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Good morning football fans. It’s Wednesday, May. 20 - Southampton have been expelled from the Championship play-off final, Uefa reject using new rules around mouth covering, and everything else you need to know. Forwarded this email? Sign up here.
KEY FIXTURE
Europa League final (May 20): Freiburg vs. Aston Villa, 20:00 BST / 15:00 ET. While it is Freiburg’s first-ever major European final, it’s just Aston Villa’s second such final, with the last one in the 1982 European Cup final against Bayern Munich, where they won 1-0. Villa are in good form in Europe, with no other side having won more matches in major European competition since the start of 2023-24, and only Arsenal (19) having kept more clean sheets in that time than the Villans (16). However, Freiburg have been clinical in front of goal, having scored at least three times in four of their six knockout games.
Results…
Premier League: Bournemouth 1-1 Man City | Chelsea 2-1 Spurs (Table)
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TOP TALKING POINTS
Breaking: Arsenal are crowned Premier League champions after Manchester City drew 1-1 with Bournemouth on Tuesday night. Read more here. Dive deeper into the defining numbers behind Arsenal’s title win here.
Southampton Kicked from Play-Offs
Southampton have been expelled from the Championship play-off final for spying on Middlesbrough ahead of the first leg of their semi-final tie. The club have also been docked four points in the Championship next season. The play-off final will remain on Saturday (May 23) at Wembley, and Middlesbrough, who were beaten by Southampton in the semi-final, have been reinstated.
The unprecedented decision was made by an independent disciplinary commission after the English Football League (EFL) charged Southampton with a breach of its regulations. The EFL said Southampton had “admitted to multiple breaches of EFL regulations related to the unauthorised filming of other clubs’ training.” The Saints also admitted breaches in other fixtures, including “against Oxford United in December 2025, Ipswich Town in April 2026 and Middlesbrough in May 2026.” Southampton did not win any of the games directly affected by the spying incidents.
Middlesbrough had pushed for Southampton to be kicked out of the play-offs after finding a Saints intern spying on their training session. Watch a re-enactment of the spying here. In a statement, Middlesbrough said they welcomed the decision, as it “sends out a clear message for the future of our game regarding sporting integrity and conduct.”
Southampton have the right to appeal, with some reports suggesting the Saints have already taken action. The appeal should be resolved by Wednesday (May 20).
UEFA Refuse New Rules
UEFA has decided against introducing automatic red cards for players who cover their mouths when confronting an opponent or leave the pitch in protest at a refereeing decision. European football’s governing body is therefore not adopting the new rules that Fifa had worked with football’s law-making body, Ifab, to develop. The new rules will, therefore, be used at the World Cup, but not in next season’s European fixtures.
Both rules were introduced following two major instances this season. Fifa looked to combat mouth covering after Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni was accused of verbally abusing Real Madrid’s Vinicius Junior whilst covering his mouth during a Champions League match. Meanwhile, the lawmakers wanted to set a precedent against teams walking off the pitch in protest of refereeing decisions after Senegal did so in the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon). They were later denied their second Afcon title when the appeals committee ruled they had forfeited the match for walking off.
Ifab has not mandated that the rule be introduced across all competitions, though Uefa will monitor its impact at the World Cup. When Uefa’s club committee meet in Leipzig next week, there are not expected to be any major rule changes for next season’s European competitions.
Saudi’s Newcastle Pivot
Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund PIF is considering selling a minority stake in Newcastle United to fund plans for the club’s stadium. Sources speaking to Reuters say the PIF chair, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, is considering whether to build a new stadium or renovate St James’ Park, with a new-build costing more than £1bn ($1.34bn). Yesterday, the club bought part of Leazes Terrace, a building next to the stadium, though Newcastle said there is no immediate plan to use that land for stadium redevelopment.
Although the wealth fund is almost at $1trn, it must seek ways to fund its projects in line with the Premier League’s financial rules. In addition to issuing new shares, reports suggest PIF is considering increasing liquidity by securitising Newcastle’s commercial revenue. In other words, it would borrow money against the club’s future commercial income, such as sponsorships, advertising and merchandise. Barcelona used a similar model, albeit not tied to commercial revenue, when they sold portions of their future income streams to raise upfront cash for stadium redevelopment.
The PIF is also redefining its global sports strategy with a clear pivot toward financial sustainability. The fund recently announced it would no longer finance LIV Golf after the 2026 season, following a reported investment of more than $5bn (£3.7bn).
POLL
Who is your Premier League player of the season?
ON THE BALL
Europe
> UEFA is reportedly expecting higher UK viewing figures for next week’s Champions League final despite it being behind a paywall for the first time in the competition’s history (More)
> Chelsea forward Joao Pedro has been named the club’s Player of the Season just a day after missing out on Carlo Ancelotti’s Brazil squad for the World Cup (More)
> Benfica are expected to target either Fulham boss Marco Silva or ex-Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim as their successor to Jose Mourinho (More)
> Portugal’s national team has announced its squad for the upcoming World Cup, with Cristiano Ronaldo set to feature in his sixth tournament (More) | The Scottish national team has announced its squad for the tournament (More); watch the announcement video (Watch)
> Sarina Wiegman has named a 25-player squad for England’s World Cup qualifiers against Spain and Ukraine in June (More) | Midfielder Ella Toone received her MBE from Prince William at Windsor Castle (More)
Americas
> FIFA will prohibit flags and apparel at World Cup matches that feature pre-revolutionary Iran symbolism (More) | Fifa has added another gambling industry sponsor for the World Cup (More)
> US Open Cup quarter-finals — Columbus vs New York City and Colorado vs San Jose — will play on Wednesday (May 20); Orlando vs Atlanta & St. Louis vs Houston to conclude shortly after publication (Live Results)
Rest of the World
> Football Australia has declined to grant Melbourne-based club Western United a license for the 2026-27 season after they were expelled in 2022 for financial problems (More)
ROUTERS’ VOICE
Yesterday’s Poll: Is Pep Guardiola the best manager in English top-flight history?
🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🤩 Yes (54%)
🟨 🟨 🟨 🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ 🙅♂️ Nope (44%)
🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ✍️ Other (2%)
Your punditry takes:
🤩 D.R: “His record speaks for itself, together with his unprecedented impact on influencing the way football is played in the Premier League.”
🤩 G.M: “It’s not just his record but the creativity with which his teams played. People can point to the money backing him, but plenty of teams have similar payrolls without nearly as much success.”
🙅♂️ L.J: “Sorry, but no. This isn't sour grapes, but let's not allow recency bias to cloud our judgment. Ferguson and Paisley are ahead of Pep as managers, and neither of them had the resources he had. Klopp and Wenger are better comparisons in my opinion. However, Guardiola is definitely one of, if not the greatest, actual coach in top-flight history, and I'd have him at Liverpool in a heartbeat.”
✍️ S.H: “It depends on the findings of the PSR charges. His trophy count and ability to win across multiple versions of the team certainly rival, if not exceed, Sir Alex, but if they find them guilty, especially of that many charges, it certainly becomes less impressive.”
EXTRA TIME
Could Pep’s City history be rewritten after the 115 case?
Ranking the top 50 USMNT players for the World Cup.
Liverpool revive an all-time classic home shirt.
… and Inter Milan release their new home kit.
The moment Neymar found out he made Brazil’s squad.
Carragher and Neville’s Premier League season awards.
Which manager has won the most major European titles?
GAME FACE ON
Question: Put the following players in order from most to least goals scored for the Brazil national team.
Zico
Neymar
Romario
Ronaldo
Pele
Scroll below for the answer.
Daily Wordle: Guess the football-related word, from player names to classic phrases, in six tries or fewer. Play it here.
I remain calm and focused, as I always try to be. Joys and frustrations are part of football.
Answer
Neymar (79). Pele (77). Ronaldo (62). Romario (55). Zico (48).
