English football chiefs mulling total player betting ban 21/09/2010 |
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English football bosses are considering whether to tighten the rules on players betting on matches.
Under current regulations, footballers can gamble on any competition as long as their team is not involved.
But the Football Association is weighing up whether to stop players placing wagers on football altogether.
Representatives of the FA, Premier League, Football League, players' union and League Managers Association were due to discuss the issue on Monday (September 20), though it is not yet clear what the outcome of those talks were.
The FA said the meeting had been in the diary for some time and was not a response to the current spot-fixing allegations in international cricket.
A spokesman for the Premier League told the BBC that it was less vulnerable to corruption than some other leagues because of its huge worldwide audience and the high level of scrutiny which that brings.
But he added that the league was not complacent and would go into the meeting with an open mind about any proposal to strengthen the regulations on player betting.
The Professional Footballers Association (PFA) is not yet convinced that a total ban is the best way forward.
Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live, PFA chief executive Gordon Taylor said such a ban could be "a sledgehammer to crack a nut" and prove very difficult to police.
"I wonder if zero tolerance will lead to problems with compliance, whether there will be more exposes, whether it would possibly drive it underground and leave the current situation diminished,” he continued.
"At the moment, we have a good link-up with the betting industry and if there are any particular patterns of betting on the game, warning signals are sent out.”
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