Professional association football club Lincoln City (Imps) has suspended one of its players for allegedly breaching the Football Association’s (FA) betting rules. Christopher Patrick Joseph Maguire is the 33-year-old Scottish player of the club based in Lincoln, Lincolnshire accused of breaching rule E8 of the FA. Maguire allegedly placed more than 50 bets on soccer matches between 2017 and 2022. Maguire joined the club in July 2021 when he signed an initial two-year contract and joined Imps’ manager Michael Appleton for a third occasion. The player was given the t-shirt marked with the number 10.
The Imps Suspended Maguire without Prejudice
According to an official statement made by the club on its official website, the player has been charged for breaching FA Rule E8 which refers to betting. The player, who was also part of Rotherham United, Aberdeen, Sheffield Wednesday, Derby County, Oxford United, Bury and Kilmarnock, Portsmouth, and other teams in loan spells, has until August 30 to respond to the said allegations. The striker has also been suspended by the club without prejudice until more information is known.
The respective FA Rule E8 states that anyone involved in soccer from level eight and above of the league system should not place bets on soccer games, no matter their location on the globe. Maguire, who has also made two international appearances for Scotland’s national team in 2011, appears to have breached this regulation by placing a number of 52 bets on soccer matches between March 17, 2017 and February 12, 2022.
Similar Breaches in FA’s Regulations
At the end of last October, York City FC player Joshua King was suspended for a month from soccer and given a fine for placing illegal soccer bets, according to a similar Football Association report. The probe that was opened into King determined that the player had placed around 140 bets on two season matches and events. The investigation into the matter found that most of the disputed soccer bets were placed using the player’s phone service provider and Wi-Fi at home.
Atletico Madrid’s Kieran Trippier was also accused of breaching similar FA rules on betting participation in 2020, Liverpool’s former striker Daniel Sturridge who was suspended for four months because of breaching the same set of regulations.
Manchester City’s former player Dickson Etuhu also received a five-year ban in Sweden for match-fixing accusations.