The Turin Prosecutor’s Office subjected Sandro Tonali, of Newcastle, to an interrogation for almost three hours this Tuesday and acknowledged his gambling addiction.
The ‘betting case’ in Italian football adds a new chapter. Sandro Tonali , English Newcastle midfielder and international with the Azzurra , was subjected to an interrogation this Tuesday before the Turin Prosecutor’s Office that lasted almost three hours. The player, who had already expressed regret before, admitted to having also bet on football matches.
Otherwise, Tonali would not have violated Italy’s Code of Sports Justice . But what is truly important is that the footballer also confessed to having placed bets on AC Milan matches , the team in which he played between 2020 and 2023. And betting on the team in which he plays, as he has acknowledged, can constitute a serious crime of sporting misconduct.
Article 30 of the Code of Sports Justice speaks of “carrying out, by any means, acts aimed at altering the development or result of a match or competition.” But Tonali could avoid being judged based on said article due to one condition: his bets were on Milan victories or other results when he was absent from the team, so his bets would not have influenced his performance over the play field.
According to La Gazzetta dello Sport , the media that revealed Tonali’s confession, the infraction that Tonali is currently accused of falls within the scope of article 24 of the Code. This punishes players who bet on football with a minimum sentence of three years. Having done it in Milan matches, of course, would be an aggravating fact.
The aforementioned newspaper speculates that the sanction that could be imposed on Tonali would be a 12-month ban from the playing field. While the minimum sentence is three years, the player’s sentence would be cut in half by the pre-submission plea agreement. Furthermore, by his cooperation, he could also benefit from some extenuating circumstances.
Tonali has stated that he suffers from gambling addiction. To have a favorable outlook, his version should coincide with what emerges from the documents that are in the possession of the Turin Prosecutor’s Office after seizing the player’s own phone and tablet.
The time to know the penalty would not be delayed too much. The Prosecutor’s Office of the Italian Football Federation made official this Tuesday the sanction to the Italian Nicolo Fagioli, who after a plea agreement will be away from the playing fields for seven months and a minimum of six under therapy, and will have to pay a fine of 12,500 euros . Tonali’s path, if no further irregularities are detected, would follow a similar path with a somewhat greater penalty than that of his compatriot.
