(Football news) Originally, the 22-year-old was going to receive a 12-month suspension from football; however, five of those months will be voided, and he will also be required to spend at least six months in treatment for his gambling addiction.
The Juventus season will thus end due to the one-cap Italy international’s ban, but the penalty is far less harsh than the three-year suspension from football he could have received.
In a statement, the FIGC said: “The Federal Prosecutor’s Office and the football player Nicolo Fagioli have reached an agreement (in accordance with art. 126 CGS). As a result, Fagioli will be punished for violating CGS article 24, which forbids betting on football matches hosted by FIFA, UEFA, and FIGC. Five of the twelve months of the disqualification will be converted to alternative prescriptions, and he will also pay a fine of 12,500 euros.”
“Regarding alternative prescriptions, Fagioli will have to participate in a therapeutic plan lasting a minimum of 6 months and in a cycle of at least 10 public meetings, to be held within 5 months, at amateur sports associations, federal territorial centres, centres for recovery from gambling addiction, and in any case according to the indications and program proposed by the FIGC.
“Federale will monitor compliance with what is indicated and, in case of violations, will adopt the measures within its competence, pursuant to the CGS, with termination of the agreement and continuation of the disciplinary proceedings before the sports justice adjudicating bodies.”
Although Fagioli has acknowledged to betting on football games, he has only ever wagered on teams other than his own. Since making his Juventus debut in 2021, Fagioli has made 45 senior appearances.
The striker for Brentford and England, Ivan Toney, was handed an eight-month suspension from football after admitting to 232 infractions of the Football Association’s betting regulations. The midfielder’s lengthy ban for his actions occurred around five months prior.
Unlike Fagioli, Toney wagered on football games 126 times in all, 29 times on his own club, 13 times on his own side to lose. The striker also concealed evidence from investigators and paid a £50,000 fine.
Fagioli’s sentence comes at a time when over 40 Italian players, including Nicolo Zaniolo of Aston Villa and Sandro Tonali of Newcastle United, are supposedly suspected of being implicated in a big betting scam.
Italian authorities’ investigation into alleged illicit betting caused Tonali and Zaniolo to withdraw from the Italy team during this month’s international break.
In addition to attending the prosecutor’s office at the Court of Turin on Tuesday afternoon, where he is scheduled to publicly denounce himself in front of prosecutors, Tonali is rumoured to be receiving therapy for a gambling addiction.
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