The Leyton Orient board of directors release an open letter to supporters after playoff final defeat to Charlton at the weekend.
They expressed gratitude to supporters for their unwavering support during the 2024/25 season, despite missing out on promotion to the Championship.
They highlighted the team’s remarkable turnaround from a poor start, including six straight victories to end the regular season and a strong play-off semi-final performance against Stockport County.
The board praised the fans for creating incredible atmospheres at key matches, contributing significantly to the team’s success.
With new investment secured, the club aims to improve infrastructure and build a competitive squad for the upcoming League One season, where they will face strong competition.
The board noted a positive outlook, with record sales of 2025/26 Season Cards, and stressed their commitment to achieving sustainable success at the Championship level in the future.
A thank you message from the Leyton Orient Board of Directors
#LOFC #OneOrient
— Leyton Orient FC (@leytonorientfc) May 27, 2025
Following the conclusion of the 2024/25 campaign, the Leyton Orient board of directors have thanked the club’s supporters for the part they played in a successful season.
Dear Leyton Orient supporters,
As our season draws to a close, we would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your incredible support throughout the campaign.
We are, of course, gutted to have missed out on a place in the Championship and those emotions will be raw for a few days. More than anything, though, we are proud.
Proud of our players, proud of Richie Wellens and all of our staff and proud of you, our loyal supporters.
This season did not start the way we wanted it to. We lost our first four matches and you may remember that at the start of December we were in the relegation zone. Never did your support waver.
Our form in the second half of the season was phenomenal and you were central to that. To end the regular season with six straight victories was an outstanding achievement and to have come from behind in the first four of those simply epitomised the character of our players and the importance of you, our fans, to give them that extra push to fight back and win those matches.
We showed guts and character aplenty to beat Stockport County over two legs in our semi-final as well, and the shared view from ourselves, Richie and his coaching staff is that in time we will be stronger for our experience at Wembley.
Some of the atmospheres you have generated at home this season have been amazing. Derby County and Manchester City in the FA Cup, Barnsley in the league and the first leg of the play-off semi-final immediately spring to mind. You inspired our players and also showed the wider world what makes Leyton Orient such a unique club.
It has been a special season – where so many memories have been made – and it leaves us wanting more.
Although we are all disappointed right now, your football club is in a healthy position and one of real strength. With our new investment now on board, it gives us the opportunity to improve our infrastructure, which will benefit us on the pitch in the long term.
We have made it clear that our aim is to become a football club that can compete sustainably at Championship level and we believe that we are well placed to achieve that in the coming years. We will not put a timescale on when we hope to accomplish this by but we can guarantee you that all of our energies are focused on achieving it.
We have a big summer ahead as we look to put together another competitive squad. At least nine of the clubs we’ll face in League One next season will be former Premier League sides, so we know full well how prudent we’ll need to be with our decision making to maximise our resources.
Finishing sixth this season gives us no advantage going into next season. We’ll be the underdog once again and we’ll need to battle for every point that we get. Although we cannot guarantee success, we have confidence in our staff to make us into the best versions of ourselves once again.
Leyton Orient has been seen across the globe this season and, closer to home, we have been delighted by the appetite for 2025/26 Season Cards. We have reached our target of 5,000 sales and are pleased to say that this summer we have had a record number of ‘new’ Season Card Holders join us.
There is a positive feel around our football club. We are determined to keep building on that and firmly believe that our future is bright. Together, let’s keep striving for success.
We will conclude this message as we started it, by thanking you for your incredible contribution to this season. You racked up the miles, dealt with fixture changes at late notice and made plenty of noise along the way. We are proud of you and we hope that you are proud of your club as well.
The Leyton Orient Board of Directors
O’s manager Richie Wellens spoke after the final, saying he was “embarrassed” by what had happened to VAR.
He said, per Guardian Series: “I think it is embarrassing.”
“The communication has not broke between themselves.”
“The ref makes a decision and the linesman makes a decision.”
“If the fourth official has got something to say then get his attention and say it.”
“The communication problem is VAR, I don’t think we even used VAR today.”
On the game: “I thought that overall it was a very cagey affair.”
“In the end it came down to the one moment of the free kick.”
On the free kick: “When you think of a brilliant free kick usually it goes into the top corner and not the middle of the goal.”
‘Comes down to both wall position and goalkeeper.
“Charlton are a big club and they’re ready to go up to the Championship – we could’ve won the game but we’re not really ready to make that step up to the Championship.”
“Really difficult and heartbreaking that I won’t get to work with these group of players again.”
Here’s how fans reacted as the Leyton Orient board of directors release an open letter to supporters after their playoff final defeat…
@Caroline13B: Hurting but beyond proud. Thank you for the journey so far…
@MirandaGrell: Wonderful message!!!! #LOFC
Steve Duffy: Great club, was routing for you! See you next season! Burton Albion!
Sandy Langridge: Thank you all at the O’s for a fabulous season. You can build on what you achieved next season. Looking forward to it. 
Tracy Styles: Straight up next season O’s..you deserve it and so do we 
.. Climbed so far back up 
.. keep going x
Rob Thorpe: Proud of the team and feel the disappointment but for the team not to come down the our end and say thanks was a good thing.. on to next season
Julie Dewey: So proud of all you boys and roll on next season
Adrian Malupa: Thanks for everything. Since 1970 I have seen 5 Promotions and 5 Final losses..
Kevin Trivett: Go win the league next season
Andy T King: Onwards and upwards here’s to a new campaign coyo’s
Charlton back in the Championship after five seasons away as free kick wins it vs Leyton Orient
Martyn Rolfe: UP THE MIGHTY O’S ALWAYS AND FOREVER
Caroline Miller: So proud of our O’s
Gillian White: We are very proud of you all x
@mistry_bhumika: Proud of everyone in the club, but the tears are still there! Thank you to the directors and staff, please can we recruit on permanent contracts going forward and not rely on loanee, of course they have been amazing and we love them, we will have to start again now. Up the 
s
@twm01303: love the message and the upbeat tone. I would just add we were actually the slightly better team at Voodoo Stadium on Sunday and that’s how close we were to achieving the miracle from December onwards. The width of a crossbar. If we had equalised we would have won. No question.
Robert Waghorn: Great club, great fans and like us now at last great owners. Hope as a Charlton supporter our paths cross again soon. Be proud O’s.
Andy Harris: I have just arrived at Perth airport in Western Australia on the way home from the match. I had a fabulous trip and got to see the Os at Wembley with my son in block 111. Memories for ever! 4th time lucky for me the next time, I am 60 now so soon would be good.
Joel Griggs: I’m sorry, I’m not buying into this. The board massively backed Wellens in January , the squad is perhaps the strongest and deepest in L1 and he fecked up the final and now feels ‘tired’!?
Not the guvnor to take us to the next level.
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