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Tonda Eckert, the Southampton manager embroiled in the spygate scandal which saw the club expelled from the Championship play-offs, has been fined £28,000 and handed a suspended six-week ban by the Football Association, allowing him to continue in his role.
Saints were removed from last season’s play-offs by an independent English Football League (EFL) panel after admitting to spying on three opponents’ training sessions. The penalty denied them a chance at promotion to the Premier League worth at least £200m. The same panel also handed them a four-point deduction for the current campaign.
The club were braced for further disciplinary measures after Eckert was charged with misconduct by the FA in July over the same incidents. But Eckert’s suspended ban means he will not need to step away from his position as manager, so long as he does not commit another spying-related offence before the end of the 2027/28 season.
Southampton said in a statement: “Southampton Football Club welcomes the outcome of the FA hearing into the events at the end of last season. We hope this now brings a conclusion to a regrettable period of our history and measures have been put in place to ensure that such errors in judgment never happen again at our club.
“We want to take this opportunity to thank the supporters for their unconditional backing throughout this process. Our fan base is unmatched, and we are excited to move forward together towards a bright future.”
Eckert admitted staff were sent to monitor sessions at Oxford and Ipswich during the regular season, and Middlesbrough before their play-off semi-final in May, where a Southampton intern was confronted by Middlesbrough staff, exposing the scandal. The German stated he was unaware that spying breached EFL rules.
The EFL panel found younger staff felt pressured to carry out the activity, describing it as “a contrived and determined plan from top down to gain a competitive advantage”.
Southampton owner Dragan Solak welcomed the decision, but he also criticised the EFL’s treatment of the club, saying it is “not something we will forget”.
“I’m pleased that the independent panel has come to a decision and that we have an outcome. We have already suffered enough, and we appreciate the panel’s recognition of that.
“We are confident the manager has learned from this matter, and a suspended sentence allows him to continue in his role. I firmly believe that Tonda is one of Europe’s most exciting young coaches, and with this distraction removed, I am confident he can lead the team to a successful season. I’d like to thank our fans for standing by us and showing the team so much support during a time when we have needed them more than ever.
“The FA process has been a positive experience. Tonda has been given the opportunity to be open and honest with the panel, and the panel has been able to see that he is simply a good person who made poor decisions. The same cannot be said for the EFL process, and the way they have subsequently treated us is not something we will forget. However, now is the time to look forward to what I believe will be a great future for our club.”
Southampton are currently 13th in the Championship table and meet south-coast rivals Portsmouth on Sunday.
