Southampton has now become the laughing stock of the entire Championship, as the Saints have been expelled from the second-tier playoffs, mere days before the playoff final at Wembley is set to get underway.
Indeed, Taylor Harwood-Bellis' celebrations, which saw him mock Middlesbrough players with a binoculars gesture after Shea Charles curled home a late winner in the playoff semi-final second leg, have definitely come back to bite the South Coast side now.
Social media was sent into a frenzy after Southampton's spygate fate was unveiled, with very little sympathy being extended the Saints' way, that's for sure.
Southampton have become a big social media target
Amazingly, on the same day that saw Arsenal clinch their first Premier League title since 2004, Southampton's spying tactics being punished was, arguably, more front-page worthy news.
The Saints really did make a rod for their own back when they posted training footage of the likes of Leo Scienza preparing for the Hull City clash at Wembley, with their playoff dreams now ripped up.
All of these posts hyping up what has now proved to be a non-existent playoff final have been hijacked by opposition fans sticking the knife in, with another "Wembley week" post ageing like milk on the end of Saints' X social media account.
Working towards Hull 💪
— Southampton FC (@SouthamptonFC) May 18, 2026
Even their fellow Championship clubs have taken a jab, with Birmingham City now responding to a post from December, when Southampton celebrated a win over the Blues, to gain clicks.
It has worked too, with the post eclipsing 51,000 likes, at the time of writing.
While Birmingham's post feels somewhat cruel, it shouldn't come as a shock that Portsmouth have added to the Saints' misery, with their own comical post, as the Fratton Park faithful are no doubt revelling in their arch rivals' agony.
Portsmouth had the biggest laugh of them all
In an alternate reality, Pompey would be playing League One football next season, while Southampton were flying high in the Premier League.
The actual reality is that John Mousinho's men will be facing the Saints again next campaign, as they pulled off an admirable escape from relegation, in more hotly contested Derby contests, with Pompey taking great joy in reminding Southampton of their failed playoff campaign, in a recent devastating post on X.
— Portsmouth FC (@Pompey) May 19, 2026
Reminding their arch nemesis that another South Coast Derby will soon be on the horizon, with the above post, the Saints will know that they will be in for another hostile match when their game away at Fratton Park hits the fixture schedule.
Failing to win both of their contests against Pompey during the season just gone, as two fierce draws played out, Portsmouth just continue to laugh in the face of their sworn enemies.
While the likes of Pompey will be loving sticking the dagger in, Southampton will know - ahead of next season - that everyone will be wanting to beat the Saints when they're down in the dumps.
They will need to recover from this agonising situation as quickly as possible, with a big summer ahead for the South Coast side, as they get rid of those who have dragged their team's through the mud, to start anew.
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