Hull City and Middlesbrough will contest what is potentially the most controversial play-off final in Championship history this afternoon, with the winner earning promotion to the Premier League.
The controversy comes after Southampton, who beat Boro over two legs in the semi-final, were expelled from the play-offs following the well-documented “spygate” incident and subsequent investigation. The Saints will not only incur a four-point deduction for next season, but they are also at risk of losing head coach Tonda Eckert, who could be sacked over the matter. Middlesbrough have taken their place at short notice, meaning kick-off has also been moved from 4:30pm to 3:30pm due to travel issues for those coming from the North East.
Hull City earned their place in the final in a much less unusual fashion, beating Millwall 2-0 on aggregate to secure their spot under the Wembley arch. The Tigers could now become the first team to finish sixth and win promotion since Blackpool did so in 2010. This is also the first meeting in the play-off final between teams who finished fifth and sixth since Aston Villa beat Derby County in 2019.
Despite finishing a place behind today’s opponents in the regular season, there is an argument that Hull are favourites going into this match as they boast a 100% record in Championship play-off finals, having previously beaten Bristol City (2008) and Sheffield Wednesday (2017).
Boro have not reached the play-off final since 2015, when they lost 2-0 to Norwich City, despite being in the mini-tournament in 2018 and 2023. Their last and only play-off success came in 1988 when they defeated Chelsea to reach the top flight.
Both managers have spoken with the press ahead of this game, with Boro’s Kim Hellberg saying that he has “a feeling of relief, happiness, a little bit of trust in doing the right thing and humanity” following the spying investigation and Southampton’s expulsion.
Meanwhile, Tigers boss Sergej Jakirovic admitted he is unhappy with how the last fortnight has played out. “We can say everything is unfair in the last two weeks. You don’t know what’s going on. We are collateral damage because we are waiting on [an] opponent and you don’t know what’s going on, what’s happening.”
The sides have, of course, already met twice this season. The Teesiders ran out 4-1 winners at the MKM Stadium in early December, whilst Hull picked up a 1-0 win at the Riverside shortly before the turn of the year.
Today’s game is scheduled to kick off at 3:30pm (UK time) and will be broadcast live on Sky Sports.