Brentford striker Ivan Toney made 13 bets on his own team to lose a game, the club has announced in an official statement.
- Toney bet on his own team to lose
- Report reveals gambling addiction
- Forward suspended for 8 months
What is the news?
Brentford posted a full report on the charges against Toney on Friday. The forward was recently suspended for 8 months after it became clear that he gambled on football matches. It now appears that Toney even bet on Brentford’s own matches and bet on his own teammates losing these matches. The club made it clear that these were games in which he himself did not participate.
What was in the statement?
“Brentford FC has received and accepted the written reasons of an independent Regulatory Commission that handed Ivan Toney an eight-month ban from all football and football-related activity after he admitted breaches of FA Rule E8, relating to placing bets on football. The judgement has been published on the FA website. Ivan and Brentford FC accept that offences were committed, and sanctions were inevitable.”
“The commission noted that none of the charges related to events where Ivan could negatively impact his own team. The detail is included in the written reasons.”
The club also stated that there is no single evidence that Toney influenced the outcome of a match. “The present case is not one of match-fixing. If it was, the charges would have been pursued under different provisions. There is no evidence that Mr Toney did or was even in a position to influence his own team to lose when he placed bets against them winning – he was not in the squad or eligible to play at the time.”
The document continues by saying: “The commission finds that a significant reduction should be made to reflect the diagnosed gambling addiction identified by [psychiatrist] Dr [Philip] Hopley. The lack of control the player has in respect of gambling is clearly a reflection of his diagnosed gambling addiction.”
Whilst Toney was not involved in match fixing, he did bet on his own team to lose between August 2017 and March 2018. The documents in his case state: “No evidence … in a position to influence his own team to lose when he placed bets against them winning – he was not in the squad or eligible to play.”
The Bees have vowed to help Toney during a testing in his personal and professional life, adding: “The club will now be doing everything possible to provide support to Ivan and his family to deal with the issues raised in this case. Conversations regarding this and all matters relating to the case will remain confidential in order to protect the player and his family. We consider this matter closed and look forward to welcoming Ivan back to training in September and seeing him representing Brentford in the Premier League in January.”
