Southampton coach charged by FA for Oxford United spygate

The club admitted sending staff to secretly watch Oxford United’s training on 23 and 24 December ahead of their Boxing Day visit to the Kassam Stadium, as well as spying on Ipswich Town in April and Middlesbrough in May 2026.

Tonda Eckert faces three Football Association misconduct breaches (Image: Cody Froggatt/PA Wire)

In a statement confirming three misconduct charges against him, the FA said head coach Tonda Eckert “acted in an improper manner and/or brought the game into disrepute” by directing or authorising the covert observations.

At the time of the Oxford game, United were under caretaker boss Craig Short following Gary Rowett’s sacking on 23 December, with uncertainty over whether Short would abandon the back five that had faltered under his predecessor.

Eckert’s analysts concluded from their illicit footage that Oxford were likely to switch systems but Short’s reshaped back four still inspired a 2-1 win over Southampton on Boxing Day.

Southampton manager Tonda Eckert (left) speaks to his players (Image: Mike Egerton/PA Wire)

Southampton had gone on to beat Middlesbrough over two legs to reach the Championship play-off final, only to be disqualified and handed a four-point deduction for next season once the spying campaign was exposed.

The scandal came at the end of a difficult Championship season for Oxford, who finished 22nd and were relegated back to League One.

Eckert who has publicly apologised for his role in the scandal now has until Tuesday 28 July to respond formally to the FA’s charges.