Sandro Tonali is preparing to come back after being banned from football for gambling. The Italian midfielder is soon to resume playing for Newcastle United. Some have argued that the sanction was hypocritical.
10-Month ban
In October 2023, the former Brescia and Milan midfielder was suspended for 10 months by the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) for repeated gambling offences in Italy. In March 2024, he was then suspended by the English Football Association (FA) for 2 months for up to 50 breaches of the betting rules after he joined Newcastle. The footballer was also fined £20,000 (23,800 euros).
However, the FA decided that if Tonali does not commit any further breaches of the FA Betting Rules during the suspension period, he will not have to serve any part of the two-month sanction.
The FA’s lenient sanction was due to his full cooperation with the authorities. “The level of assistance Sandro has provided by self-referring and fully cooperating with a subsequent investigation is extraordinary and unprecedented,” declared Newcastle United. The club added: “Sandro made full admissions as to his betting activity and did so in circumstances where there was no other evidence to support misconduct proceedings.”
€100,000 worth of bets
Tonali has placed more than €100,000 worth of bets, according to the FA. He placed bets on his own team, Newcastle, four times, wagering that they would win against Brighton, Brentford, Manchester City, and West Ham.
Gambling addiction
Tonali is the highest-profile player to admit to a gambling addiction, but he is far from being the only one. Juventus’ Nicolo Fagioli was banned for seven months, Aston Villa’s Nicolo Zaniolo is under investigation, and Brentford’s Ivan Toney was suspended for eight months, and the list goes on.
In the case of Ivan Toney, the FA went as far as banning him from training with his team. However, cutting off an addict from his support group, in this case, his teammates and coaches, has not been perceived as a clever move from the FA. “The whole football community is big on mental health, and then the FA are going to do this and push me away. When I am around the boys, it will get a bit easier,” declared Toney.
Possibly learning from its past mistake, the FA did not ban Sandro Tonali from training with his club. “Sandro is continuing to follow a therapeutic plan and educational program with the club’s full support and will continue to train with his teammates,” declared Newcastle United FC.
Eddie Howe, Newcastle manager, added: “We will throw our arms around Sandro and protect him and try to give him the love and support he needs to find solutions to the problems he’s had.”
A hypocritical decision
“Footballers are human, and if they are suffering from addiction, they deserve empathy and support, not lengthy bans,” declared the Big Step, part of the Gambling With Lives charity.
Allowing betting operators to sponsor teams and tournaments, turning the players into running billboards to promote an activity in which they are not allowed to partake, while criminalising gambling addiction, was judged “hypocritical” by the Big Step. It explained, “Sending someone addicted to gambling into this environment is like sending an alcoholic to work in a pub. If you force young footballers to endorse addictive products, then don’t be surprised if they use them.”
Forced to miss the Euro 2024 tournament, Sandro Tonali now appears to be eager to make up for lost time.
WHAT’S NEXT: SiGMA East Europe Summit powered by Soft2Bet, happening in Budapest from 2 – 4 September.
