Footballers are frequently in the news for Betting, and several have suffered suspensions or fines as a result of their actions. From the outside, this may appear to be unjust.

So, when it comes to gambling, what are the rules and legislation that apply to professional footballers? Can football players place free bets on the game? Is it possible for them to wager on anything? And which footballers are subject to gambling restrictions — Premier League Players only when large sums of money are at stake, the top four tiers, or something else?

Professional Footballers Are Not Allowed To Bet on Football Games

While we used the word “laws” before, it is important to note that this is not a matter that is covered by UK laws. Footballers are protected by industry standards when it comes to betting. As a result, while they are not susceptible to fines or punishment by the courts, they are subject to action by their own governing authorities, most notably the Football Association (FA).

FA Betting Regulations

Betting has become a particularly heated topic in football in recent years, so it’s no surprise that the FA has a section dedicated to the subject on its website. The “laws apply to everyone involved in football, from players and managers to match officials and club employees,” they say, which is interesting.

In terms of football betting, “those involved in the game at Premier League, English Football League, National League, The FA Women’s Super League and The FA Women’s Championship, including those at clubs in the Northern, Southern, and Isthmian leagues” are prohibited from doing so worldwide. The regulations are clear: people who are subject to the ban are “prohibited from betting, directly or indirectly, on any football match or tournament that takes place anywhere in the world.” This includes a global prohibition on betting on any football-related topic. For instance, player transfers, manager hiring, and team choices.”

According to the FA, passing inside knowledge to someone else who places a wager is likewise forbidden. Inside information is defined as knowledge that a player, coach, or another staff member is “informed of due to your position in the gam ethat is not publicly available — for example, injury or team selection news.” Players and staff may even violate these laws if they pass on information that is later used to place a bet without their knowledge.

Exceptions

Players in the fifth tier of football and match officials, coaches, and referees in tiers four (League Two) and below are exempt from the whole global ban. Although inside information is still prohibited, individuals at these levels of the football hierarchy are permitted to wager on games and competitions in which they are not participating and cannot influence.

Is it possible for football players to wager on other sports?

In summary, footballers can wager on other sports, but it’s important to remember that football is football. That is to say, betting on football is prohibited at all levels of the game, including women’s and youth football. However, how football-related sports and games like futsal, five-a-side tournaments, and beach football fall within this. We believe that taking prudence is the wisest course of action if in doubt.

A footballer, on the other hand, can gamble on a horse race, tennis match, or any other sport without fear of FA fines. They can wager on whether there will be a white Christmas, who will win Britain’s Got Talent, and any other betting category that appeals to them. It’s not football, though.

Some would prefer to see footballers barred from betting on any sport for the sake of clarity, but this is unlikely to happen. There is no real reason to ban them because they have no direct impact outside of their own sport, and any information they may have gathered is a personal matter outside of the purview of football’s authorities. There’s also the question of where to draw the line: should sportsmen be allowed to gamble on the Oscars? Would it be illegal for them to play online poker, go to a casino, or even play the National Lottery?

Controversies in Football Betting

As we previously stated, several footballers have been captured in connection with football betting, not to mention numerous cases of footballers becoming hooked to gambling, even if it was not in violation of FA laws. One recent story, in particular, piques my curiosity since it demonstrates a problem with the use of insider knowledge.

Joey Barton

Joey Barton, a former Manchester City midfielder who was at the time nearing the end of his playing career with Burnley, was suspended from football for 18 months in 2017. He was revealed to have placed over 1,200 wagers on football over a long period of time, including numerous on his own team.

He even backed his own squad in several wagers. While there was no evidence that he manipulated the games (they were games in which he was not involved), betting on your own team to lose is never going to go over well with the FA. “My betting on my own team to lose was an expression of my rage and aggravation at not being chosen or being unable to play,” Barton added. When in a position to influence the outcome of a game, I have never placed a bet against my own team, and I am delighted that my integrity on that point has never been questioned in any of the interviews with the FA or at the hearing.”

Between 2004 and 2016, Barton claimed to have placed about 15,000 bets on various sports. He admits to being addicted, even though the stakes were minor for a professional footballer, such as a £3 bet on him scoring first versus Fulham – not exactly a tremendous vote of confidence! According to the Liverpudlian, up to 50% of footballers gamble regularly (albeit not necessarily on football), and the issue is a serious problem within the game.

Kieran Trippier

Kieran Trippier was convicted of breaking betting rules in 2020. After he was found to have provided information to friends before his transfer to Atletico Madrid, he was fined £70,000, ordered to pay costs, and suspended from sport for ten weeks.

The FA acknowledged that the former Spurs player did not benefit personally and that informing friends about a move, particularly one to another nation, was perfectly reasonable. They also admitted that they couldn’t show that the information was shared to his friends in order for them to place bets. Six friends in three WhatsApp groups, on the other hand, placed large bets on his departure to Spain, with one asking “Shall I lump on you going there?” and the England full-back responding with emojis and “Can do mate” before responding “Yeah mate” to the question “100 percent Tripps?”

Trippier was well aware of his pals’ betting intentions, and several of them had already lost money on a failed transfer to Juventus. One of the group’s bets was well over £1,000, and Trippier appears to have been guilty of passing on inside knowledge. In 2019, however, a case involving Daniel Sturridge was significantly less obvious.

Daniel Sturridge

Due to claims that his brother obtained inside knowledge regarding a move to Sevilla (that never transpired) in 2018, Sturridge received a two-week suspension and a £75,000 fine. The former Liverpool and England striker said on his own YouTube channel:

“I will continue to advocate for professional footballers to be able to openly communicate with their families and close friends without fear of being charged.” I believe that betting firms, as well as the practice and process of people putting bets on players’ moving clubs, should be prohibited, and even though the appeal panel recognised that I had not bet and that no one else had a bet, I was nonetheless charged.”

His two reasons are self-evident: first, it is absurd to expect a player not to discuss their lives and future transfer moves with their friends and relatives. How can a player be held liable for activities performed by a third party if they were unaware of them? His second point is that the most straightforward and equitable solution is to prohibit outright transfer (and associated markets) betting.

Betway free bets took the initiative in 2020, hoping that other competitors would follow suit. Transfer betting, on the other hand, is still available at several of the best football betting sites.

Final Thoughts

The case of Barton is far from the only high-profile one; the FA has also accused Andros Townsend, another former England player. Scott Kashket of Wycombe Wanderers received a two-month ban as recently as 2020, while the former Newcastle wide winger admitted to squandering £46,000 in one session.

Martin Demichelis, Cameron Jerome, Dan Gosling, and Matt Le Tissier are just a few of the other professionals who have been involved in a betting-related scandal in some form, and it is evident that, despite the FA and PFA’s best efforts, this issue is unlikely to go away.

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