Southampton head coach Tonda Eckert is facing a lengthy suspension from all football activity after being charged with three counts of misconduct by the Football Association over the Spygate scandal. The 33-year-old German has until next Tuesday to respond to the charges, with a possible one-year ban looming — a punishment that would follow the precedent set by Fifa when it banned Canada women’s head coach Bev Priestman for 12 months after she authorised the use of a drone to spy on New Zealand’s training during the Paris Olympics.
The charges relate to covert missions to illicitly observe Championship training sessions involving Middlesbrough, Ipswich and Oxford last season. Southampton were expelled from the play-offs in May after an independent disciplinary commission found the club guilty of three counts of football espionage, ruling that the spying was a “contrived and determined plan from the top down” authorised by Eckert. The club also received a four-point deduction for the coming Championship campaign. The EFL, however, has no power to sanction individuals, so the case was handed to the FA, which launched a long-running inquiry.
“Southampton manager Tonda Eckert charged with three misconduct counts over Spygate, potentially facing a one-year ban.”
Eckert has already apologised to Southampton fans and admitted he should have known that EFL regulations specifically outlawed spying. “It’s tough to read some of the things that are out there, I’ve held my hand up for this judgement on something I have authorised,” he told BBC Radio Solent. The club issued a statement acknowledging the charges and saying they will “continue to co-operate fully and openly with the FA.”
Southampton owner Dragan Solak told BBC Sport in June he would not sack Eckert despite the “mistake”, arguing the club had already been punished enough. When asked what he would do if Eckert were banned, Solak said: “I can support him even if he’s banned, but I can’t make him manage if he’s banned.”
The FA’s power to ban Eckert only extends to England, but it can ask Fifa to apply any suspension internationally. In 2023, the Italian FA succeeded with such a request for Sandro Tonali’s 10-month ban for betting irregularities. For Eckert, an England-only ban would appear almost meaningless were he to be offered a job abroad. The FA said it alleges Eckert “acted in an improper manner and/or brought the game into disrepute by directing and/or authorising the observation of training sessions” of the three clubs. His response must be submitted by next Tuesday.