When is West Ham vs Millwall? Championship derby dates set after fixture release | OneFootball

East London rivals set for early derby in new Championship season

West Ham will reignite their rivalry with Millwall this coming season, after a 14-year hiatus, as the Championship fixtures are released.

The Hammers, who were relegated on the final day after Tottenham’s win over Everton, will face the Lions for the first time since the 2011/12 season, when they were last in the Championship.

On February 4, 2012, West Ham beat Millwall 2-1 at Upton Park thanks to goals from Carlton Cole and Winston Reid. Liam Trotter scored for Millwall. In September’s reverse fixture earlier that season, the two played out a drab 0-0 draw at the Den.

Millwall have been in the Championship since 2010, bar two seasons spent in League One, and last season narrowly missed out on automatic promotion to the Premier League by a single point. They subsequently entered the play-offs and lost to eventual winners Hull in the semi-finals.

When are West Ham and Millwall playing each other?

Their first match of the new Championship season is on September 19, 2026, at the Den. For West Ham, this comes after a difficult home match against promotion hopefuls, Ryan Reynolds’ Wrexham. It kicks off at 3pm, but this could change with TV scheduling.

It is the same day AFC Wimbledon host fierce rivals MK Dons in their first derby of the season in League One.

The return fixture at the London Stadium is set for February 20, 2027, by which time West Ham will hope to be firmly in the automatic promotion spots as they set their sights on an instant return to the top flight.

After West Ham’s relegation, Nuno Espirito Santo confirmed he would stay with the Hammers and repeat the automatic promotion he achieved with Wolves in 2018. However, they will could be without captain Jarrod Bowen - who is attracting Premier League interest - and are expected to lose Mateus Fernandes - who Manchester United and Tottenham are in talks to sign.

Millwall, after narrowly missing out on promotion last year, will look to go one step further under former Norwich manager Alex Neil, who secured promotion with the Canaries in 2016.