Hull City defeated Middlesbrough 1-0 in the Championship play-off final at Wembley, securing promotion amid the Spygate scandal.
Published May 23, 2026
Hull City defeated Middlesbrough 1-0 in the Championship play-off final at Wembley Stadium in London and were promoted to the English Premier League.
Oli McBurnie’s goal in stoppage time on Saturday sealed victory, avoiding controversy over Boro’s place in the finals following the Spygate scandal.
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Hull’s original final opponents, Southampton, were found guilty of spying on Boro’s training ahead of their semi-final match and were disqualified from the process.
Hull believed the match should have been automatically handed to them rather than Boro making a comeback, and were understood to be taking matters further if the match did not go ahead.
The final, played in scorching heat, was headed for extra-time, but in the 95th minute McBurnie pounced on the loose ball and slotted it home after a fumble by Boro keeper Sol Bryn.
Hull are back in the top flight for the first time since being relegated in 2017 and will be rewarded in what is known as the most lucrative competition in world football by joining the Premier League.
As the richest league in the world, clubs promoted from the Championship will receive an extra income of £200 million ($268 million).
Southampton will be deducted four points from next season after admitting a number of breaches related to “unauthorized filming of other clubs’ training sessions”, the EFL said in a statement.
