Important travel news for Blades fans heading to Wembley

The EFL Championship play-off final between Sheffield United and Sunderland kicks off on Saturday 24 May at Wembley Stadium, London.

Engineering work will be taking place between Bedford and Harpenden over the weekend of the play-off (Saturday 24 and Sunday 25 May) affecting rail services along the Midland Main Line.

Please plan your journey in advance and check before you travel.

What train services are affected?

East Midland Railways (EMR) services will run differently on Saturday 24 and Sunday 25 May with an amended timetable in operation:

Services will continue to run from Sheffield as far as Bedford
No trains will be running between Bedford and London St Pancras
Supporters who travel by train will need to change at Bedford where there will be replacement bus services to take passengers to Hitchen, to connect with alternative trains through to London St. Pancras International
Replacement bus services will operate every 15 minutes between Bedford and Hitchen

A bespoke timetable has been provided by EMR - Replacement Timetable - Sat 24 May 2025 | EMR ( PDF 190KB)

What are the alternative train services?

EMR has been working closely with London North Eastern Railway (LNER) and Sheffield United Football Club and is encouraging supporters to either:

Travel to Wembley on LNER services via Doncaster on the East Coast Main Line, or
Consider travelling to London on Friday 23 May or returning on Monday 26 May, to avoid the peak of engineering disruption

Other services are expected to be busier than usual and to help supporters and other customers on Saturday 24 May, additional staff and crowd management resources will be in place at Sheffield train station and customer information will be regularly updated.

Customers can plan their journey using the National Rail Enquiries Journey Planner or the TSY Journey Planner.

Customers should stay up to date with their operating company via their websites or on social media, or follow @TravelSYorks on X.