# 2020–21 EFL League One

The 2020–21 EFL League One (referred to as the Sky Bet League One for sponsorship reasons) was the 17th season of Football League One under its current title and the 29th season under its current league division format.

## Team changes

The following teams have changed division since the 2019–20 season.

## Stadiums

| Team | Location | Stadium | Capacity |
| Accrington Stanley | Accrington | Crown Ground | 5,057 |
| AFC Wimbledon | London (Wimbledon) | Plough Lane | 9,300 |
| Blackpool | Blackpool | Bloomfield Road | 17,338 |
| Bristol Rovers | Bristol | Memorial Stadium | 12,300 |
| Burton Albion | Burton upon Trent | Pirelli Stadium | 6,912 |
| Charlton Athletic | London (Charlton) | The Valley | 27,111 |
| Crewe Alexandra | Crewe | Gresty Road | 10,180 |
| Doncaster Rovers | Doncaster | Keepmoat Stadium | 15,231 |
| Fleetwood Town | Fleetwood | Highbury Stadium | 5,327 |
| Gillingham | Gillingham | Priestfield Stadium | 11,582 |
| Hull City | Kingston upon Hull | KCOM Stadium | 25,586 |
| Ipswich Town | Ipswich | Portman Road | 30,311 |
| Lincoln City | Lincoln | LNER Stadium | 10,120 |
| Milton Keynes Dons | Milton Keynes | Stadium MK | 30,500 |
| Northampton Town | Northampton | PTS Academy Stadium | 7,798 |
| Oxford United | Oxford | Kassam Stadium | 12,500 |
| Peterborough United | Peterborough | Weston Homes Stadium | 15,314 |
| Plymouth Argyle | Plymouth | Home Park | 18,600 |
| Portsmouth | Portsmouth | Fratton Park | 19,669 |
| Rochdale | Rochdale | Crown Oil Arena | 10,500 |
| Shrewsbury Town | Shrewsbury | Montgomery Waters Meadow | 9,875 |
| Sunderland | Sunderland | Stadium of Light | 48,707 |
| Swindon Town | Swindon | County Ground | 15,728 |
| Wigan Athletic | Wigan | DW Stadium | 25,133 |

## Personnel and sponsoring

| Team | Manager$^1$ | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Sponsor |
| Accrington Stanley | John Coleman | Séamus Conneely | Adidas | Wham |
| AFC Wimbledon | Mark Robinson | Alex Woodyard | Puma | Sports Interactive |
| Blackpool | Neil Critchley | Chris Maxwell | Puma | Blackpool Council Home: "VisitBlackpool.com"; Away: "Get Vocal" |
| Bristol Rovers | Joey Barton | Max Ehmer | Macron | Utilita |
| Burton Albion | Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink | John Brayford | TAG | Prestec UK Ltd |
| Charlton Athletic | Nigel Adkins | Jason Pearce | Hummel | Children with Cancer UK |
| Crewe Alexandra | David Artell | Harry Pickering | FBT | Mornflake |
| Doncaster Rovers | Andy Butler (interim) | Tom Anderson | Elite Pro Sports | LNER |
| Fleetwood Town | Simon Grayson | Callum Connolly | Hummel | BES Utilities |
| Gillingham | Steve Evans | Kyle Dempsey | Macron | MEMS Power Generation |
| Hull City | Grant McCann | Richie Smallwood | Umbro | Giacom |
| Ipswich Town | Paul Cook | Luke Chambers | Adidas | Carers Trust |
| Lincoln City | Michael Appleton | Liam Bridcutt | Erreà | Peregrine Holdings |
| Milton Keynes Dons | Russell Martin | Dean Lewington | Erreà | Suzuki |
| Northampton Town | Jon Brady | Cian Bolger | Hummel | University of Northampton |
| Oxford United | Karl Robinson | John Mousinho | Puma | Amazing Thailand |
| Peterborough United | Darren Ferguson | Mark Beevers | Puma | Mick George Group |
| Plymouth Argyle | Ryan Lowe | Gary Sawyer | Puma | Ginsters |
| Portsmouth | Danny Cowley | Tom Naylor | Nike | University of Portsmouth |
| Rochdale | Brian Barry-Murphy | Eoghan O'Connell | Erreà | Crown Oil Ltd |
| Shrewsbury Town | Steve Cotterill | Oliver Norburn | Admiral | Tuffins Supermarkets (Home) Shropshire Homes (Away) |
| Sunderland | Lee Johnson | Max Power | Nike | Great Annual Savings Group |
| Swindon Town | Tommy Wright (interim) | Dion Conroy | Puma | Imagine Cruising |
| Wigan Athletic | Leam Richardson | Jamie Jones | Puma | Wigan Athletic Official Supporters Club |

## Managerial changes

| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
| Wigan Athletic | Paul Cook | Resigned | 29 July 2020 | Pre-season | John Sheridan | 11 September 2020 |
| Swindon Town | Richie Wellens | Signed by Salford City | 4 November 2020 | 20th | John Sheridan | 13 November 2020 |
| Wigan Athletic | John Sheridan | Signed by Swindon Town | 13 November 2020 | 24th | Leam Richardson | 13 November 2020 |
| Bristol Rovers | Ben Garner | Sacked | 14 November 2020 | 18th | Paul Tisdale | 19 November 2020 |
| Shrewsbury Town | Sam Ricketts | Sacked | 25 November 2020 | 23rd | Steve Cotterill | 27 November 2020 |
| Sunderland | Phil Parkinson | Sacked | 29 November 2020 | 8th | Lee Johnson | 5 December 2020 |
| Burton Albion | Jake Buxton | Sacked | 29 December 2020 | 24th | Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink | 1 January 2021 |
| Fleetwood Town | Joey Barton | Sacked | 4 January 2021 | 10th | Simon Grayson | 31 January 2021 |
| AFC Wimbledon | Glyn Hodges | Mutual consent | 30 January 2021 | 21st | Mark Robinson | 17 February 2021 |
| Bristol Rovers | Paul Tisdale | Sacked | 10 February 2021 | 20th | Joey Barton | 22 February 2021 |
| Northampton Town | Keith Curle | Sacked | 10 February 2021 | 23rd | Jon Brady | 11 February 2021 |
| Ipswich Town | Paul Lambert | Mutual consent | 28 February 2021 | 8th | Paul Cook | 2 March 2020 |
| Doncaster Rovers | Darren Moore | Signed by Sheffield Wednesday | 1 March 2021 | 6th | Andy Butler (interim) | 1 March 2021 |
| Portsmouth | Kenny Jackett | Sacked | 14 March 2021 | 7th | Danny Cowley | 19 March 2021 |
| Charlton Athletic | Lee Bowyer | Resigned | 15 March 2021 | 8th | Nigel Adkins | 18 March 2021 |
| Swindon Town | John Sheridan | Resigned | 18 April 2021 | 24th | Tommy Wright (interim) | 18 April 2021 |

## League table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Hull City (C, P) | 46 | 27 | 8 | 11 | 80 | 38 | +42 | 89 | Promotion to the EFL Championship |
| 2 | Peterborough United (P) | 46 | 26 | 9 | 11 | 83 | 46 | +37 | 87 | Promotion to the EFL Championship |
| 3 | Blackpool (O, P) | 46 | 23 | 11 | 12 | 60 | 37 | +23 | 80 | Qualification for League One play-offs |
| 4 | Sunderland | 46 | 20 | 17 | 9 | 70 | 42 | +28 | 77 | Qualification for League One play-offs |
| 5 | Lincoln City | 46 | 22 | 11 | 13 | 69 | 50 | +19 | 77 | Qualification for League One play-offs |
| 6 | Oxford United | 46 | 22 | 8 | 16 | 77 | 56 | +21 | 74 | Qualification for League One play-offs |
| 7 | Charlton Athletic | 46 | 20 | 14 | 12 | 70 | 56 | +14 | 74 | |
| 8 | Portsmouth | 46 | 21 | 9 | 16 | 65 | 51 | +14 | 72 | |
| 9 | Ipswich Town | 46 | 19 | 12 | 15 | 46 | 46 | 0 | 69 | |
| 10 | Gillingham | 46 | 19 | 10 | 17 | 63 | 60 | +3 | 67 | |
| 11 | Accrington Stanley | 46 | 18 | 13 | 15 | 63 | 68 | −5 | 67 | |
| 12 | Crewe Alexandra | 46 | 18 | 12 | 16 | 56 | 61 | −5 | 66 | |
| 13 | Milton Keynes Dons | 46 | 18 | 11 | 17 | 64 | 62 | +2 | 65 | |
| 14 | Doncaster Rovers | 46 | 19 | 7 | 20 | 63 | 67 | −4 | 64 | |
| 15 | Fleetwood Town | 46 | 16 | 12 | 18 | 49 | 46 | +3 | 60 | |
| 16 | Burton Albion | 46 | 15 | 12 | 19 | 61 | 73 | −12 | 57 | |
| 17 | Shrewsbury Town | 46 | 13 | 15 | 18 | 50 | 57 | −7 | 54 | |
| 18 | Plymouth Argyle | 46 | 14 | 11 | 21 | 53 | 80 | −27 | 53 | |
| 19 | AFC Wimbledon | 46 | 12 | 15 | 19 | 54 | 70 | −16 | 51 | |
| 20 | Wigan Athletic | 46 | 13 | 9 | 24 | 54 | 77 | −23 | 48 | |
| 21 | Rochdale (R) | 46 | 11 | 14 | 21 | 61 | 78 | −17 | 47 | Relegation to EFL League Two |
| 22 | Northampton Town (R) | 46 | 11 | 12 | 23 | 41 | 67 | −26 | 45 | Relegation to EFL League Two |
| 23 | Swindon Town (R) | 46 | 13 | 4 | 29 | 55 | 89 | −34 | 43 | Relegation to EFL League Two |
| 24 | Bristol Rovers (R) | 46 | 10 | 8 | 28 | 40 | 70 | −30 | 38 | Relegation to EFL League Two |

## Play-offs

| Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Final | Final | Final |
| 3 | Blackpool | 3 | 3 | 6 | | | |
| 6 | Oxford United | 0 | 3 | 3 | | | |
| 6 | Oxford United | 0 | 3 | 3 | 3 | Blackpool | 2 |
| | | | | | 5 | Lincoln City | 1 |
| 4 | Sunderland | 0 | 2 | 2 | 5 | Lincoln City | 1 |
| 5 | Lincoln City | 2 | 1 | 3 | | | |
First leg
Second leg
Final

## Results

| Home \ Away | ACC | WIM | BLA | BRI | BRT | CHA | CRE | DON | FLE | GIL | HUL | IPS | LIN | MKD | NOR | OXF | PET | PLY | POR | ROC | SHR | SUN | SWI | WIG |
| Accrington Stanley | — | 1–5 | 0–0 | 6–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 1–4 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 3–3 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 2–1 | 3–1 |
| AFC Wimbledon | 1–2 | — | 1–0 | 2–4 | 0–1 | 2–2 | 1–2 | 2–2 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 0–3 | 3–0 | 1–2 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 4–4 | 1–3 | 3–3 | 0–1 | 0–3 | 4–1 | 1–1 |
| Blackpool | 0–0 | 1–1 | — | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 4–1 | 3–2 | 1–4 | 2–3 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 3–1 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 1–0 |
| Bristol Rovers | 4–1 | 0–0 | 2–1 | — | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 1–4 | 0–2 | 1–3 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 3–0 | 3–1 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 1–2 |
| Burton Albion | 2–1 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 1–0 | — | 4–2 | 1–1 | 1–3 | 5–2 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 1–3 | 1–5 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 2–4 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 0–3 | 2–1 | 3–4 |
| Charlton Athletic | 0–2 | 5–2 | 0–3 | 3–2 | 1–2 | — | 2–2 | 1–3 | 3–2 | 2–3 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 3–1 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 2–2 | 1–3 | 4–4 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 1–0 |
| Crewe Alexandra | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 3–2 | 0–3 | 0–2 | — | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 0–6 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 3–2 | 2–2 | 4–2 | 3–0 |
| Doncaster Rovers | 0–1 | 2–0 | 3–2 | 4–1 | 0–3 | 0–1 | 1–2 | — | 0–1 | 2–1 | 3–3 | 4–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 3–2 | 1–4 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 1–4 |
| Fleetwood Town | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 3–1 | — | 1–0 | 4–1 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 5–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 |
| Gillingham | 0–2 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 4–1 | 2–2 | 0–2 | — | 0–2 | 3–1 | 0–3 | 3–2 | 2–2 | 3–1 | 1–3 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 2–2 | 0–0 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 1–0 |
| Hull City | 3–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 1–1 | — | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 3–0 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 3–1 |
| Ipswich Town | 2–0 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 0–3 | — | 1–1 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 2–3 | 2–0 |
| Lincoln City | 2–2 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 1–2 | 5–1 | 2–0 | 3–0 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 0–3 | 1–2 | 1–0 | — | 4–0 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–3 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 0–4 | 2–2 | 2–1 |
| Milton Keynes Dons | 3–2 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 2–0 | 1–3 | 1–1 | 1–2 | — | 4–3 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 0–3 | 2–2 | 2–2 | 5–0 | 2–0 |
| Northampton Town | 0–1 | 2–2 | 0–3 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 0–2 | 3–0 | 0–4 | 0–0 | — | 1–0 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 4–1 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 2–1 | 0–1 |
| Oxford United | 1–2 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 4–0 | 0–0 | 0–2 | 3–0 | 1–0 | 3–2 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 2–1 | 3–2 | 4–0 | — | 0–0 | 3–1 | 0–1 | 3–1 | 4–1 | 0–2 | 1–2 | 2–1 |
| Peterborough United | 7–0 | 3–0 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 1–3 | 2–1 | 3–3 | 3–0 | 3–1 | 2–0 | — | 1–0 | 1–0 | 4–1 | 5–1 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 2–1 |
| Plymouth Argyle | 2–2 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 0–6 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 0–3 | 1–2 | 4–3 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–3 | 0–3 | — | 2–2 | 0–4 | 1–1 | 1–3 | 4–2 | 0–2 |
| Portsmouth | 0–1 | 4–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 0–2 | 4–1 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 0–4 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 4–0 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 2–2 | — | 2–1 | 0–0 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 1–2 |
| Rochdale | 3–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 3–3 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 1–4 | 0–3 | 0–0 | 0–2 | 1–4 | 1–1 | 3–4 | 3–3 | 0–0 | 0–0 | — | 0–2 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 3–3 |
| Shrewsbury Town | 2–2 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 4–2 | 1–2 | 2–3 | 2–0 | 3–0 | 1–2 | 1–2 | — | 2–1 | 3–3 | 1–2 |
| Sunderland | 3–3 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 4–1 | 2–0 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 1–3 | 2–0 | 1–0 | — | 1–0 | 0–1 |
| Swindon Town | 0–3 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 4–2 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 1–3 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 1–4 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 0–3 | 0–2 | 3–1 | 3–1 | 0–1 | 0–2 | — | 1–0 |
| Wigan Athletic | 4–3 | 2–3 | 0–5 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 2–3 | 0–5 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 3–0 | 2–3 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–5 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 3–4 | — |

## Season statistics
### Top scorers

    As of 9 May 2021
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Jonson Clarke-Harris | Peterborough United | 31 |
| 2 | Charlie Wyke | Sunderland | 25 |
| 3 | Joe Pigott | AFC Wimbledon | 20 |
| 3 | Jerry Yates | Blackpool | 20 |
| 5 | Dion Charles | Accrington Stanley | 19 |
| 5 | Mallik Wilks | Hull City | 19 |
| 7 | Josh Magennis | Hull City | 18 |
| 7 | Matty Taylor | Oxford United | 18 |
| 9 | Vadaine Oliver | Gillingham | 17 |
| 10 | Luke Jephcott | Plymouth Argyle | 16 |
| 10 | John Marquis | Portsmouth | 16 |

### Hat-tricks

    As of 24 April 2021
| Player | For | Against | Result | Date |
| Marcus Harness | Portsmouth | Burton Albion | 2–4 | 30 October 2020 |
| Siriki Dembélé | Peterborough United | Shrewsbury Town | 5–1 | 31 October 2020 |
| Jonson Clarke-Harris | Peterborough United | Rochdale | 4–1 | 12 December 2020 |
| Kyle Joseph | Wigan Athletic | Burton Albion | 4–3 | 29 December 2020 |
| Charlie Wyke | Sunderland | AFC Wimbledon | 3–0 | 16 January 2021 |
| Joe Mason | Milton Keynes Dons | Fleetwood Town | 3–1 | 19 January 2021 |
| Dion Charles | Accrington Stanley | Bristol Rovers | 6–1 | 2 February 2021 |
| Charlie Wyke | Sunderland | Doncaster Rovers | 4–1 | 13 February 2021 |
| Mallik Wilks | Hull City | Wigan Athletic | 5–0 | 17 February 2021 |
| Kane Hemmings | Burton Albion | Crewe Alexandra | 3–0 | 13 March 2021 |
| Jonson Clarke-Harris | Peterborough United | Accrington Stanley | 7–0 | 27 March 2021 |
| Will Grigg | Milton Keynes Dons | Swindon Town | 5–0 | 24 April 2021 |

## Awards
### Monthly

| Month | Manager of the Month | Manager of the Month | Player of the Month | Player of the Month |
| September | Paul Lambert | Ipswich Town | Madger Gomes | Doncaster Rovers |
| October | Darren Ferguson | Peterborough United | Ben Amos | Charlton |
| November | John Coleman | Accrington Stanley | Callum Camps | Fleetwood Town |
| December | Steve Cotterill | Shrewsbury Town | Owen Dale | Crewe Alexandra |
| January | Grant McCann | Hull City | Matty Lund | Rochdale |
| February | Darren Ferguson | Peterborough United | Jonson Clarke-Harris | Peterborough United |
| March | Steve Evans | Gillingham | Vadaine Oliver | Gillingham |
| April | Grant McCann | Hull City | Josh Magennis | Hull City |

### Annual

| Award | Winner | Club |
| Player of the Season | Jonson Clarke-Harris | Peterborough United |
EFL League One Team of the season
| Pos. | Player | Club |
| GK | Lee Burge | Sunderland |
| DF | Luke O'Nien | Sunderland |
| DF | Robert Atkinson | Oxford United |
| DF | Mark Beevers | Peterborough United |
| DF | Callum Elder | Hull City |
| MF | Joe Ward | Peterborough United |
| MF | George Honeyman | Hull City |
| MF | Jorge Grant | Lincoln City |
| FW | Aiden McGeady | Sunderland |
| FW | Jonson Clarke-Harris | Peterborough United |
| FW | Charlie Wyke | Sunderland |
| Manager | Grant McCann | Hull City |