{"id":316,"date":"2026-05-15T16:06:21","date_gmt":"2026-05-15T16:06:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=316"},"modified":"2026-05-15T16:06:21","modified_gmt":"2026-05-15T16:06:21","slug":"middlesbrough-wants-southampton-expelled-from-championship-playoff-final-for-spying","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=316","title":{"rendered":"Middlesbrough wants Southampton expelled from Championship playoff final for spying"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"\"<\/figure>\n\n
Middlesbrough\u2019s Aidan Morris, left, and Southampton\u2019s Caspar Jander battle for the ball during the EFL Championship play off semifinal soccer game between Southampton and Middlesbrough, Tuesday, May 12, 2026, in, Southampton, England. (Andrew Matthews\/PA via AP)<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n

MIDDLESBROUGH, England \u2014 Middlesbrough wants Southampton expelled from the Championship playoff final as the English Football League prepares to hold a hearing into allegations of spying.<\/p>

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Southampton beat Middlesbrough<\/a> in the playoff semifinals after it was accused of unauthorized filming of semifinal opponent Middlesbrough\u2019s training for the game.<\/p>\n

The league has warned fans<\/a> there could be \u201cchanges\u201d to the playoff final on May 23.<\/p>\n

That leaves Hull, which won the other semifinal, uncertain of which opponent it will face for a lucrative spot in the Premier League<\/a> .<\/p>\n

\u201cThe conduct at issue, namely the observation and recording of our training session ahead of a fixture of such significance, goes to the heart of sporting integrity and fair competition,\u201d Middlesbrough said.<\/p>

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\u201cIn these circumstances, the only appropriate response is a sporting sanction which would prevent Southampton FC from participating in the EFL Championship playoff final.\u201d<\/p>\n

Middlesbrough added it \u201cregrets\u201d the disciplinary commission\u2019s decision not to allow it to be part of the process and called on the English Football League to pursue a strong punishment to \u201cdeter any attempt in the future to obtain an unfair and unlawful advantage in pursuit of promotion to the Premier League.\u201d<\/p>\n

Southampton has previously said<\/a> it was cooperating with the disciplinary process and asked for more time to complete its own internal review of the issue.<\/p>

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___<\/p>\n

AP soccer: https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/soccer<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Middlesbrough wants Southampton expelled from the Championship playoff final as the English Football League prepares to hold a hearing into allegations of spying<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":314,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-316","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interesting"],"yoast_head":"\nMiddlesbrough wants Southampton expelled from Championship playoff final for spying - Moving Insider USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=316\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Middlesbrough wants Southampton expelled from Championship playoff final for spying - 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