charlton. "The year we went down in League One we went down wearing a white home kit – how on earth do Coventry City wear a white home kit?" Myles Cadden, host of Sky Blues Fans TV, asked, capturing the sense of identity loss.

The promotion campaign and team of the season

Coventry sealed automatic promotion with a 1-1 draw at Blackburn on Friday, capping a remarkable season. Four of Lampard's players were named in the Championship team of the season: goalkeeper Carl Rushworth, wing-back Milan van Ewijk, captain Matt Grimes, and striker Haji Wright. The team's strength has been built on a solid defence and a potent attack, with Wright providing crucial goals. Middlesbrough's Hayden Hackney, 23, won the Championship player of the season award, having contributed five goals and eight assists from midfield. The EFL Awards also recognised Lincoln City's Michael Skubala (League One manager of the season) and Leyton Orient's Dom Ballard (League One player of the season), while Bromley's Andy Woodman and Swindon Town's Aaron Drinan took the League Two honours. Swansea City's Josh Tymon won the EFL goal of the season for a stunning left-footed volley against Oxford United in December.

What lies ahead for the Sky Blues

Coventry's return to the Premier League after 25 years brings both opportunity and challenge. The club must now navigate the financial and competitive demands of the top flight, while ensuring the foundations laid by Lampard and the squad are built upon. The ownership situation, long a source of instability, will need to be resolved to provide long-term security. For Lampard, the achievement cements his reputation as a manager capable of transforming a club's fortunes. The emotional response he described after the Blackburn draw reflects the depth of the journey. "I think about the players that I work with and you think about the fanbase and what they've gone through," he said. The Sky Blues' story, from the brink of extinction to the Premier League, is one of the most remarkable in English football history.

The bottom line

• Coventry City's promotion ends a 25-year absence from the Premier League, capping a decade-long rise from League Two.
• Frank Lampard's managerial acumen has been pivotal, earning him the Championship manager of the season award.
• The club's survival and success come after years of financial turmoil, legal battles, and exile from their home city.
• Fan protests and iconic moments like the 'text-a-sub' idea underscore the depth of the club's struggles.
• Key players such as Carl Rushworth, Milan van Ewijk, Matt Grimes, and Haji Wright have been instrumental in the promotion campaign.
• The future poses challenges of financial stability and Premier League competitiveness, but the club has a solid foundation.