It was already the most extraordinary week the Championship had produced in years, and it shows absolutely no sign of quietening down. Millwall and Wrexham are now understood to be weighing up their legal options in the wake of Southampton's expulsion from Saturday's playoff final, a decision upheld by an EFL appeal panel on Wednesday night, with Middlesbrough confirmed as the club who will walk out at Wembley in their place.

Both Millwall and Wrexham believe they could have grounds to pursue compensation claims, though neither club was willing to comment publicly on Thursday. Their approach, for now, is to wait for the full written reasons from the EFL's independent disciplinary panel before deciding how far they want to take things. Those written reasons will be crucial — because the EFL has offered precious little public explanation of how it arrived at its conclusions, or what process it followed to get there.

The crux of the argument

The nub of what Millwall and Wrexham may look to argue is this: Southampton's spying on Middlesbrough took place before the playoff campaign had even started. On that basis, both clubs could contend that the right remedy was not simply to remove Southampton from the final and slot Middlesbrough in, but to replay the semi-finals entirely — with Southampton excluded from those, too. Millwall were beaten by Hull at the semi-final stage after finishing third in the table. Wrexham, who ended the regular season in seventh, never even made it that far. If they can demonstrate the EFL's disciplinary process was flawed, or that its rulebook was misapplied, there could be a case to answer.

Notably, the EFL's own rulebook appears to contain no specific provision governing how an expelled team should be replaced — a remarkable gap given the circumstances. The guidance notes state that the playoff final should be contested by two semi-final winners, which will plainly not be the case on Saturday.

Hull's position adds another layer

Hull's owner, Acun Ilicali, added a further complication on Wednesday when he revealed that his club had received legal advice suggesting they should be automatically promoted to the Premier League rather than being required to beat Middlesbrough at Wembley. There is no indication that Hull are likely to pursue that argument in the next 48 hours — the clock is simply against them — but if they fall short on Saturday in a match worth a minimum of £200 million to the winner, a damages claim could follow that defeat as well.

Legal circles had floated the possibility of a high court injunction to force a postponement of the final, but that has been quickly dismissed as unworkable given the timescale. Any action from any of the affected parties will therefore be retrospective, centred on damages rather than preventing Saturday's game from going ahead.

The FA enters the picture

Beyond the civil questions, the Football Association has confirmed it is conducting its own investigation into Southampton's conduct and is expected to bring charges against individuals. The position of head coach Tonda Eckert is reportedly regarded as untenable by his own squad. Midfielder Léo Scienza spoke for many of his teammates when he described the expulsion as heartbreaking, adding that the fans had deserved better than to see their club removed from a playoff final in such circumstances.

Southampton themselves were handed a dual punishment by the panel — expulsion from the final and a four-point deduction to be applied next season — after admitting to spying on Middlesbrough, Oxford and Ipswich. The decision to apply two separate sanctions suggests the panel treated the playoffs as a distinct competition from the regular Championship season, though that reasoning has yet to be formally set out in writing.

Saturday's final will go ahead. Middlesbrough and Hull will settle it at Wembley. But the legal aftermath of this scandal has barely begun, and several clubs clearly have no intention of letting the matter rest there.

Frequently asked

Why were Millwall and Wrexham affected by the Southampton spying scandal?
Millwall were knocked out in the Championship playoff semi-finals by Hull, while Wrexham finished seventh and just missed the playoffs altogether. Both clubs believe Southampton's cheating may have influenced the competition, and that they could have grounds to claim compensation.
Can any club stop Saturday's Championship playoff final from going ahead?
No. The possibility of a high court injunction to postpone the final has been dismissed as unworkable given how little time remains. Any legal action from Millwall, Wrexham or Hull is expected to be pursued retrospectively as a claim for damages.
What punishment did Southampton receive for spying?
Southampton were expelled from the Championship playoff final and handed a four-point deduction to be applied in next season's Championship, after admitting to spying on Middlesbrough, Oxford and Ipswich.