2024–25 Professional U21 Development League

The 2024–25 Premier League 2 is the 13th season of the Professional Development League system. It continues to use the same format as the 2023–24 season.^[2]

Premier League 2

Season	2024–25
Champions	Manchester City U21s (4th Title)
Matches played	275 (260 RS, 15 PO)
Goals scored	1,009 (3.67 per match) (946 RS, 63 PO)
Best Player	Jahmai Simpson-Pusey Manchester City U21s[1]
Top goalscorer	Divin Mubama Manchester City U21s (17 goals) (11 RS, 6 PO)
Biggest home win	Brighton & Hove Albion U21s 10–0 Crystal Palace U21s (5 October 2024) Record
Biggest away win	Fulham U21s 0–6 Chelsea U21s (4 October 2024)
Highest scoring	Brighton & Hove Albion U21s 10–0 Crystal Palace U21s (5 October 2024)
Longest winning run	10 Matches Manchester City U21s (23 August 2024 – 13 January 2025)
Longest unbeaten run	11 Matches Manchester City U21s (23 August 2024 – 17 January 2025)
Longest winless run	16 Matches Aston Villa U21s (27 September 2024 – 18 April 2025)
Longest losing run	8 Matches Stoke City U21s (23 August 2024 – 29 November 2024)
Highest attendance	6,384 Norwich City U21s 3–5 Manchester United U21s September 28, 2024
Lowest attendance	50 2 Matches
← 2023–24 2025–26 → All statistics correct as of 22 May 2025.

Premier League 2

Table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Manchester City U21s (R, C)	20	15	2	3	61	23	+38	47	Qualification to the Elimination Playoffs and Premier League International Cup
2	Fulham U21s	20	14	3	3	49	30	+19	45
3	Chelsea U21s	20	12	2	6	51	30	+21	38
4	West Ham United U21s	20	12	2	6	30	24	+6	38
5	Manchester United U21s	20	11	3	6	45	31	+14	36
6	Crystal Palace U21s	20	10	5	5	44	35	+9	35
7	Southampton U21s	20	10	4	6	38	31	+7	34
8	Arsenal U21s	20	10	3	7	44	38	+6	33
9	Newcastle United U21s	20	10	2	8	39	37	+2	32
10	Leicester City U21s	20	9	4	7	39	30	+9	31
11	Brighton & Hove Albion U21s	20	8	6	6	39	22	+17	30
12	Everton U21s	20	8	5	7	41	43	−2	29
13	Sunderland U21s	20	8	4	8	48	35	+13	28	Qualification to the Elimination Playoffs
14	Wolverhampton Wanderers U21s	20	8	4	8	30	36	−6	28
15	Nottingham Forest U21s	20	8	3	9	32	28	+4	27
16	Liverpool U21s	20	7	6	7	29	31	−2	27
17	Leeds United U21s	20	6	7	7	27	32	−5	25
18	West Bromwich Albion U21s	20	7	4	9	33	42	−9	25
19	Middlesbrough U21s	20	7	1	12	27	43	−16	22
20	Reading U21s	20	6	3	11	26	45	−19	21
21	Blackburn Rovers U21s	20	6	2	12	31	47	−16	20
22	Tottenham Hotspur U21s	20	6	1	13	35	47	−12	19
23	Derby County U21s	20	5	4	11	27	43	−16	19
24	Norwich City U21s	20	5	3	12	29	49	−20	18
25	Stoke City U21s	20	4	3	13	26	43	−17	15
26	Aston Villa U21s	20	2	6	12	26	51	−25	12

Source: Premier League 2 Table
(C) Champions; (R) Regular Season Champions

Results

Home \ Away	ARS	AVL	BLB	BHA	CHE	CRY	DER	EVE	FUL	LEE	LEI	LIV	MNC	MNU	MID	NEW	NOR	NFO	REA	SOU	STK	SUN	TOT	WBA	WHU	WOL
Arsenal U21s	—	4–1	—	1–1	—	—	2–2	—	—	—	—	0–3	—	4–2	2–1	4–1	—	2–0	—	—	—	1–2	2–5	—	—	—
Aston Villa U21s	—	—	2–1	—	—	—	3–1	1–2	3–3	—	—	2–2	—	—	—	2–3	0–3	—	1–3	—	—	2–2	—	—	—	0–4
Blackburn Rovers U21s	3–4	—	—	—	—	2–7	—	—	2–3	—	3–2	—	1–3	1–3	3–2	—	2–0	3–2	—	—	—	—	—	2–2	—	—
Brighton & Hove Albion U21s	—	1–1	—	—	—	10–0	2–1	—	1–3	—	1–1	2–1	—	0–1	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	5–1	—	0–2	1–1
Chelsea U21s	2–1	4–1	—	—	—	—	—	1–1	—	1–1	3–1	—	—	2–0	—	—	—	—	3–0	0–2	—	—	1–2	1–2	—	—
Crystal Palace U21s	2–2	3–0	—	—	2–4	—	—	—	0–1	—	—	3–3	—	—	—	—	2–2	2–1	1–1	—	—	—	5–1	—	—	0–1
Derby County U21s	—	—	0–0	—	2–6	—	—	—	—	1–2	—	—	2–3	—	—	1–0	—	—	—	0–0	—	—	2–1	4–1	0–1	4–1
Everton U21s	1–2	—	3–1	1–0	—	—	—	—	—	1–3	—	—	—	—	—	—	3–4	2–4	3–3	1–2	4–1	4–3	—	—	—	—
Fulham U21s	6–3	—	—	—	0–6	—	4–0	2–2	—	2–1	3–1	—	1–1	—	2–0	—	—	0–1	—	—	—	5–2	—	—	—	—
Leeds United U21s	—	1–1	2–4	1–1	—	1–1	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	2–2	0–2	1–3	2–1	—	—	—	—	—	—	2–1	1–2	—
Leicester City U21s	—	3–1	—	—	—	0–2	2–1	1–1	—	—	—	—	—	—	3–1	—	—	—	—	1–2	4–0	1–2	2–0	0–0	—	—
Liverpool U21s	—	—	—	—	0–3	—	3–1	0–2	—	1–1	1–2	—	3–1	—	0–1	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	0–5	1–1	4–1
Manchester City U21s	—	4–1	—	2–1	5–0	2–3	—	5–0	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	4–0	5–0	—	—	—	2–2	—	2–0	—	4–1	—
Manchester United U21s	—	2–1	—	—	—	—	—	—	0–1	—	—	0–1	1–3	—	—	—	—	3–3	—	5–1	4–1	—	2–0	5–1	1–0	—
Middlesbrough U21s	—	4–2	—	0–3	1–3	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	0–3	—	—	0–2	—	1–4	1–3	1–0	—	—	—	2–1	1–1	—
Newcastle United U21s	—	—	2–0	—	3–2	1–0	—	2–2	—	—	3–6	—	—	0–2	—	—	—	—	7–1	—	4–1	1–1	—	—	0–1	—
Norwich City U21s	0–3	—	—	1–1	1–3	—	—	—	—	—	1–5	—	—	3–5	1–3	—	—	0–3	—	—	0–3	0–3	—	6–1	—	—
Nottingham Forest U21s	—	—	—	0–1	2–4	—	1–1	—	—	0–1	2–0	—	2–3	—	—	2–3	—	—	—	0–2	1–0	—	—	—	—	2–0
Reading U21s	—	—	1–0	2–0	—	—	0–1	—	1–5	—	—	1–1	—	1–4	—	—	1–2	0–2	—	—	1–5	—	—	—	0–3	—
Southampton U21s	—	—	3–0	2–4	—	0–2	—	—	5–0	—	—	1–1	—	—	—	4–2	2–3	—	—	—	—	3–3	2–1	—	—	2–1
Stoke City U21s	0–1	1–1	—	—	—	1–2	5–3	—	0–1	1–1	—	0–1	—	—	1–3	—	—	—	—	0–3	—	—	—	—	—	4–1
Sunderland U21s	—	—	—	—	—	—	6–0	—	—	3–0	—	2–3	2–3	5–2	3–2	—	—	0–0	1–2	—	—	—	2–3	—	—	5–0
Tottenham Hotspur U21s	—	—	4–0	—	—	—	—	4–5	1–4	0–3	—	2–0	—	—	6–1	0–1	1–1	—	1–4	—	—	—	—	—	—	2–3
West Bromwich Albion U21s	4–3	—	—	0–4	—	0–2	—	0–1	—	—	—	—	0–5	—	—	3–1	—	—	3–1	1–1	5–0	2–1	—	—	—	—
West Ham United U21s	1–0	—	2–1	—	3–2	2–5	—	—	0–3	—	2–3	—	—	—	—	—	1–0	—	—	5–1	1–0	1–0	—	—	—	—
Wolverhampton Wanderers U21s	1–3	—	0–2	—	—	—	—	4–2	—	4–1	1–1	—	3–1	1–1	—	—	—	—	1–0	—	—	—	—	1–1	1–0	—

Source: Premier League 2 Results
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Elimination Playoffs

	Round of 16					Quarter-finals					Semi-finals					Final
	1	Manchester City U21s	2
	16	Liverpool U21s	1
						1	Manchester City U21s	3
						8	Arsenal U21s	2
	8	Arsenal U21s	2
	9	Newcastle United U21s	1
											1	Manchester City U21s	2
											5	Manchester United U21s	0
	5	Manchester United U21s	4
	12	Everton U21s	2
						5	Manchester United U21s	4
						4	West Ham United U21s	1
	4	West Ham United U21s	3
	13	Sunderland U21s	1
																1	Manchester City U21s	2
																7	Southampton U21s	0
	6	Crystal Palace U21s	3
	11	Brighton & Hove Albion U21s	1
						6	Crystal Palace U21s	6
						3	Chelsea U21s	0
	3	Chelsea U21s	4
	14	Wolverhampton Wanderers U21s	0
											6	Crystal Palace U21s	1
											7	Southampton U21s	2
	7	Southampton U21s	5
	10	Leicester City U21s	3
						7	Southampton U21s	5
						2	Fulham U21s	2
	2	Fulham U21s	1
	15	Nottingham Forest U21s	0

Round of 16

Arsenal U21s	2–1	Newcastle United U21s
Butler-Oyedeji 25' (pen.) Edwards 90+3'	Report	Bailey 46'

25 April 2025

19:00 BST

Mangata Pay UK Stadium, Borehamwood

Attendance: 260

Referee: Harry Wager

Manchester City U21s	2–1 (a.e.t.)	Liverpool U21s
Mubama 19', 107'	Report	Pilling 68'

25 April 2025

19:00 BST

Joie Stadium, Manchester

Attendance: 541

Referee: Aaron Jackson

Manchester United U21s	4–2	Everton U21s
Wheatley 11', 51' Fletcher 71' Koné 84'	Report	Sherif 1', 33'

25 April 2025

19:00 BST

Leigh Sports Village, Leigh

Attendance: 250

Referee: Aaron Bannister

West Ham United U21s	3–1	Sunderland U21s
Ajala 1' Orford 63' Battrum 90'	Report	Bell 28'

26 April 2025

12:00 BST

Rush Green Stadium, Romford

Attendance: 111

Referee: Jason Richardson

Chelsea U21s	4–0	Wolverhampton Wanderers U21s
Rak-Sakyi 45' Murray-Campbell 50' McNeilly 63' (pen.) Kavuma-McQueen 86'	Report

26 April 2025

18:00 BST

Kingsmeadow, Kingston upon Thames

Attendance: 265

Referee: William Davis

Southampton U21s	5–3 (a.e.t.)	Leicester City U21s
Merry 6' Robinson 44' Ehibatiomhan 62' Sanda 94' Bragg 113'	Report	Braybrooke 80' Cartwright 82' (pen.) Evans 85'

27 April 2025

14:00 BST

St Mary's Stadium, Southampton

Attendance: 165

Referee: Elliott Swallow

Crystal Palace U21s	3–1	Brighton & Hove Albion U21s
Mustapha 23' Umeh 37' Kporha 56'	Report	Knight 52'

28 April 2025

19:00 BST

VBS Community Stadium, Sutton

Attendance: 1,000

Referee: Alan Dale

Fulham U21s	1–0 (a.e.t.)	Nottingham Forest U21s
Nwoko 93'	Report

28 April 2025

19:00 BST

Motspur Park, New Malden

Attendance: 105

Referee: James Durkin

Quarterfinals

Crystal Palace U21s	6–0	Chelsea U21s
Mustapha 9', 59' Cardines 41' Ola-Adebomi 63', 83' Marsh 90+5'	Report

2 May 2025

14:00 BST

VBS Community Stadium, Sutton

Attendance: 510

Referee: Isaac Searle

Manchester City U21s	3–2 (a.e.t.)	Arsenal U21s
Muir 76' Samuel 90+4' Mubama 106'	Report	Edwards 1' Copley 50'

3 May 2025

13:00 BST

Joie Stadium, Manchester

Attendance: 442

Referee: Ross Martin

Manchester United U21s	4–1	West Ham United U21s
Scanlon 51' Wheatley 60' Murray 78' Mather 90+2'	Report	Adeile 30'

5 May 2025

10:00 BST

Leigh Sports Village, Leigh

Attendance: 471

Referee: Jamie O'Connor

Southampton U21s	5–2	Fulham U21s
Sanda 23' Ballard 45+2', 60', 62' Ehibhatiomhan 85'	Report	Godo 6', 68'

5 May 2025

14:00 BST

St. Mary's Stadium, Southampton

Attendance: 234

Referee: Sam Mulhall

Semifinals

Manchester City U21s	2–0	Manchester United U21s
Mubama 66', 90'	Report

10 May 2025

19:00 BST

Joie Stadium, Manchester

Attendance: 866

Referee: Scott Tallis

Crystal Palace U21s	1–2 (a.e.t.)	Southampton U21s
Ola-Adebomi 51'	Report	Ballard 32' Abu 97'

12 May 2025

19:00 BST

Selhurst Park, Selhurst

Attendance: 740

Referee: James Oldham

Final

Manchester City U21s	2–0	Southampton U21s
Mubama 6' Muir 39'	Report

22 May 2025

19:15 BST

Joie Stadium, Manchester

Attendance: 697

Referee: Robert Massey-Ellis

Player of the Month

Month	Player	Club	Ref.
August	Nathan Butler-Oyedeji	Arsenal U21s	[3]
September	Farid Alfa-Ruprecht	Manchester City U21s	[4]
October	Kiano Dyer	Chelsea U21s	[5]
November	Callum Osmand	Fulham U21s	[6]
December	Harry Howell	Brighton & Hove Albion U21s	[7]
January	Dom Ballard	Southampton U21s	[8]
February	Divin Mubama	Manchester City U21s	[9]
March	Emre Tezgel	Stoke City U21s	[10]
April	Lewis Orford	West Ham United U21s	[11]

Player of the Season

Player	Club	Ref.
Jahmai Simpson-Pusey	Manchester City U21s	[1]

Professional Development League

Professional Development League 2

Season	2024–25
Champions	Brentford U21s (1st Title)
Matches played	344 (341 RS, 3 PO)
Goals scored	1,318 (3.83 per match) (1303 RS, 15 PO)
Top goalscorer	Daniel Adu-Adjei AFC Bournemouth U21s (25 goals) (23 RS, 2 PO)
Biggest home win	Coventry City U21s 14–0 Colchester United U21s (21 January 2025) Record
Biggest away win	Queens Park Rangers U21s 0–6 Coventry City U21s (13 August 2024), Queens Park Rangers U21s 0–6 Sheffield United U21s (10 September 2024)
Highest scoring	Coventry City U21s 14–0 Colchester United U21s (21 January 2025) Record
Longest winning run	14 Matches AFC Bournemouth U21s (7 March 2025 – 12 May 2025)
Longest unbeaten run	15 Matches AFC Bournemouth U21s (3 March 2025 – 12 May 2025)
Longest winless run	12 Matches Colchester United U21s (6 January 2025 – 1 April 2025)
Longest losing run	8 Matches Colchester United U21s (6 January 2025 – 7 March 2025)
← 2023–24 2025–26 → All statistics correct as of 21 May 2025.

The Professional Development League 2 is Under-21 football's second tier, designed for those academies with Category 2 status. The league is split regionally into north and south divisions, with each team facing opponents in their own region twice both home and away and opponents in the other region once resulting in 31 games played. The sides finishing in the top two positions in both regions at the end of the season will progress to a knockout stage to determine the overall league champion. Sheffield United U21s are the defending champions.

22 teams compete in the league this season, one more than the previous season and the most since the league's inaugural season in 2012-13. Brentford U21s returned to the league after nine years their academy was given Category Two status.^[12]

Tables

North Division

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Sheffield United U21s (R)	31	19	7	5	82	36	+46	64	Qualification for Knock-out stage
2	Burnley U21s	31	19	2	10	89	38	+51	59
3	Coventry City U21s	31	16	3	12	73	53	+20	51
4	Hull City U21s	31	17	0	14	61	56	+5	51
5	Sheffield Wednesday U21s	31	13	6	12	51	53	−2	45
6	Fleetwood Town U21s	31	13	4	14	47	59	−12	43
7	Peterborough United U21s	31	11	2	18	46	74	−28	35
8	Birmingham City U21s	31	9	4	18	51	82	−31	31
9	Barnsley U21s	31	7	9	15	43	62	−19	30
10	Wigan Athletic U21s	31	7	5	19	48	66	−18	26
11	Crewe Alexandra U21s	31	6	7	18	39	76	−37	25

Source: Professional Development League table
(R) Regional League Champions

South Division

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	AFC Bournemouth U21s (R)	31	21	4	6	88	49	+39	67	Qualification for Knock-out stage
2	Brentford U21s (C)	31	21	4	6	74	46	+28	67
3	Millwall U21s	31	20	6	5	69	36	+33	66
4	Charlton Athletic U21s	31	17	7	7	88	45	+43	58
5	Ipswich Town U21s	31	12	8	11	63	65	−2	44
6	Cardiff City U21s	31	13	5	13	43	52	−9	44
7	Swansea City U21s	31	13	4	14	57	58	−1	43
8	Bristol City U21s	31	11	7	13	64	66	−2	40
9	Watford U21s	31	11	5	15	55	62	−7	38
10	Queens Park Rangers U21s	31	8	4	19	48	76	−28	28
11	Colchester United U21s	31	3	5	23	24	93	−69	14

Source: Professional Development League table
(C) Champions; (R) Regional League Champions

Results

Home \ Away	BAR	BIR	BUR	COV	CRE	FLE	HUL	PET	SHU	SHW	WIG	BOU	BRE	BRI	CAR	CHA	COL	IPS	MIL	QPR	SWA	WAT
Barnsley U21s	—	2–2	0–4	2–4	2–0	3–3	1–0	3–4	1–1	1–3	2–2	—	—	0–4	—	0–4	—	1–2	—	4–0	—	1–1
Birmingham City U21s	2–3	—	0–2	2–0	0–0	3–2	1–2	0–0	2–2	3–1	1–3	3–4	—	—	3–4	—	0–3	—	4–1	—	1–5	—
Burnley U21s	3–1	8–1	—	5–0	3–1	0–2	4–0	5–0	0–1	0–2	1–3	—	1–2	—	—	0–4	—	3–3	—	6–0	—	4–1
Coventry City U21s	2–2	8–0	2–6	—	3–0	1–2	0–4	0–2	0–0	3–0	2–1	2–4	—	3–2	—	—	14–0	—	3–4	—	2–1	—
Crewe Alexandra U21s	2–2	4–2	0–5	0–1	—	3–3	3–4	2–0	1–2	3–2	1–1	—	0–2	—	4–2	—	—	0–3	—	0–1	—	3–0
Fleetwood Town U21s	2–1	0–3	0–3	1–2	3–2	—	1–3	5–0	3–1	2–1	2–0	1–4	—	2–1	—	0–4	—	—	2–1	—	3–1	—
Hull City U21s	2–1	5–0	1–4	0–2	4–1	5–1	—	4–1	0–3	2–1	3–1	—	2–1	—	2–0	—	4–0	—	—	3–1	—	1–3
Peterborough United U21s	0–1	2–4	2–5	3–2	0–1	3–2	3–1	—	2–1	1–3	3–0	3–0	—	4–2	—	2–7	—	2–3	—	—	1–2	—
Sheffield United U21s	0–0	5–2	1–0	3–4	10–1	5–1	3–1	5–1	—	2–1	2–1	—	6–0	—	2–0	—	3–0	—	1–1	—	—	8–2
Sheffield Wednesday U21s	2–0	2–1	3–2	1–0	1–1	0–1	3–4	3–0	0–2	—	2–1	2–2	—	4–4	—	0–5	—	1–3	—	4–3	—	—
Wigan Athletic U21s	0–2	1–2	0–2	1–2	4–1	2–0	2–0	2–2	2–3	1–3	—	—	1–1	—	1–3	—	4–1	—	1–2	—	3–1	—
AFC Bournemouth U21s	4–3	—	3–2	—	4–3	—	2–0	—	3–1	—	5–2	—	8–1	2–0	4–0	2–3	2–0	7–0	3–1	2–5	4–0	4–1
Brentford U21s	3–0	2–0	—	1–0	—	2–0	—	2–1	—	1–1	—	3–0	—	4–3	0–1	3–2	3–2	5–2	3–1	4–1	3–0	2–2
Bristol City U21s	—	2–1	1–3	—	2–0	—	4–2	—	1–1	—	4–2	5–0	0–4	—	1–1	0–0	3–0	2–2	2–2	2–1	3–4	3–2
Cardiff City U21s	1–0	—	1–4	1–1	—	2–0	—	4–0	—	0–1	—	0–0	0–3	4–1	—	2–0	1–1	2–2	1–2	2–1	2–1	3–1
Charlton Athletic U21s	—	3–1	—	0–1	1–1	—	6–0	—	1–1	—	4–2	1–2	1–6	1–1	6–1	—	8–1	2–2	1–0	6–3	3–1	2–1
Colchester United U21s	1–3	—	0–3	—	1–1	0–0	—	0–1	—	0–1	—	0–4	1–2	4–2	0–1	2–2	—	1–2	0–1	2–3	2–0	0–3
Ipswich Town U21s	—	6–1	—	4–1	—	1–2	0–2	—	0–1	—	2–2	1–2	1–2	3–4	5–1	1–5	1–1	—	3–3	3–2	3–2	2–1
Millwall U21s	4–1	—	1–1	—	4–0	—	2–0	2–1	—	1–1	—	2–0	3–0	3–2	2–0	2–0	3–0	3–0	—	0–0	5–0	4–2
Queens Park Rangers U21s	—	0–2	—	0–6	—	1–1	—	2–0	0–6	—	3–1	1–4	1–5	0–1	2–1	2–2	7–0	2–3	0–2	—	1–3	0–0
Swansea City U21s	0–0	—	2–0	—	4–0	—	1–0	—	5–0	3–1	—	2–2	3–3	2–0	0–1	3–1	4–1	0–0	3–4	0–5	—	1–3
Watford U21s	—	0–4	—	1–2	—	1–0	—	1–2	—	1–1	4–1	1–1	2–1	5–2	2–1	2–3	7–0	2–0	1–3	1–0	1–3	—

Source: Professional Development League Results
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Knock-out stage

Semi-finals

Sheffield United U21s	1–2 (a.e.t.)	Brentford U21s
Atherton 70'	Report	Fredrick 45+3' Morgan 101'

12 May 2025

13:00 BST

Eco-Power Stadium, Doncaster

AFC Bournemouth U21s	4–3	Burnley U21s
McDermott 7' (o.g.) Clarke 34' Rees-Dottin 48' Adu-Adjei 62'	Report	Bauress 3' McDermott 88' Westley 90+4'

12 May 2025

19:00 BST

Vitality Stadium, Bournemouth

Professional Development League National Final

AFC Bournemouth U21s	2–3	Brentford U21s
Adu-Adjei 23' William 62'	Report	Morgan 52' Donovan 56' Yogane 87'

21 May 2025

19:00 BST

Vitality Stadium, Bournemouth

Attendance: 2,033