Hull City resmi promosi ke Premier League setelah menundukkan Middlesbrough dengan skor 1-0 pada pertandingan final play-off Championship di Stadion Wembley pada Sabtu, 23 Mei 2026.
Gol kemenangan Hull City tercipta pada menit ke-90+5, yang sekaligus memastikan klub milik pengusaha Turki, Acun Ilıcalı, kembali ke kasta tertinggi sepak bola Inggris sejak musim 2016-2017. Laga final ini bernilai sangat besar karena memberikan paket pendapatan mencapai lebih dari 300 juta dolar AS bagi pemenang berdasarkan laporan Deloitte Annual Review of Football Finance.
Middlesbrough sendiri melaju ke final menggantikan Southampton yang didiskualifikasi oleh komisi disiplin independen akibat skandal mata-mata atau Spygate. Southampton terbukti merekam sesi latihan Middlesbrough secara ilegal saat kedua tim bertemu di semifinal.
Pemilik Hull City, Acun Ilıcalı, menyatakan ketidakpuasannya terhadap keputusan yang mengizinkan Middlesbrough kembali bermain di babak play-off meskipun ia tetap mendampingi timnya hingga meraih kemenangan.
"Biz sadece adalet istiyoruz. Adalet ortadan kalkarsa, kimse futboldan zevk alamaz," kata Acun Ilıcalı selaku Pemilik Hull City kepada BBC.
Ilıcalı mempertanyakan mengapa investigasi tidak diselesaikan terlebih dahulu sebelum semifinal dihentikan atau mengapa tim lain seperti Wrexham tidak dimasukkan untuk menggantikan posisi yang kosong.
"Eleme aşamasından elenen bir takımın tekrar turnuvaya dahil edilmesi - avukatlarımız da bunu söylüyor - inanılmaz derecede yanlış bir karar." tegas Acun Ilıcalı, Pemilik Hull City.
Sementara itu, pertandingan ini juga memicu beragam reaksi dari para pendukung Middlesbrough yang berkumpul menyaksikan laga di pusat kota Middlesbrough, termasuk di Dickens.
"I'm a bit sick, nervous, but - you know when you have a premonition - I just feel like we're going to do it. I'm excited for the town. Reading everything [about Spygate] and looking what people are saying, this is not our fault, we should never have been spied on. We deserve the opportunity to try get into the Premiership." ujar Angela Chappell, seorang pendukung Middlesbrough berusia 56 tahun.
Pendukung lainnya merasa bahwa kelolosan timnya ke final sedikit ternoda oleh situasi skandal yang melibatkan tim lawan di fase sebelumnya.
"It's a bit tarnished. I would have prefered to get there normally but at the same time you can't allow cheats to go through. If we do win and get promoted, are the other supporters always going to hold that against us? If we had done it naturally, we wouldn't have that." cetus Ian McGrath, pendukung Middlesbrough.
McGrath menambahkan analisisnya bahwa pertandingan tersebut kemungkinan besar akan berjalan dengan skor rendah dan berakhir imbang tanpa gol hingga babak perpanjangan waktu.
"Honestly I think it's going to go 0-0 and go to extra time, even penalties. As a realist, it's going to be low scoring. If we aren't winning by half time, I don't think we will." tambah Ian McGrath, pendukung Middlesbrough.
Kekhawatiran mengenai skor imbang dan adu penalti juga sempat dirasakan oleh pendukung senior yang telah lama mengikuti perkembangan klub tersebut.
"I've been following Boro for 54 years - the ups and the downs. I got a ticket but a friend didn't have any points and he'd just lost his dad so I gave him the ticket. I want to be here in Middlesbrough when we win and be in the town. I think it will be 0-0 and then penalties. If we get promoted that's three North East teams in the Premier League which would be great. It's been 10/11 years since we were in the Premier League, it would be great to see the big teams back at the Riverside." tutur Richard White, pendukung Middlesbrough berusia 57 tahun yang bekerja di sektor konstruksi.
Di sisi lain, terdapat juga pendukung muda yang menaruh harapan tinggi pada dampak ekonomi dan sosial jika timnya berhasil menembus Premier League.
"As soon as we get in the Premier League, it's like the whole area is given a boost." kata Chris Harland, pendukung Middlesbrough berusia 28 tahun.
Harland juga memberikan pujian tinggi kepada pemilik Middlesbrough, Steve Gibson, atas kontribusi besarnya terhadap klub selama bertahun-tahun.
"Stevie Gibbo is one of our own. He has done unbelievably for the club. I've worked all over the country and every single time I say I'm from Boro they talk about Middlesbrough football club. They say he's probably the best owner in the whole country, no one has a bad word to say about him." ungkap Chris Harland, pendukung Middlesbrough.
Dengan hasil pertandingan ini, Hull City resmi menyusul Coventry City dan Ipswich Town yang sudah lebih dulu mengamankan tiket promosi langsung ke Premier League setelah finis di peringkat dua besar musim reguler Championship.
