The 2004–05 Football League Championship (known as the Coca-Cola Championship for sponsorship reasons) was the thirteenth season under its current league division format. It began in August 2004 and concluded in May 2005, with the promotion play-off finals. This was the first season to feature the rebranded Football League. The First Division, Second Division and Third Division were renamed the Football League Championship, Football League One and Football League Two respectively. Coca-Cola replaced the Nationwide Building Society as title sponsor.
The winners of the Championship in 2005 are Sunderland. Wigan Athletic reached the Premiership as Championship runners-up and became the first club to make a debut in the top tier of English football since Barnsley's promotion after the 1996–97 season. They had been elected to the Football League only 27 years earlier, had been the league's fourth lowest club eleven years earlier and had never played in the upper half of The Football League until two years before reaching the Premier League. Nottingham Forest were relegated from the Championship to League One, becoming the first former European Cup winners to slide into the third tier of their domestic league – having won two straight European Cups a quarter of a century earlier. Just ten years ago they had finished third in the Premiership and reached the following season's UEFA Cup quarter finals.
Changes from last season
From Championship Promoted to Premier League Norwich City West Bromwich Albion Crystal Palace
Relegated to League One Walsall Bradford City Wimbledon
To Championship Relegated from Premier League Leicester City Leeds United Wolverhampton Wanderers
Promoted from League One Plymouth Argyle Queens Park Rangers Brighton & Hove Albion
League table
Play-offs
Results
Stadiums
Team Stadium Capacity Sunderland Stadium of Light 49,000 Leeds United Elland Road 37,697 West Ham United Boleyn Ground 35,146 Derby County Pride Park Stadium 33,597 Sheffield United Bramall Lane 32,609 Leicester City Walkers Stadium 32,500 Nottingham Forest City Ground 30,602 Ipswich Town Portman Road 30,311 Wolverhampton Wanderers Molineux Stadium 28,525 Stoke City Britannia Stadium 28,000 Wigan Athletic JJB Stadium 25,138 Preston North End Deepdale 24,500 Reading Madejski Stadium 24,161 Coventry City Highfield Road 23,489 Burnley Turf Moor 22,546 Cardiff City Ninian Park 22,008 Millwall The New Den 20,146 Watford Vicarage Road 19,920 Plymouth Argyle Home Park 19,500 Queens Park Rangers Loftus Road 19,128 Gillingham Priestfield Stadium 11,582 Crewe Alexandra Alexandra Stadium 10,046 Brighton & Hove Albion Withdean Stadium 8,850 Rotherham United Millmoor 8,300
Attendances
# Club Average 1 Leeds United 29,207 2 Sunderland 28,821 3 West Ham United 27,403 4 Wolverhampton Wanderers 26,620 5 Ipswich Town 25,651 6 Derby County 25,219 7 Leicester City 24,137 8 Nottingham Forest 23,565 9 Sheffield United 19,594 10 Reading 17,169 11 Stoke City 16,455 12 Plymouth Argyle 16,420 13 Queens Park Rangers 16,056 14 Coventry City 16,048 15 Watford 14,290 16 Preston North End 13,889 17 Cardiff City 12,976 18 Burnley 12,640 19 Millwall 11,656 20 Wigan Athletic 11,563 21 Gillingham 8,528 22 Crewe Alexandra 7,403 23 Brighton & Hove Albion 6,426 24 Rotherham United 6,272
Source:
References
External links Football League Tables