Bristol Rovers and Crawley Town have been relegated from League One following Burton Albion’s 1-1 draw against Wigan Athletic.
Ronan Darcy cancelled out Rumarn Burrell’s opener for the hosts at at Pirelli Stadium but the result was enough to leave Rovers and Crawley four points behind the 20th-placed Brewers heading into the final round of matches on Saturday.
Rovers’ fate was all-but sealed with defeat by Reading last weekend, and while Crawley have won four out of eight games since the return of manager Scott Lindsey in March – they too have ultimately fallen short.
Relegation ends Rovers’ two-season spell in the division, while Crawley are back in League Two having secured promotion via the play-offs last term to play third-tier football for only the second time.
All four relegation places in League One have been decided before the concluding games of the 2024-25 season, with Shrewsbury Town and Cambridge United also dropping down.
Three years ago, Bristol Rovers fans were celebrating one of the most remarkable days in the club’s history as they beat Scunthorpe 7-0 and, against the odds, won automatic promotion to League One.
Nothing has come close to those highs since.
Kuwaiti businessman Hussain AlSaeed took majority control in August 2023, before becoming sole owner three months later, and there has been a turnover of senior figures with chief executive Tom Gorringe and director of football George Friend leaving this season.
Two new managers have been appointed since Joey Barton was sacked in October 2023, in Matt Taylor and Inigo Calderon, and Taylor hinted at disruption before he was sacked – when Lee Cattermole was briefly appointed to his coaching staff without his knowledge.
Following Saturday’s defeat by Reading, which all-but confirmed relegation, Calderon said: “When I arrived, I felt that there were a lot of bad things that weren’t because of the previous manager. I respect him a lot.
“But it’s true that when I came to the club there were a lot of things that I didn’t like. Too many.”
On the pitch, results have stagnated and after 15th and 17th-place finishes over the past two seasons, the slide accelerated through 2024-25.
In March, Rovers were nine points clear of the bottom four, but a run of six consecutive defeats – now no wins in nine games – plummeted them towards danger.
They also have the worst away record in the division, claiming just three wins and 12 points in 22 matches.
Captain James Wilson said last weekend the squad have not been fit enough to consistently deliver 90-minute performances, and that standards on and off the pitch have not been at a suitable level.
Goals have also been in short supply, with just 43 scored in 45 games, not helped by the loss of forwards Promise Omochere and Chris Martin since March through a hamstring injury and knee surgery respectively.
They now face a likely summer overhaul before kicking off in League Two next season.
In the same month the Red Devils secured promotion via a stylish League Two play-off run, chairman Preston Johnson stepped down.
A month later he was back, saying his passion to bring about further progress had prompted the U-turn – but the only movement since has been in the wrong direction.
Lindsey, the man who masterminded Crawley’s promotion, dropped a division to join MK Dons as their new head coach in September after 87 games and 20 memorable months at the helm.
Although the club were already struggling in 18th place with seven points from seven games, Johnson insisted he did not want to lose Lindsey.
Former Newcastle goalkeeper and Gateshead manager Rob Elliot came in on a two-and-a-half-year deal, but lasted just over six months.
Elliot only won six of his 33 matches in charge of the Reds, losing 19, and left with Crawley 12 points adrift of safety in League One.
Having left Stadium MK, Lindsey was reinstated for a second stint in charge.
Back-to-back victories over Bristol Rovers and Rotherham United in his first two games sparked belief that survival was possible.
And though the Reds claimed four wins in eight matches, it was not enough to keep the Sussex club from dropping to League Two after one season in the third tier.
