LONDON — Southampton manager Tonda Eckert has been handed a six-week ban from all football-related activities and a hefty fine following a sensational "Spygate" scandal involving covert observations of opposing teams' training sessions.

The Football Association (FA) announced on Thursday (Korean time) that an independent regulatory commission has sanctioned the 33-year-old German manager with a six-week suspension and a fine of £28,000 (approx. 50 million KRW).

However, the six-week suspension has been suspended until the end of the 2027-28 season. As long as Eckert avoids any further breaches of the regulations during this probationary period, he will be permitted to continue managing the team without interruption.

According to the FA, Eckert faced charges of acting improperly and bringing the game into disrepute by instructing or approving the monitoring of opponent training sessions ahead of matches against Oxford United in December 2025, Ipswich Town in April of this year, and Middlesbrough in May. The FA confirmed that Eckert admitted to all charges.

The scandal erupted in May when a Southampton performance analysis staff member was caught red-handed using a mobile phone to secretly film a closed training session from an elevated vantage point near the training ground ahead of the Championship promotion playoff semi-final against Middlesbrough.

Consequently, the English Football League (EFL) dealt severe punishments to Southampton, revoking their qualification for the playoff final and docking them four points for the 2026-27 season. With their Premier League promotion hopes dashed, Southampton currently sits 13th out of 24 teams in the Championship this season with 10 points from 4 wins, 2 draws, and 2 losses.

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