Ivan Toney bet Brentford to lose
Recently-suspended England and Brentford striker Ivan Toney bet on his own team to lose 13 times, per the Football Association (FA).
The news of Toney’s betting history broke Friday morning less than two weeks after he was banned from all soccer activities for eight months. He has also been officially diagnosed with a gambling addiction.
The 27-year-old took to Twitter around the time the news broke to share his intent to have an honest conversation about the matter.
Toney’s bets against his club came across seven matches between August 2017 and March 2018. 11 of the bets were in favor of Newcastle United, a former club of Toney’s, and two for Wigan Athletic, which Toney was loaned to at the time.
there is no evidence that Mr. Toney did or was even in a position to influence his own team to lose”
“Mr. Toney did not play in any of those matches where he placed bets against his loan club as he was not in the match squad or against his parent club as he was on loan,” said the FA. “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.”
Psychiatrist Dr. Philip Hopley interviewed Toney twice as part of the FA’s investigation. He was responsible for diagnosing Toney with a gambling addiction, which, alongside his “great remorse” for his actions, led to his suspension being reduced from 11 months to eight months.
Brentford said that it considers the matter closed and looks forward to Toney rejoining the team in September.