'Spygate' - the fallout: Player fury, rivals' shock and a significant legal precedent

It is widely regarded as the most lucrative match in football, but the Championship play-off final between Hull City and Middlesbrough on Saturday feels like a sideshow to the related legal disputes that have dominated the past two weeks — and may continue long after.The ‘Spygate’ affair has resulted in Southampton being expelled from the play-offs, despite beating Middlesbrough 2-1 on aggregate in the semi-finals. Middlesbrough, whose season seemed over, were reinstated due to a Southampton intern analyst secretly videoing a section of their work on the training pitch two days before that tie’s first leg. They will now have the chance to hit the jackpot of promotion to the Premier League, widely considered to be worth about £200million ($269m) to the club who go up.Advertisement