Hull back in Premier League after McBurnie's last-gasp playoff winner

LONDON, May 23 : Hull City fought their way back to the Premier League with a 1-0 win over Middlesbrough in the Championship playoff final thanks to Oli McBurnie's stoppage-time goal at Wembley on Saturday.

The match - dubbed the richest in world soccer - was a dull affair played in searing heat and seemed to be drifting towards extra time when McBurnie pounced in the 95th minute to stab home a loose ball after a fumble by Boro keeper Sol Brynn.

It was McBurnie's 18th league goal of the season and by far the most important with Hull now to reap the massive financial benefits that come with being part of the Premier League.

"That game summed us up, we knew we weren't going to have all the ball," McBurnie said. "But we felt we'd have one chance and I felt like it was written for me to get it, I didn't think it would be so late on, but what a feeling."

Even a single season in England's top tier, followed by immediate relegation, is estimated to be worth around 200 million pounds ($268.10 million) over three seasons through broadcast revenue, sponsorship and parachute payments.

The build-up to the final was overshadowed all week by the 'Spygate' saga, which saw Southampton kicked out for spying on a Middlesbrough training session.

Southampton had beaten Boro 2-1 on aggregate but the English Football League removed them from the final and replaced them with Middlesbrough after a hearing on Tuesday.

Had they lost on Saturday, Hull City's Turkish owner Acun Ilicali had threatened to take legal action over the way a scandal that rocked English football was handled by the EFL.

The fact that Hull prevailed, after beating Millwall in the semi-finals, will put that controversy to bed.

Few would have given Hull any chance of promotion at the