The EFL has released the written reasons for the League Arbitration Panel’s dismissal of Southampton’s appeal against their expulsion from the Championship play-offs following the Spygate scandal, in which they sent observers to secretly monitor Town, Middlesbrough, and Oxford United training sessions.
In addition to being knocked out of the play-off final, in which Hull City overcame Borough, whom the Saints had upset in the semi-final, 1-0 to secure a spot in the Premier League, the Hampshire club will begin the next season with minus-four points.
The evidence presented by the League Arbitration Panel about Town being spied on on the morning of the campaign’s penultimate encounter at Southampton while utilising nearby National League Eastleigh’s facilities reads as follows:
“The club was slated to play Ipswich at home on the evening of April 28, 2026.
“Ipswich practiced at Eastleigh Football Club ahead of the match. The evidence before the Commission indicated that Southampton and Eastleigh enjoyed a close working relationship.
“[Southampton head coach] Mr [Tonda] Eckert testified before the Commission that he understood that someone from Eastleigh had given CCTV footage of the Ipswich training session to someone at Southampton, of which he [Mr Eckert] was only aware a few hours before kick-off.
“After a short period, he requested that it be turned off so he could concentrate on the pre-match meeting. He stated that the tape showed no evidence of influence, and that he made no changes to the match preparations, which were already complete at the time.
Analyst 1 claimed that the assistant coach of Southampton’s first-team told him that Mr Eckert had suggested that someone go to Eastleigh to watch Ipswich during a match preparation meeting. The junior analyst intern, Will Salt, who was filming at Middlesbrough’s training ground, also stated that he was approached by the assistant coach to go to Eastleigh to watch Ipswich.
“The junior analyst intern was uncomfortable doing this and responded, ‘No’, and no further pressure was put on him to go.
“Analyst 1 also felt uncomfortable: he said in his evidence that he grouped himself with the younger members of the analysis team who were being pressurised into carrying out observations, and he felt pressurised himself.
“Furthermore, at the time of the Ipswich match, he was attending a UEFA coaching course. So he didn’t go to watch the Ipswich training session either. But Analyst 2 called him when he was at that course, saying the coaches were insistent that someone should go to Eastleigh, and Analyst 1 called an academy analyst intern, who had worked with Eastleigh before, and he said he would go.
“Analyst 1 requested that he be given with Eastleigh equipment and a legend indicating his alleged ‘job’ at Eastleigh.
“The Junior Analyst accordingly travelled to Eastleigh to witness the training sessions. Someone at Eastleigh videotaped the entire session on the morning of the match, which was provided to Southampton. The club accurately predicted the Ipswich team for the encounter based on film.
Town made five changes for the encounter at St Mary’s, with Leif Davis returning to left-back after missing the previous Saturday’s 0-0 draw at West Brom, and Dan Neil coming into midfield for Jack Taylor, who was sidelined with a knee injury.
Wes Burns began wide on the right, his first start since returning from a calf injury, Marcelino Nunez at number ten, and Jaden Philogene on the left.
Southampton first denied that the eavesdropping at Middlesbrough was conducted out at the instruction of boss Eckert, with WhatsApp conversations relating to the Town and Oxford events discovered during the club’s investigations, before admitting and submitting to the proceedings.
The League Arbitration Panel stated of the Town and Oxford spying: “There was clear evidence of sporting advantage, ie that information from the observations had been passed to the senior coaching team at the club, and it had been used in preparation for those matches.”
The Middlesbrough incident resulted in a play-off ejection, while the Oxford and Town surveillance resulted in a four-point deduction, which the Independent Commission reduced from six points to three per game.
The League Arbitration Panel, chaired by the Rt Hon Sir Gary Hickinbottom, denied the appeals against both the expulsion and the point deduction.
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