West Ham or Spurs factor give Millwall silver lining after play-off heartbreak | OneFootball

The Lions have a tasty London derby to look forward to next season despite their play-off loss

Millwall have enjoyed a remarkable first full season under the management of Alex Neil, but they were unable to get over the final two hurdles and reach the top flight of English football for the first time in 36 years.

The Lions have made tremendous progress in recent years when it comes to their positions in the Championship table since being promoted through the League One play-offs nine years ago, and, indeed, were finally able to secure a top six spot at second tier level for the first time in 24 years with the Scot at the helm.

Unfortunately for those at The Den, they were pipped to the post by newly-relegated Ipswich Town when it came to achieving an unexpected automatic promotion to the Premier League, with the Tractor Boys finishing one point ahead after their final day success over Queens Park Rangers at Portman Road.

Then, although both league contests between Millwall and Hull City had been fiercely contested whilst either side emerged victorious 3-1 in their respective away fixtures, many fancied Neil's side to overcome the Tigers over two legs, especially when taking into account the second leg home advantage in SE16.

However, the Lions would come unstuck in the second half of the second leg, with Mohamed Belloumi and Joe Gelhardt crushing the dreams of Millwall supporters, who will have to wait at least another season until they could possibly return to the top flight for just a third season in club history.

Despite the obvious disappointment which is sweeping through the passionate fanbase, there is one silver lining coming their way though, and one they have been waiting an awfully long time for.

Millwall FC will be facing one of West Ham or Tottenham Hotspur in next season's Championship

That silver lining will have certainly been spoken about in the lead-up to the second leg of the semi-final at The Den, and it is the mouth-watering prospect of seeing the Lions take on West Ham United in next season's Championship.

The Dockers derby, as it has been known over time, is one of the most ferocious in English football, although the Lions and Hammers have not faced off in a competitive fixture since February 2012 at the old Upton Park, where Sam Allardyce's hosts emerged 2-1 victors just months before winning the Championship play-off final versus Blackpool.

The last time the two met in South London was months before, when a crowd of 16,078 witnessed a goalless draw between the two sides, and that came just over two years after a well-documented EFL Cup clash when West Ham and Millwall were charged on four and three counts by the FA respectively due to heavy crowd trouble.

Although it was just three years ago that the Irons won the UEFA Conference League in Prague and were regulars in European competition, it has been a disastrous campaign under Graham Potter and Nuno Espírito Santo.

Despite a minor upsurge in form earlier in 2026, the Portuguese's side have won just one of their last four matches, with a 1-0 defeat to Arsenal in controversial fashion at the London Stadium leaving them two points inside the relegation zone with two matches to play.

Millwall, of course, have never played at the Hammers' new home, which has been largely criticised for its design despite a 62,500 capacity.

However, if Nuno's men pull off a great escape in their encounters with Newcastle United and Leeds United, Lions fans will be making the trip to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to take on the North London club, who haven't resided outside the top flight since the 1970s, and have also been the subject of mass ridicule for their recent downfall.

Millwall will hope to maintain promotion push with increased play-off format

Another saving grace for Millwall is that, even if the three sides coming down from the Premier League were to immediately assert their dominance, with one of Spurs or West Ham soon joining Burnley and Wolves, there is still somewhat an increased chance of play-off glory for teams in the Championship.

From next season, the teams who finish seventh and eighth will also be involved in eliminator ties to decide who takes part in the customary two-legged semi-finals, before seeing who can reach Wembley.

It does remain to be seen if Neil will be able to retain the services of key players - Femi Azeez in particular - but if he is able to do so, the experienced manager will certainly fancy his chances of ending an exile from the top flight for the Lions sooner rather than later.