Hull City secure Premier League return after Wembley victory over Middlesbrough
The club’s dramatic ascent from the brink of relegation to the top flight has been confirmed, with owner Acun Ilicali calling off legal proceedings following the win.
Hull City have secured promotion to the Premier League after defeating Middlesbrough 1-0 in the Championship play-off final at Wembley Stadium. The victory, sealed by a stoppage-time goal from Oli McBurnie in the 95th minute, marks the club’s return to the top flight for the first time since the 2016-17 season. The triumph concludes a turbulent campaign that began with the Tigers narrowly avoiding relegation to League One on the final day of the previous term.
The path to Wembley was complicated by the expulsion of Southampton from the competition following the "Spygate" scandal, in which the club admitted to unauthorised filming of Middlesbrough’s training sessions. This administrative decision forced Hull City to pivot their preparation with only four days’ notice to face Middlesbrough, having originally been slated to play the Saints. Despite the disrupted timeline and operating under a summer transfer embargo due to late payments to other clubs, the team navigated the semi-final against Millwall to reach the final.
Head coach Sergej Jakirovic, a former Bosnia international who previously managed Dinamo Zagreb, described the moment of victory as feeling like a "movie." Jakirovic, who took charge in the wake of the club’s near-relegation, expressed pride in the squad’s resilience against significant structural hurdles. He noted that the players were the "main actors" in an achievement he believed they were not fully aware of at the time, citing the numerous problems the club had overcome to reach this point.
Club owner Acun Ilicali stated that legal action regarding the Spygate incident was no longer necessary following the victory. Ilicali, who had previously threatened litigation if Middlesbrough were reinstated, described the day as the best of his life. He has promised a celebratory trip to Las Vegas for the players, though Jakirovic opted to spend the break with his family in Croatia, joking that the Sin City jaunt was not for him.
Recruitment head Martin Hodge described the promotion as the biggest achievement of his 52-year career in football. Hodge, who had questioned his role after watching the club avoid relegation at Portsmouth the previous year, credited the players and management staff for the rapid turnaround. With McBurnie and other experienced campaigners having played key roles, the club now looks forward to a larger budget and preparations for life in the Premier League.
