Ivan Toney says investigation into his gambling breaches was made public in ‘spiteful’ way
The Brentford striker was banned from all football activity until January 17 and fined £50,000 last month after admitting 232 breaches of the FA’s betting rules over a four-year period.
News of the investigation into Toney’s historical betting surfaced on the eve of Gareth Southgate naming his England squad for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
Speaking on the Kick Game YouTube channel, Toney revealed missing out on a first World Cup finals appearance outweighed the lengthy punishment he is currently serving.
“People try to break people down,” the 27-year-old said. “How it come out, just before the England camp, obviously missing out on the World Cup… In a way, it was kind of like: ‘get out now so you don’t go [away with] England’.
“And then all of a sudden they want to wait until the end of the season… But it is what it is. They wanted to do it that way. I call it a bit spiteful. You just have to get on with it.
“I feel that was a bigger punishment, even though I am missing eight months of football. That was a bigger punishment, missing out on the World Cup. It’s everybody’s dream. I believe in myself and hopefully I can be at the next one.”
Toney is not permitted to train with Brentford until September and will not play again until January 2024 upon the completion of his ban.
The striker has vowed to return at “different animal”, insisting he does not want sympathy for his actions.
“The club has actually been very helpful and supportive, everybody at the club,” he added. “Loads of footballers have messaged me as well. The sport is good.
“But how I am, I don’t want anybody to feel sorry for me. The punishment is the punishment, get on with it.
“I’ve just got to focus on training when I come back and being a different animal when I come back in the league. It’s going to be frightening.”
Toney, who has been diagnosed with a gambling addiction, agreed there were “double standards” in play in football surrounding widespread sponsorship from betting companies.
“The fact is, the majority of football teams now are sponsored by gambling companies,” he said.
Asked if the sport should be doing more to address its relationship with gambling, he continued: “Of course, I feel that it should.
“People out there are painting a certain picture of me, fair enough, but people that know me know who I am and what I’m about. The majority of football teams now are sponsored by gambling companies, so weigh it up.
“If the rules are not to bet, you shouldn’t be betting, but for people that need help there should be more around them to stop them going in that direction.
“When the time is right, I’ll speak out on the majority of things and clear a few things up that need to be cleared. That is not now, unfortunately.”
