Spygate latest: Southampton boss Tonda Eckert collected ‘privileged’ information when intern spied on rivals, panel reveals written reasons | football news

Southampton manager Tonda Eckert “loved” the information a junior analyst intern gathered while spying on one of his team’s opponents, according to newly released messages.

The details are among the written reasons released after the League Arbitration Panel’s decision to dismiss Southampton’s appeal against their punishment for ‘Spygate’.

Southampton have admitted to scouting Oxford, Ipswich and Middlesbrough for the 2025/26 season. They were knocked out of the play-offs – Boro were relegated – and were deducted four points the following season.

The conduct of the saints was described as “conceived and planned from the top down”. The panel added: “A reprimand is considered appropriate because of the manner in which junior members of staff were pressured to carry out activities which they felt were at least morally wrong.”

‘You’re legendary – the manager loved it’

The Saints were punished for the first incident before the Boxing Day defeat at Oxford, who had recently sacked Gary Rowett and replaced him with Craig Short.

A junior analyst intern was sent to watch Oxford training, from where he sent updates, photos and videos to the Southampton coaching staff.

He received a message: “You’re a legend. The manager likes it.”

Eckert said he had not seen the footage and it had no bearing on his preparation for the Saints’ 2-1 loss.

When asked to perform the task, the intern said: “I didn’t really have a choice and wasn’t given the opportunity to say no. I was an intern and I was doing what I was told.”

The analyst wanted the Eastleigh kit to watch Ipswich training

The same intern expressed concern at being asked to observe Ipswich training ahead of their draw with Southampton in April – when both sides were competing for automatic promotion to the Premier League.

He was told “anyone who is stubborn has to go”.

Ipswich are training at Eastleg ahead of their game against Southampton – one Saints analyst asked if they could be given Eastleg kit if they were to watch their Championship opponents train.

Footage of the entire Ipswich training session was sent back to Southampton. Eckert said he thought someone in Eastleigh had provided the footage.

Intern Deleted LinkedIn After Boro Caught

Southampton’s activities were exposed when interns were caught spying on Boro’s training session ahead of their play-off semi-final.

Eckert wanted to know if Boro’s dominant midfielder Hayden Hackney was available to play.

Flights and accommodation were booked for the interns, who were also shown drone footage of Boro’s training ground. He again expressed concern at being asked to spy on opponents.

The intern sent three videos of Boro training to his colleagues – which were given to Eckert – from his position behind a tree just outside Boro’s training ground, before the four men approached him.

The intern made a “quick” move, but was caught and told to remove the footage – which he did. The intern then changed her clothes at a nearby golf club, and deleted her LinkedIn profile because she was worried Boro would discover her identity.

One analyst suggested that the Saints media team should take down the Manager of the Month Award recipients on their platform because the intern could be identified in the background.

Eckert said the footage collected in the borough was of poor quality and of no use to him.

The written reasons detailed how the analysts felt pressured to perform the tasks asked of them since a colleague lost their job earlier in the season.

The intern was worried about her job prospects if she didn’t perform the tasks, adding that she felt pressured by the coaches because of the criticism of the information she gathered at Oxford.

Another analyst told a colleague: “I always said I was never happy with it and it wasn’t right, but no one listened to me!”

‘Wish it had been directed differently’ – Full Statement of the Saints

On Monday evening, Southampton released a statement saying they “wished they had managed differently from the start”.

The statement read: “Southampton Football Club notes today’s publication by the Arbitration Panel of the written reasons behind our unsuccessful appeal of the sanctions previously imposed on us by the Disciplinary Panel in the EFL proceedings.

“We accept that the club breached the relevant rules and we accept that the disciplinary bodies were entitled to conclude that proof of sporting benefit was not necessary to establish a serious offence.

“The club acknowledges that aspects of our initial response to the situation were not treated with the level of scrutiny they required at the time. In retrospect, we wish it had been handled differently from the outset and this represents an error of judgment for which we take responsibility.

“Despite this, we are pleased with the manner in which we acknowledged the allegations and offered our full cooperation and honesty once the formal EFL investigation process began.”

“We also note that the club was judged against the highest standards of integrity and good faith. This is entirely correct.

“What is difficult to accept is that similar scrutiny does not appear to have been applied to the composition of the disciplinary panel due to the apparent historical and indirect links of the two panel members with Middlesbrough.

“While these connections do not in themselves prove bias, they clearly raise legitimate questions about the consistency, perception, and standard of independence expected in an operation of this magnitude.

“The club is concerned about the weight of claims that junior staff were pressured to get involved, while some serious allegations appear to be unsupported by direct evidence.

“That said, junior employees should never be put in a position where they feel pressured and accept responsibility for failures of club leadership and oversight.

“This case was ultimately decided on the basis that infringement and attempted infringement were sufficient, regardless of whether any sporting benefit was obtained.

“In fact, at no stage has there been any finding that the club has actually received any sporting benefit as a result of the conduct in question. This is a serious interpretation but one that the disciplinary authority was entitled to accept as per the written rules.

“Southampton Football Club will now reflect carefully on the reasons disclosed, review its internal processes and ensure that governance, oversight and decision-making processes are strengthened as a result.

“Our responsibility now is to acknowledge what happened, take ownership of the lessons it brings and use this experience to move forward together as a club to strengthen our judgement, discipline and integrity.”

The EFL said Sky Sports News It does not wish to comment further on the matter.