Newcastle United star Sandro Tonali charged by English FA for 50 alleged breaches of betting rules
By George Ramsay, CNN
(CNN) — Newcastle United midfielder Sandro Tonali has been charged by the English Football Association (FA) for allegedly breaching betting rules 50 times last year.
The FA, English football’s governing body, announced on Thursday that the charges relate to bets Tonali is said to have made between August 12 and October 12.
CNN has contacted Tonali’s representatives for comment. He has until April 5 to respond to the charges, the FA said.
The 23-year-old is already serving a 10-month ban from the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) for violating betting regulations while he was playing for AC Milan, although the FA charges relate to his time playing for Newcastle.
Tonali moved from AC Milan to Newcastle in July last year for a reported fee of $74 million, according to Reuters – a record sum for an Italian player.
The current ban from the FIGC means that he is unable to represent Newcastle or the Italian national team until August, missing the remainder of his club’s domestic campaign and the upcoming European Championships with Italy.
In relation to his ongoing ban, Tonali agreed to undergo a therapy plan for gambling issues – which his lawyers said were connected to gambling addiction, according to Reuters – as well as making 16 speaking appearances as part of community service.
In a statement on Thursday, Newcastle said that it acknowledges the charges against Tonali, adding: “Sandro continues to fully comply with relevant investigations and he retains the club’s full support.
“Due to this ongoing process, Sandro and Newcastle United are unable to offer further comment at this time.”
The FA declined to comment on whether any new sanctions could run concurrently with Tonali’s ongoing ban.
Tonali is not the only Premier League player to miss much of this season for betting on matches. In January, Brentford striker Ivan Toney returned from an eight-month ban after admitting to 232 breaches of the FA’s betting rules.
Toney, who was also fined £50,000 (around $63,000), scored his first England goal while playing against Belgium earlier this week.
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CNN’s Ben Morse contributed to reporting.
