The prosecutor’s office of the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) has disqualified former AC Milan midfielder Sandro Tonali from sporting activities for ten months for betting on some football matches, which is prohibited for professional footballers. Since last summer Tonali has been playing in England with Newcastle: the disqualification will also apply there. The president of the FIGC Gabriele Gravina announced that the disqualification was decided following a plea agreement agreed with Tonali: in addition to the ten months of disqualification there are another eight months of alternative prescriptions, which include therapeutic activities against gambling addiction .
Unlike Nicolò Fagioli, the Juventus player involved in the illegal betting case who was disqualified for seven months, Tonali was not granted the same mitigating circumstances: the player in fact collaborated with the investigations, but had not reported himself in time as Fagioli had done in August. He would also have bet on the matches of his previous teams (but on the victories and not on the defeats, which would have significantly worsened his position).
Given the size of the sanction, his absence from next summer’s European Championships is also certain, should Italy manage to qualify.
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