Nottingham Forest defender Harry Toffolo has been suspended for five months and fined for violations of gambling regulations by the English Football Association on Wednesday. The player admitted to all 375 breaches against him charged in July, thus complying with the FA’s decision.
A massive monetary fine has also been imposed on the defender, along with a suspension from playing. This means the left-back will remain suspended and won’t return until the end of the 2024-25 season. The breach of the FA rules occurred when Toffolo was a Norwich City player and was on loan spells at clubs like Swindon Town, Rotherham United, and Scunthorpe United.
Who is Harry Toffolo?
Harry Toffolo is a 28-year-old English professional footballer who joined the Nottingham Forest from Championship side Huddersfield Town in 2020 as Forest gained promotion to the Premier League for the first time in 23 years. Harry Toffolo, primarily a left-back, is currently under contract with Nottingham Forest. He has made a total of 21 appearances for the club, contributing with a single assist, and helped the club retain their spot in the EPL in the previous season.
However, the 28-year-old full-back has yet to feature for the club this season. Toffolo represented the England national team at the youth level, from U18 to U20. The defender has predominantly spent his career playing in second and third-division football, with over 200 appearances for clubs such as Huddersfield Town, Lincoln City, and Swindon Town.
Why did FA fine and suspend Harry Toffolo?
The player himself confessed to the 375 breaches of FA betting rules he was charged with earlier this year. After his confession, the decision to impose the sanctions was announced by the FA following a hearing with an independent regulatory commission.
The player breached FA Rule E1(b), which explicitly prohibits players from betting on all forms of football and from passing on information that can be used to place bets.
The FA released a statement read, “Nottingham Forest’s Harry Toffolo has been given a five-month suspension, which has been suspended until the end of the 2024/25 season, and £21k fine for misconduct of our betting rules”.
Official: Nottingham Forest defender Harry Toffolo has been given a five-month ban by the FA after admitting 375 breaches of betting rules. ⛔️
His ban is suspended until the end of 2024-25. He's also been fined £20,956, reports BBC Sport. pic.twitter.com/vfbL4Ga8x1
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) September 13, 2023
Although Harry Toffolo’s case is the second high-profile case of betting from the Premier League this year, the first case of gambling involved Brentford striker Ivan Toney, who was immediately banned from playing for eight months and fined £60k after admitting to 232 breaches of the FA betting rules in May.
What are your thoughts on the entire fiasco? Share with are in the comments.
