Norwich City were crowned champions and sealed the Championship title in some style with a 4-1 victory over Reading.
But there were no celebrations from England legend Wayne Rooney and his Derby County side, who were beaten by Swansea City to leave the Rams dangling over the precipice of possible relegation doom.
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Norwich have been outstanding in the second tier this season and were left to resume their celebrations after sealing the title on Saturday afternoon.
Already promoted to the Premier League at the first attempt, the Canaries thumped Reading with a ruthless performance to be confirmed champions.
As it turned out, Watford’s defeat at Brentford would have handed Norwich the title anyway but Daniel Farke’s side took care of their own business in emphatic fashion to secure top spot with one game left.
Norwich recovered from an early setback to win, having trailed to a 12th minute goal from Josh Laurent.
But two goals from Kieran Dowell, a stunning free-kick from Xavier Quintilla and Teemu Pukki’s 26th strike of the season ensured two titles in three seasons for Daniel Farke’s side.
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Things are looking bleak for Derby at the other end of the table, though, with the Rams’ fears of dropping down to the third tier of English football for the first time in 35 years edging closer to reality.
County’s fight for safety going down to the final day of the season after Swansea came from behind to beat them 2-1.
Rooney’s side were on course to beat the drop at one point on Saturday afternoon, as Tom Lawrence’s header at the start of the second half gave them the advantage in Wales.
But a quickfire comeback sparked from the Swans condemned Rooney to a sixth successive defeat, with two goals in a three minute period from Derby academy product Morgan Whittaker and Connor Roberts.
Safety is still in Derby’s hands, but they are hovering dangerously close to the bottom three ahead of next weekend’s final fixtures.
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They currently three points above the relegation zone in sit 21st place, but will be in the relegation zone if 22nd-place Rotherham win their mid-week game in hand against Luton.
The Rams could find themselves relegated to League One if results don’t go their way on what is sure to be a dramatic final day next weekend.
No side is officially down yet with all bottom three clubs level on 40 points.
Sheffield Wednesday gave themselves a slim chance of survival with a 0-0 draw with Nottingham Forest, while Lewis Wing’s 86th minute goal rescued a 1-1 draw for Rotherham at Blackburn and while Wycombe Wanderers beat Bournemouth 1-0 their goal difference of -33 means they need a miracle.
Elsewhere in the second tier, Liverpool’s Harry Wilson scored his first career hat-trick as he helped on-loan club Cardiff City to a thumping 4-0 win over Birmingham.
Ivan Toney also equalled Glen Murray’s record of 30 goals in a single Championship season as he scored in Brentford’s 2-0 win over Watford.
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In League One, Hull City were crowned champions with a 3-1 win over Wigan, with Peterborough joining them in automatic promotion to the Champions as they came back from 3-0 down to draw 3-3 with Lincoln City in a stunning match.
Sunderland beat Plymouth 3-1 to seal their place in the play-offs, but both Northampton Town and Rochdale are both relegated after respective defeats to Blackpool and Doncaster.
In League Two, Southend United beat Barrow 2-1 in Phil Brown’s 100th win as Blues boss, but still suffered relegation to end their 101 year stay in the Football League.
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The champagne is on ice for Bolton Wanderers after they failed to secure promotion with a 2-1 defeat to Exeter City while rivals Morecambe won 2-0 at Walsall.
Salford City dropped out of the play-off places with a 1-0 loss at Colchester United, and league leaders Cheltenham missed out on claiming the title as they lost 1-0 to Newport County.
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