Ivan Toney, a star player for Brentford, has confessed to multiple violations of the Football Association’s (FA) betting regulations and is likely to begin a long-term suspension prior to the end of the current season. Toney was charged with 262 breaches of the FA’s rules, which prohibit wagering on matches, in two different sets of accusations during the months of November and December.
Prior to the start of the FIFA World Cup, The Sun uncovered the allegations against Ivan Toney, but this did not hinder him from being chosen by Gareth Southgate for the Qatar tournament; the England manager was fully aware of the situation. Reports now suggest that Toney has acknowledged numerous of the charges although he has denied some of them. It is estimated that the Football Association’s formal disciplinary hearing into the case will take place in the coming weeks, allowing Toney to begin serving his suspension before the end of this season, which includes the empty months of June and July. The Brentford striker has managed to score 26 Premier League goals in two seasons under the management of Thomas Franks.
There is no implication that Toney, who is 26 years old, put bets on any of the matches, ranging from 2017 to 2021, in which he was a participant. In the early part of that timeframe, Toney was loaned out to Wigan Athletic and Scunthorpe United before he moved on to Peterborough and Brentford a year later. Meanwhile, in 2019, England international Kieran Trippier was punished by the FA for breaking their betting regulations after he urged a friend to “lump on” prior to his transfer from Tottenham to Atletico Madrid. He did not directly bet, yet after a thorough investigation, Trippier was forbidden from partaking in any football activity for ten weeks and was fined £70,000.
Ivan Toney is set to serve a lengthy ban
In 2016, Joey Barton was found to have broken the betting regulations when he placed 1,260 bets in a span of 10 years. Consequently, he was handed a ban of 18 months the following April, leading to his retirement instead of him appealing the punishment. Daniel Sturridge, formerly an England striker, was also issued a four-month suspension and fined £150,000 in January 2018 after being found guilty of giving out details regarding his transfer. Turkish club Trabzonspor also terminated his contract. This season, Ivan Toney is one of the top scorers in the Premier League, on equal ground with Marcus Rashford with 14 goals, behind only Harry Kane and Erling Haaland. Although uncapped at an international level, Toney was part of the England squad in their 3-3 draw with Germany last September, only to miss the World Cup. His forthcoming ban is likely to keep him out of England’s matches with Ukraine and Italy in the next month.
