The chances of a Wembley final increase

By Nathan Jackson
March 3 2007

If Lincoln City finish in the Playoff positions, they could still potentially have a trip to Wembley on their hands. The deadline for deciding where the Playoff Finals will be held has been changed to mid-March, and the FA are confident that that last English cup final has been held in Cardiff.

Officials for the Millennium Stadium had given the FA a deadline of February 28th to decide whether or not the Playoffs would be played there. That deadline meant that they would be virtually guaranteed to be held there due to the FA not having final confirmation about the new Wembley Stadium by then. The same deadline did not apply to the FA Cup, which still has a long time before the deadline of a decision.

Forunately Cardiff officials have agreed to extend the deadline of the Playoff decision until March 17th, by then the FA should have final confirmation that Wembley Stadium is ready for use, the first match of which being the FA Cup final, just one week before the League 2 playoff final date.

Peterborough were the last side to win the 4th tier playoffs at Wembley, beating Darlington 1-0. Since then Blackpool, Cheltenham (twice), Bournemouth, Huddersfield, and Southend have all gained promotion at the Millennium Stadium. If the playoff finals are played at Wembley, it would mean that Lincoln, Preston North End, and Carlisle will be the only sides to have played there more than once and have failed to win.