Charlton Athletic secure promotion to Championship after beating Leyton Orient
The Addicks have won the League One play-off final to gain promotion
Last updated 25th May 2025
Charlton Athletic have gained promotion to the Championship after beating Leyton Orient 1-0 at Wembley Stadium.
The two sides are separated by less than 10 miles between their stadiums, and it was just as close on the pitch with the one goal in it.
Macaulay Gillesphey scored a stunning free kick on the 31st minute to give Charlton the advantage, which turned out to be the only goal of the game.
It’s after Tyreece Campbell was fouled in the build-up of a promising attack. Gillesphey stepped up to the ball, bending it around the wall and slotting it into the back of the net.
Nearly 40,000 Charlton supporters erupted and red flares were also set off in the celebration which were quickly delt with by firefighters.
Leyton Orient also had their fair share of changes to get forward and create some shots but hadn’t created any real goal-scoring opportunities.
In the second half, the O’s had their first shot on target at the 51st minute with Jamie Donley hitting the ball from a tight angle straight into the keepers’ arms.
On the 58th minute, Leyton Orient came close to an equaliser with a shot from Jack Currie taking a deflection and just missing wide of the post. Number 8, Jordan Brown also hit the ball just over the crossbar from the corner.
Leyton Orient kept knocking on the door, asking questions of the Addicks defence, through the likes of Charlie Kelman who’s shot took a big deflection and hit the crossbar for another corner.
On the 66th minute, the O’s also had a free kick in a similar position to Charlton’s in the first half but couldn’t get anything to show for their efforts.
Charlton soon hit back with an attack of their own causing goalkeeper, Josh Keeley to reach high and tip the ball over the bar.
Once again, Leyton Orient came knocking on the door in the dying moments of extra time but couldn’t make much more of their chances.
O's fans will carry on waiting to get back into the second tier of English football - a wait that spans more than four decades.
The promotion celebrations have just started getting underway for Charlton and you can hear more in our news bulletins today.
Attendance at Wembley Stadium was 76,193.