After 65 years outside the second tier of English football, Lincoln City have secured promotion to the Championship, confirmed by a 2-1 win over Reading on 6 April.thwith five games to play. A point would have done it, but the Imps took all three, and for anyone UK betting in the League One destination this season, there could only be one winner.
Michael Skubala’s side have been so far ahead of the rest of League One for so long that a result seemed almost inevitable, currently 12 points clear of second-placed Cardiff and 19 clear of third-placed Bradford. A club that played non league soccer Less than a decade ago they will now face the likes of Norwich, Stoke, Southampton and whoever else the Championship throws at them next season.
How did they do it?
The cornerstone of Lincoln’s season has been consistency at both ends of the pitch. They have scored 77 goals, the highest figure in Ligue 1, and conceded just 35, the fewest in the division. Reeco Hackett has been the standout player, leading the club’s goalscoring charts with nine goals and seven assists. Jack Moylan, the man who scored the stoppage-time promotion winner at Reading, has contributed eight goals from midfield. Rob Street added eight more up front.
But goals alone don’t tell the whole story. Since their last loss on November 22, Lincoln they haven’t lost a single game. Of the 24 games played in that run, they won 19 and drew five. This kind of sustained form at the third level is almost unheard of, and speaks to a well-coached, mentally tough team operating at a level well above the division.
The manager behind the promotion
Skubala arrived at Sincil Bank in November 2023 with the club in mid-table. His background is unconventional: FA manager, futsal specialist and briefly interim manager at Leeds United before finding himself in the EFL. What he has done in a relatively short space of time deserves recognition.
The LNER Stadium has been a fortress this season, with the Imps losing just once at home all campaign. That home record has been as crucial as anything else in building his points total.
Can they survive the Championship?
This is where it gets harder to predict. The Championship is a completely different proposal. Clubs with significantly bigger budgets, experienced squads and recent Premier League histories will compete in the same division next season. Lincoln’s budget has been one of the smallest in League One this year. It will almost certainly be one of the smallest in the Championship.
For anyone using a odds calculatorLincoln will likely open the championship season as a relegation favorite, as will most teams in their position. Survival will be a challenge. Newly promoted teams from League One often struggle with the increased physical intensity and technical level, and Lincoln do not have the financial muscle to address all the weaknesses in the summer window.
What they do have, however, is a coach who knows how to build a team with limited resources, a team that has proven itself through a long and demanding season and an ownership group led by former San Diego Padres co-owner Ron Fowler that has backed a data-driven hiring model. This model has already unearthed players such as Ukrainian midfielder Ivan Varfolomeev from the lower reaches of European football.
Survival isn’t guaranteed, but Lincoln has already shown once this season that they belong at the top of whatever division they find themselves in. No one will take them lightly next August.
