As the English Premier League season reaches its end and teams battle it out for top positions, Brentford has been hit with a shocking turn of events. Ivan Toney was Banned for eight months after admitting to 232 breaches of the FA’s betting rules. This news has sent shockwaves through the football community and has left Brentford fans reeling.
Ivan Toney: Brentford’s Star Striker
Ivan Benjamin Elijah Toney is an English professional footballer who has earned one cap for his national team. Ivan Toney joined Brentford on 31 August 2020 in a five-year deal.
During his time at Brentford, the club stopped taking a knee against racism. Toney spoke against the gesture, stating that players were being “used as puppets” while society remained unchanged. Despite facing online racist abuse throughout the season, Toney chose to stand rather than take a knee alongside his colleagues when Brentford and the other 19 Premier League clubs decided to resume the gesture for the 2021-22 season.
However, the English striker emerged as a successful striker for Brentford with 20 goals in 33 appearances before he faced an eight-month ban from the FA.
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What Really Happened?
Toney is set to miss all the remaining action this season due to his eight-month ban. the 26-year-old was accused by the FA of 232 breaches of its gambling laws. On 20 Dec, the previous year
30 more accused were added by the FA making the total 262.
In February this year, Toney admitted 232 allegations of the 262 while contesting others. This month he was banned from English football for 8 months. He was also charged £50,000 from the FA.
His breaches took place between 25 February 2017 and 23 January 2021, during which time he represented Scunthorpe United, Wigan Athletic, Peterborough United, and Brentford.
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What Brentford Had To Say?
Brentford FC has released a statement acknowledging the decision of an independent Regulatory Commission to issue an eight-month ban to for breaches of FA rule E8.
The club is awaiting the publication of the written reasons for the ban and will review them before considering their next steps.
What’s Next For Ivan Toney?
The written reasons are still not released by the FA, which is the main reason that Toney and Brentford haven’t appealed yet as they are still waiting for the written report. However, FA can only enforce this ban in England but it will appeal to Fifa for a worldwide ban for the 27-year-old. He won’t be allowed to train with Brentford before September, mid-way through the ban.
This ban could have a significant impact on Ivan Toney as his chances of being picked for next year’s European Championship are situated in Germany.
The FA has announced that it will publish the full written reasons for its decision to ban the 26-year-old in the coming weeks. These reasons may include details about the size of the bets and the fixtures involved. In anticipation of a lengthy ban, Brentford signed German striker Kevin Schade on loan from Freiburg to provide cover this season.
The club is expected to return to the transfer market for a long-term replacement this summer. The ban also has implications for England manager Gareth Southgate, who gave Toney his first cap in the European Championship qualifying win over Ukraine in March.
Despite being handed an eight-month ban from football for betting offences, Brentford is set to open contract talks with 27-year-old striker Ivan Toney at the end of the season.
