The English Football League (EFL) has officially announced the exclusion of Southampton from the playoffs of the Championship season 2025/26, which is in contention for the right to promotion to the Premier League, after the decision of the independent disciplinary commission. The reason was the numerous violations of the regulations associated with the unauthorized acquisition of training from other clubs.

As it turns out, Southampton have found fault with the broken rules that protect the training of their opponents less than 72 years before the match. Read about incidents before the matches against Oxford United in 2025, Ipswich Town in 2026 and Middlesbrough in 2026..

In addition to being excluded from the playoffs, the club that lost the penalty was taken away four points from the championship table for the 2026/27 season. Also, the “saints” took away the official reward for all the outstanding calls.

In connection with the decisions of the disciplinary committee of the city of Southampton, Middlesbrough was turned away from the play-off final. Kim Gelberg's team itself is now playing against Gall City in the final match for qualifying for the Premier League, which is scheduled for May 23rd.

The EFL said Southampton have the right to appeal. The parties plan to try to regulate the situation as soon as May 20, and the results of the appeal could potentially be applied to the participants in the playoff finals.