Southampton take immediate action after being replaced by Middlesbrough for play-off final | OneFootball

Saints have been expelled from the competition just days before the Wembley date

This season's Championship play-offs have been full of drama both on and off the pitch, and that has certainly continued just four days before the final at Wembley Stadium.

Whilst Hull City and Millwall did battle over two legs and the Tigers eventually sealed their passage into the richest game club football has to offer with a second leg success at The Den on Monday, May 11th, the on-pitch action between Southampton and Middlesbrough was only half of the drama involving Tonda Eckert and Kim Hellberg's sides.

Indeed, the majority of discourse surrounding the 40th edition of the Championship play-offs has centered around the 'Spygate 2.0' scandal which emerged prior to the first leg of the semi-finals at the Riverside Stadium on May 9th.

It was alleged that an intern analyst from the South Coast side had been spotted photographing and recording training sessions taking place at the Reds' Rockliffe Park training base, which set up a hostile atmosphere between both sets of supporters during both contests.

On the pitch, it seemed as though Saints had done enough to book a second trip to the national stadium in less than a month as they came from behind to emerge 2-1 victors after extra-time at St Mary's, with Ross Stewart and Shea Charles cancelling out Riley McGree's fifth-minute opener.

Ultimately, the three fanbases - Hull, Southampton and Middlesbrough - had been left in the lurch for some time, even though the first two had released tickets for the upcoming showpiece event, with an original 'planned' kick-off time of 4:30PM on Saturday being stated.

But, it has now emerged that, after a hearing from an independent disciplinary commission, Saints have been expelled from the competition just under four days before the day of the final.

However, the club have already responded to such matters.

How Southampton FC have responded to being expelled from the Championship play-off final

A statement from the English Football League on the evening of Tuesday, May 19th, has emerged, stating that Saints have "admitted to multiple breaches of EFL Regulations related to the unauthorised filming of other Clubs’ training."

After initially being charged on May 8th, the club were charged again on May 17th in relation to those additional breaches on top of initial proceedings involving Middlesbrough.

The other clubs relating to said charges were Oxford United and Ipswich Town, with unauthorised filming taking place within 72 hours of the scheduled matches on December 26th and April 29th, which ended in a 2-1 defeat at the Kassam Stadium and a 2-2 draw at St Mary's respectively.

As well as seeing a second place in the Championship play-off final within two years fade away, Saints have also been hit with a four-point deduction which will come into effect at the start of the 2026/27 league season, beginning on the weekend of 14th - 16th August, as well as a reprimand in relation to all charges.

With the Hampshire club having a right to appeal, which has reportedly been exercised, a resolution to said process is set to be worked on ahead of the close of play on Wednesday, May 20th.

Furthermore, Middlesbrough have also released a statement, including a section which reads: "We believe this sends out a clear message for the future of our game regarding sporting integrity and conduct," and that ticket information will be released in due course.

Southampton's play-off expulsion has sent shockwaves through the EFL

Rather unsurprisingly, these sudden developments have sent shockwaves through the world of football, with Saints players previously in training ahead of their expected final against the Tigers.

Hull were also said to have been building up to face Saints for a third time, having already achieved a league double over the same opponents, while Middlesbrough also reported to Rockliffe Park earlier in the week in the event that such eventualities became reality.

Hellberg was visibly upset during his post-match press conference at St Mary's seven days ago, but will now have to ensure his players are in the right frame of mind to take on Hull, with both sides now looking to end respective nine-year exiles from the Premier League.