Sheffield Wednesday’s trip to Leeds United has been picked.
Sheffield Following the ratification of a groundbreaking arrangement, Wednesday’s Championship match against Leeds United will be shown live on free-to-air television.
Wednesday return to league action with a short trip north to Elland Road next Sunday, following their FA Cup third round match at Coventry City this weekend. Danny Rohl’s team will be trying to build on a strong start to 2025, in which they defeated Derby County 4-2 before drawing 2-2 at home to Millwall, with an eye on going further up the division rather than merely avoiding relegation.
The Owls fell 2-0 at home to Leeds in the reverse fixture back in August and will face a difficult battle to take anything away from a place where only Burnley won all three points. The Yorkshire Derby begins at Elland Road at 12 p.m. on Saturday, January 19, and will now have special significance, according to the EFL on Wednesday morning.
Leeds versus Wednesday decision
Sky Sports selected Wednesday’s January visit to Elland Road as one of their TV options some time ago, but those without a subscription will also be able to watch, with the EFL confirming that ITV will carry the game simultaneously. The statement continued: “ITV will broadcast two Sky Bet Championship fixtures as part of an agreement with Sky Sports and the EFL to give all UK football fans the chance to watch free-to-air coverage.”
Those watching on television can either turn to Sky Sports Football or ITV1, while anyone on the go can log in to the Sky Sports or ITVX apps to view the Elland road battle live. Leeds against Wednesday is the first of two Championship games this season to be picked for the ground-breaking arrangement, with Middlesbrough vs Sunderland to follow on Monday, February 3.
Mark Demuth, Controller of ITV Sport, said: “We are happy to continue our relationship with the EFL by broadcasting free-to-air events for our viewers to enjoy. The Carabao Cup and Sky Bet Championship are hallmarks of English football and I am sure fans will love the opportunity to watch on ITV Sport.”
Trevor Birch, CEO of the English Football League, said: “The EFL is home to some of the most popular and exciting competitions in world football, and the competition for promotion places is already shaping up to be as competitive as ever across the three divisions as we head into the second half of the season.”We are thrilled that this deal between the League, ITV, and Sky Sports will allow them to reach an even larger audience, and we would like to thank both partners for making this possible.
Wednesday, looking up.
One win in four is a minor downturn in form for Wednesday, although the optimist may argue that they have only lost once in that time span, and have lost only one of their past six league games. Rohl’s players are accumulating points at a rapid pace, putting them within striking distance of a play-off spot, and the gap between mid-table and the top four is extremely narrow.
Leeds, Sheffield United, Burnley, and Sunderland appear to be vying for automatic promotion, but there are only five points separating fifth and eleventh place. That leaves seven teams vying for two final play-off spots, with only three points separating Wednesday and sixth-placed West Brom.
A big improvement has given Wednesday fans reason to be optimistic about 2025, but they will need to put on one of their best performances to get anything from Elland Road. Leeds has grabbed 28 points from the past 30 available at home, keeping an amazing seven clean sheets during that 10-game run.
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