The EFL has confirmed that the upcoming Sky Bet EFL Play-Off Finals, taking place at Wembley Stadium next weekend, will look a little different this year with all three matches now set to kick-off one minute later than scheduled.The confirmed kick-off times for the Finals, which will also be broadcast live on Sky Sports across the weekend, are as follows:
• Championship Play-Off Final – Saturday, 24 May 2025 – 15.01
• League One Play-Off Final – Sunday, 25 May 2025 – 13:01
• League Two Play-Off Final – Monday, 26 May 2025 – 15:01
The unique kick-off times are designed to raise awareness of the “Every Minute Matters” campaign, a collaboration between Sky Bet and the British Heart Foundation, which aims to inspire supporters to learn CPR, equipping them with vital skills that could help them save someone’s life.
Launching at last season’s Play-Offs, Every Minute Matters has already surpassed the initial target of encouraging 270,000 people - three times the capacity of Wembley Stadium - to learn CPR.
Now, the campaign is aiming to go further by encouraging 360,000 people to use the British Heart Foundation’s online RevivR tool and to start learning the lifesaving technique by the time the Play-Off Finals come round.
EFL Chief Executive Officer, Trevor Birch said: "The Sky Bet Play-Offs are a special moment in the football calendar and tens of thousands of supporters will be at Wembley Stadium across the weekend with millions more tuning in from home.
"By kicking off all three Play-Off Finals one minute later, Every Minute Matters continues to harness the power and visibility of football to encourage even more people to learn CPR, which could ultimately help to save even more lives."
Dr Charmaine Griffiths, Chief Executive at the British Heart Foundation (BHF), said: "The Every Minute Matters campaign has been truly groundbreaking by encouraging hundreds of thousands of people to start learning vital CPR.
"With millions of eyes on the Play-Off Finals, it’s incredible to get the support of the EFL in our bid to encourage more fans to learn this lifesaving skill.
"It only takes 15 minutes to learn with our free online tool RevivR, and knowing it could make the difference between life and death in the event of witnessing a cardiac arrest."
Luton Town captain and BHF ambassador Tom Lockyer said: "I was just one of the more than 30,000 people who suffer an out of hospital cardiac arrest every year in the UK.
"I am lucky to be alive today, but the reality is that less than 1 in 10 people usually survive, which is why it’s vital that we continue to raise awareness.
"The symbolic kick off times are the perfect way to make our lifesaving message impossible to ignore.
"Over the course of the last year, the EFL community – fans, players and the clubs – have come together and united behind the Sky Bet Every Minute Matters campaign to achieve something I never thought possible.
"And now, as we approach the business end of the season, the Sky Bet Play-Off Finals provide an incredible platform to continue to spread the word and bring the curtain down on a game changing year in the fight against cardiac arrest."
To access BHF’s free, simple and easy-to-use online tool, RevivR, search ‘BHF RevivR’ or visit revivr.bhf.org.uk/efl