{"id":158745,"date":"2026-04-06T19:22:07","date_gmt":"2026-04-06T19:22:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/158745\/"},"modified":"2026-04-06T19:22:07","modified_gmt":"2026-04-06T19:22:07","slug":"lincoln-city-promoted-to-championship-after-65-year-absence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/158745\/","title":{"rendered":"Lincoln City promoted to Championship after 65-year absence"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"submission-link-wrapper\"><a href=\"https:\/\/forms.nationaltoday.com\/news?location=Reading%2C+PA&amp;city=Reading&amp;type=Update+Existing+Story&amp;headline=Lincoln+City+promoted+to+Championship+after+65-year+absence&amp;page=https%3A%2F%2Fnationaltoday.com%2Fus%2Fpa%2Freading%2Fnews%2F2026%2F04%2F06%2Flincoln-city-promoted-to-championship-after-65-year-absence%2F\" class=\"submission-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Got story updates? Submit your updates here. \u203a<\/a><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/69d3fe2b5aba6.jpg\" alt=\"A fractured, geometric painting in red and white hues, depicting the action and movement of a football match in an abstract, deconstructed style.\" width=\"1344\" height=\"768\" class=\"news-image\"\/>Lincoln City&#8217;s long-awaited return to the Championship is celebrated in a cubist-inspired illustration capturing the energy and dynamism of their promotion-clinching victory.Reading Today<\/p>\n<p>Lincoln City have secured promotion to the EFL Championship after a 65-year absence, earning a hard-fought 2-1 victory over playoff-chasing Reading. The Imps, needing just a point to seal their return to the second tier, made a bright start and took an early lead before holding on for the crucial three points.<\/p>\n<p>      Why it matters<\/p>\n<p>Lincoln&#8217;s promotion ends their lengthy spell outside the Championship, which has lasted since 1961. The club&#8217;s return to the second tier is a significant milestone, marking the culmination of their steady progress in recent years under manager Michael Appleton.<\/p>\n<p>            The details<\/p>\n<p>Lincoln took the lead in the 5th minute and managed to hold onto their advantage despite Reading&#8217;s efforts to equalize. The Imps defended resolutely to see out the 2-1 victory and clinch promotion with a game to spare.<\/p>\n<p>      Lincoln City last played in the Championship in 1961.The Imps secured promotion with a 2-1 win over Reading on April 6, 2026.<\/p>\n<p>        The players<\/p>\n<p>        Lincoln City<\/p>\n<p>An English football club based in Lincoln, Lincolnshire that plays in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football.<\/p>\n<p>Reading<\/p>\n<p>An English football club based in Reading, Berkshire that plays in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football.<\/p>\n<p>Michael Appleton<\/p>\n<p>The current manager of Lincoln City, who has overseen the club&#8217;s promotion to the Championship.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/forms.nationaltoday.com\/news?location=Reading%2C+PA&amp;city=Reading&amp;type=Upload+Story+Photos&amp;headline=Lincoln+City+promoted+to+Championship+after+65-year+absence&amp;page=https%3A%2F%2Fnationaltoday.com%2Fus%2Fpa%2Freading%2Fnews%2F2026%2F04%2F06%2Flincoln-city-promoted-to-championship-after-65-year-absence%2F\" class=\"submission-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Got photos? Submit your photos here. \u203a<\/a><br \/>\n            What they\u2019re saying<\/p>\n<p class=\"news-quote-quote\">\u201cPromotion is the culmination of years of hard work and steady progress. The players and staff deserve immense credit for this achievement.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"news-quote-cite\">\u2014 Michael Appleton, Lincoln City Manager<\/p>\n<p>            What\u2019s next<\/p>\n<p>Lincoln City will look to establish themselves in the Championship next season after their long-awaited return to the second tier.<\/p>\n<p>        The takeaway<\/p>\n<p>Lincoln City&#8217;s promotion to the Championship marks a significant milestone for the club, ending their 65-year absence from the second tier of English football. The Imps&#8217; steady progress under manager Michael Appleton has paid off, and the club will now look to build on this success in the Championship.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Got story updates? Submit your updates here. \u203a Lincoln City&#8217;s long-awaited return to the Championship is celebrated in&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":158746,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[128,130,129],"class_list":["post-158745","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-reading","tag-reading-city","tag-reading-city-headlines","tag-reading-city-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/158745","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=158745"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/158745\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/158746"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=158745"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=158745"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=158745"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}