Southampton appeal against expulsion from Championship play-off final Because of spy crimes He was fired on Wednesday.
An arbitration panel has upheld the English Football League’s decision to exclude Southampton from Saturday’s final, meaning Middlesbrough will instead play Hull at Wembley Stadium for a chance to gain promotion to the Premier League.
Decisions are final.
Southampton was sent off on Tuesday after repeatedly admitting spying on opponents.
He was charged earlier this month with filming Middlesbrough’s practice session ahead of the semi-final without permission. They won with the score tied at two, and were one game away from promotion to the top league.
The south coast club then admitted further offenses relating to games against Oxford United and Ipswich this season. The winning points for next season were also reduced by 4 points.
In its appeal, the group said the punishment was “manifestly disproportionate” to previous sanctions in English football history.
In a lengthy club statement, Southampton chief executive Phil Parsons said “what happened was wrong” and acknowledged the club deserved a sanction.
“What we cannot accept is a sanction that is disproportionate to the violation,” he said.
The playoff final has been called the richest one-off soccer match in the world, as the winning team is expected to earn at least $270 million in future earnings.
Promotion to English soccer’s top flight, the world’s richest and most-watched league, will bring multi-billion dollar global broadcast deals and packed stadiums for games against the world’s biggest teams, including Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal.
Southampton were relegated from the Premier League after finishing bottom of the table last season and were aiming for an immediate return.
The league announced that the final will be held on Saturday, with kickoff at 3:30pm local time.
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