After a verdict from an independent committee, Southampton have been expelled from the Championship play-offs, with Middlesbrough reinstated to face Hull at Wembley.
The spy-gate scandal rocked the EFL last week and a verdict was given on Tuesday evening - just four days before the final.
As well as being removed from this season's play-offs, Southampton have also been hit with a four-point deduction at the start of the 26/27 season, with it reported that Saints had admitted to 'multiple' breaches of unauthorised filming of opponents training over the course of the season.
The admitted breaches occurred before fixtures against Oxford United in December 2025, Ipswich Town in April 2026 and Middlesbrough in May 2026.
It's reported that Southampton have already made an appeal to the commission's findings and will be fighting the decision, with the EFL acknowledging that the appeal's outcome could result in a further change to Saturday's fixture.
More from Sporting Life
- Fixtures, results and live scores
- Home of This Week's Acca
- Football and other sports tips
- Download the Sporting Life app
- Podcasts and video content
Safer gambling
We are committed in our support of safer gambling. Recommended bets are advised to over-18s and we strongly encourage readers to wager only what they can afford to lose.
If you are concerned about your gambling, please call the National Gambling Helpline / GamCare on 0808 8020 133.
Further support and information can be found at begambleaware.org and gamblingtherapy.org.
