This month saw Brentford’s Ivan Toney banned from football activity for eight months and today has seen the written reasons for the length of the suspension unveiled.
The striker was charged with 262 breaches of FA rule E8 between February 25, 2017, and January 23, 2021. The FA subsequently withdrew 30 of these breaches and he admitted to the remaining 232.
Following his admittance, Toney has been banned from football until January 16, 2024, and has been fined £50,000 for beaching the FA’s rules. On Friday, the written reasons for the length of this ban has been revealed and it proves fascinating reading as the England star was on course for a 15-month suspension.
According to Simon Stone, the FA Commission would have given Toney a 15-month ban but it was cut partly because the Brentford star pleaded guilty and also because an expert concluded that the 27-year-old had a gambling addiction.
Toney is said to have placed 29 bets on matches his own team was involved in, 13 of them for his team to lose although he didn’t play in any of those games.
This gives a fascinating insight into why the eight-month ban was given but it is also sad to hear that the Brentford star was battling an addiction throughout four years of his career.
Toney placed 29 bets on matches his own team was involved in, 13 of them for his team to lose although he didn't play in any of those games.
— Simon Stone (@sistoney67) May 26, 2023