Notts County win at Wembley to earn promotion to League One

It was a day that Notts County supporters will talk about for years. On 25 May 2026, in front of 30,851 people at Wembley Stadium, the Magpies beat Salford City 3-0 in the League Two play-off final to win promotion to League One.

The victory capped a fine first season for head coach Martin Paterson, who took charge ahead of the 2025-26 campaign. The start was not straightforward, though. LeftLion's Left Magpie columnist recalled a shaky August, but an unbeaten October helped turn things around.

Notts finished fifth in the table with 80 points from 46 games, winning 24, drawing eight and losing 14. They scored 74 league goals along the way, and their biggest win of the season was a 5-0 home victory over Tranmere Rovers in February.

The play-offs showed a side at its best. In the semi-final first leg at Chesterfield, Jayden Luker scored the only goal after Chesterfield had missed an early penalty. The second leg at Meadow Lane finished goalless, watched by a crowd of 17,224.

At Wembley, Alassana Jatta opened the scoring after 32 minutes, Lucas Ness added a second just before half-time and Jodi Jones sealed it in the 70th minute. Notts did not concede a goal in the entire play-off campaign, a point the LeftLion column was quick to celebrate.

Jatta and Matthew Dennis shared top scorer honours with 16 goals each in all competitions, while Jones, whose late equaliser at Newport had lifted spirits during a difficult August, enjoyed his moment on the biggest stage.

Meadow Lane was well supported all season, with an average home league attendance of 10,715.

Now back in League One for 2026-27, the club and its fans have plenty to look forward to. Fixtures, tickets and news are available on the Notts County website.