Is play-off success still a dream or a damp squib?

Sheffield United are seeking to end their Wembley curse against Sunderland on Saturday

Long hailed as the richest game in football, Sheffield United and Sunderland will go head-to-head at Wembley on Saturday for a place in the Premier League.

For Blades fans there is the additional incentive of ending their Wembley curse - it is exactly 100 years since they last won at the national stadium.

Sunderland, meanwhile, have won just once there since their FA Cup triumph in 1973.

But beyond the obvious pride of righting historical wrongs, is the prize of a Premier League spot still as alluring as it once was?

Dan Atkin, a Blades supporter of 40 years, says he would not be attending the game as the prospect of a top flight return "doesn't do it for me in the slightest".

"The last two Premier League campaigns of ours have pretty much broken me, to be honest," he tells BBC Radio Sheffield's Football Heaven.

"We've not been competitive, we've been borderline embarrassing at times."

The supporter, from the Blades in the Pub podcast, adds: "I've just not got the stomach to go down and spend a day in London, a couple hundred quid, in a game I've got no interest in the outcome."

With the Championship's three promoted clubs suffering instant relegation for two years in a row, some fans clearly feel English football's promised land now promises little joy to balance the agony.

But with more than 30,000 Sheffield United supporters expected to make the trip to north-west London, for many the occasion is still a special one.

"I understand [Dan's] point of view, but I don't agree with it personally," Jimmy Smith, of the Blades Ramble podcast, says.

"We need to move forward as a club.

"Of course if we go up there will be short-term pain in terms of results compared to this season, we understand that."

Jimmy Smith insists the lure of promotion remains strong

"You've got to look at the teams that have broken the curse, like Brighton, Brentford and Nottingham Forest this season," Jimmy adds.

"You've got to believe that we're going to be be the next team to break the cycle of up-and-down, up-and-down."

He adds: "It's important for the finances and the infrastructure of the club that we aspire to promotion."

So how much would winning the tie be worth for the Blades?

Dr Dan Plumley, a Sheffield Hallam University-based football finance expert, says the club's annual revenue would rise by more than £60m, with TV money and commercial opportunities providing the biggest boost.

"The financial stakes are actually bigger for Sunderland," Dr Plumley says.

"Unlike Sunderland, Sheffield United have been in the Premier League more recently and so they have benefited from parachute payments which are handed to relegated clubs."

However, Dr Plumley says there is a "danger" that all three promoted clubs suffering instant relegation becomes the norm.

The Blades last visited Wembley for an FA Cup semi-final two years ago

"You've got a pocket of six or seven clubs that are now streets ahead of the rest financially and you've almost got a league within a league," he adds.

"Nottingham Forest is an example of a club that have gambled and won, albeit they were close to relegation and they've had a points deduction, so it shows it's not easy."

Not easy, but as Leicester City's 5000-1 title win in 2016 shows, the unexpected can still happen.

Optimists also point to this season's trophy winners as proof that the big boys can be dethroned.

"With Newcastle winning the League Cup and Crystal Palace winning the FA Cup, it feels like it might be a year of change," Jimmy says.

"Going to Wembley feels different this time - I can't quite put my finger on why, but it could be the Chris Wilder factor."

Boyhood fan Wilder was reappointed Blades manager in 2023 and has set about rebuilding the club after a harrowing season ended in relegation 12 months ago.

The club feels rejuvenated under Chris Wilder, now in his second stint in charge

Josh Chapman was initially sceptical of Wilder's return, but praises him for having restored a "sense of unity" to the red half of Sheffield.

"Behind the scenes as well - with the new ownership - it feels more settled now," he says.

Josh, a season ticket holder of 20 years, says there is a mixture of excitement and trepidation among the fanbase.

"I completely understand [Dan's] point about the Premier League, if there was a way we could win on Saturday and stay in the Championship I'd absolutely take it," he says.

"Where I disagree with him was about not going to Wembley - no-one alive today has ever seen us win at Wembley.

"Why would you not want to go and change that and be part of history?"

Listen to highlights from South Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North.