The 27-year-old Brentford striker Ivan Toney~, was banned for eight months last week for breaking the FA’s betting rules, and the reasons for the penalty were detailed in a written statement. The FA document states that if Toney had not pleaded guilty, he would have received a 15-month ban beginning with the 2019-20 season “to properly reflect the seriousness of the offences admitted including betting on one’s own team to lose, albeit he was not playing.”
The FA’s listed reasons for Ivan Toney’s eight-month ban include 13 past bets on his own team losing and a gambling addiction. However, it is believed that by entering a guilty plea, he has saved both time and money, resulting in a 25% decrease to 11 months. And the commission concluded, “a significant reduction should be made to reflect the diagnosed gambling addiction identified by [psychiatrist] Dr. [Philip] Hopley.” The report went on to say that the player’s inability to curb his gambling habits was indicative of the addiction he had been diagnosed with. Mr. Toney appears to have stopped betting on football, though he continues to wager on other sports and in casinos.
He plans to seek treatment for his gambling addiction after the current season ends. Considering these factors, the Commission has decided to decrease the penalty from eleven to eight months. There is no compelling evidence to lift any portion of the suspension at this time. The FA “invited” the commission to mandate the suspension take effect at the beginning of the upcoming season. They proposed extending his suspension to account for the fact that he wouldn’t be playing throughout the summer. This was shot down by the commission. On Friday morning, a message was posted to the Brentford website saying: After admitting to breaking FA Rule E8, concerning betting on football, Ivan Toney was banned from all football-related activities for eight months. Brentford FC has received and accepted the written reasons of an independent Regulatory Commission for this penalty.
The decision has been posted to the FA’s website. Both Ivan and Brentford FC acknowledge that wrongdoing occurred and that punishment is warranted. None of the charges against Ivan were related to anything that would have hurt his own squad, the commission said. The information is provided in the notes. The club has promised that they will help Ivan and his family in any way they can as they cope with the challenges that have been brought to light by this incident. In order to safeguard the player and his loved ones, any discussions pertaining to this and any other aspects of the case shall be kept strictly secret.
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