Ivan Toney hit with eight-month football ban for breaching betting rules

Ivan Toney will not play again for Brentford or England this year after he was banned from football for eight months after accepting 232 breaches of the FA’s rules on betting.

The forward was expected to be hit with a heavy punishment after he was subject to 262 FA charges at the end of 2022, but the extent of the ban has still surprised many within the game. Under the terms of the sanction, Toney will be suspended from playing until January 2024 and cannot train with his Brentford teammates until September.

In a short statement posted on Twitter yesterday, Toney said: “Today I have received notification of my eight-month ban from football following a hearing before an FA Regulatory Commission that took place yesterday. I am naturally disappointed that I will be unable to play for the next eight months. The written reasons for the commission’s decision have not yet been published, so I make no further comment at this point other than to thank my family and friends, Brentford FC and our fans for their continued support, through what has been a very difficult time. I now focus on returning to play the game I love next season.”

The FA has charged Toney under Rule E8, which bans players from betting on games, asking others to do so on their behalf or sharing privileged information for betting purposes.

“Ivan Toney has been suspended from all football and football-related activity with immediate effect for eight months, which runs up to and including 16 January 2024, fined £50,000 and warned as to his future conduct for breaches of the FA’s Betting Rules,” the FA said in a statement.

“The Brentford FC forward was charged with 262 breaches of FA Rule E8 in total between 25 February 2017 and 23 January 2021. The FA subsequently withdrew 30 of these breaches and he admitted to the remaining 232.

Nine months: Eric Cantona, Mark Bosnich

In January 1995, Manchester United's Eric Cantona was banned for his infamous attack on a Crystal Palace fan at Selhurst Park. Cantona scored on his return, against Liverpool at Old Trafford in October 1995.

Goalkeeper Mark Bosnich was banned for nine months in December 2002 after testing positive for cocaine. The Australian international was sacked by Chelsea and did not play in the English top flight again.

Eight months: Ivan Toney, Rio Ferdinand

Ivan Toney's ban for breaching betting rules is the same length as the suspension handed to Rio Ferdinand for missing a drugs test at Manchester United's training base in January 2004. Despite offering an explanation and later passing a follow-up test, the centre-back was banned for eight months, missing Euro 2004 as a result.

Seven months: Adrian Mutu

Adrian Mutu's Chelsea career lasted a little over a year but the legal battle went on until 2018. The Romanian joined the Blues for £16m in 2003 but was sacked in October 2004 after a positive test for cocaine, receiving a seven-month ban in November. Mutu moved on to Juventus, but repeatedly fought a court order outlining that he owed Chelsea £15.2m in compensation.

10-12 games: Barton, Di Canio, Suárez, Prutton

Joey Barton's role in one of the Premier League's most memorable games earned him a 12-game ban, after the QPR midfielder was sent off during Manchester City's 3-2 win at the Etihad in 2012. Barton was shown a red card for elbowing Carlos Tevez, and then tried to attack another three City players on his way from the field.

Sheffield Wednesday's Paulo Di Canio (11 games) and Southampton's David Prutton (10 games) both reacted to red cards by shoving the referee. Luis Suarez was banned for 10 games after biting Chelsea's Branislav Ivanovic in April 2013 – two games longer than the ban he received for racially abusing Patrice Evra in December 2011.

Eight games: Thatcher, Suárez, Mitrovic

The longest ban for a single foul was given to Ben Thatcher, after the Manchester City defender viciously elbowed Portsmouth's Pedro Mendes in September 2006. Mendes was knocked unconscious, but Thatcher only received a yellow card. The FA ultimately banned him for eight games, with City fining the full-back six weeks' wages.

Aleksander Mitrovic joined Suárez and Thatcher in receiving an eight-game ban, after pushing referee Chris Kavanagh during Fulham's FA Cup defeat to Manchester United in March. The striker joined Willian and manager Marco Silva in the dressing room after a minute of madness.

“His sanctions were subsequently imposed by an independent Regulatory Commission following a personal hearing. He is permitted to return to training only with his club for the final four months of his suspension starting from 17 September 2023.”

In previous high-profile betting cases Kieran Trippier was banned for 10 weeks and fined £70,000 after bets were placed on his prospective transfer from Tottenham to Atlético Madrid, while Joey Barton was the subject of an 18-month sanction for more than 1,000 breaches of Rule E8.

Toney has enjoyed a highly successful season, scoring 20 goals in the Premier League and making his international debut for England. His punishment also comes at a time when football is reluctantly confronting its ingrained relationship with the gambling industry.

The Premier League recently announced a voluntary ban on shirt sponsorship by betting companies, but the presence of gambling advertising remains pervasive at matches of all levels, with Sky Bet the title sponsor of the EFL.

Brentford’s owner, Matthew Benham, is himself a former professional gambler and the founder of SmartOdds, a company that provides data services to companies “looking to outsmart the sports betting markets”.

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Anti-gambling campaigners criticised Toney’s punishment. The Big Step, which wants to end gambling advertising and sponsorship in football, posted four images on Twitter of Ivan Toney holding personal awards festooned with gambling advertising, alongside the message: “If you force young people to endorse addictive products, don’t be surprised if they use them.”

Matt Zarb-Cousin of the organisation Clean Up Gambling tweeted: “Forced to promote gambling as a footballer, authorities allowed bookies to turn the sport into a series of random betting events prone to match fixing – like time of first throw and number of corners – while player safeguards amount to sanctions in line with skipping a drugs test.”