Jail, Injuries and Compensation: All in a Day’s Work for a Professional Footballer

Introduction

What happens on the pitch stays on the pitch. Many a football autobiography has coined the immortal phrase. There are however a growing number of circumstances were the law is becoming more involved in on-the-field incidents. Issues like mistimed tackles or a flying elbow highlight examples of where the law and sport are increasingly becoming uneasy bedfellows.

English football has been littered with high profile incidents. Examples include referee Paul Alcock’s unfortunate comic book fall after being pushed over by Paulo Di Canio, to the attempted re-enactment of the Ali versus Frazier’s ‘Rumble in the Jungle’, performed aptly by Newcastle’s Kieron Dyer and Lee Bowyer.

Fortunately only egos were bruised in the above examples, yet what is of greater concern is when a player is injured as a result of a reckless challenge. There is a general understanding when a player enters the field of play as an amateur or professional player that anyone who decides to play accepts the inherent risks involved and the possibility of sustaining an injury.

Criminal and Civil Action

The vast majority of football incidents are handled by the FA. It means that the bulk of on-the-field incidents are dealt with by the FA’s internal disciplinary procedures and that these processes are usually considered adequate. There are however occasions when incidents involve players and supporters. Jamie Carragher was red carded, banned for three matches and interviewed by the police (although no further action was taken) as a result of throwing a coin back into the Highbury crowd during a feisty Liverpool v Arsenal game in 2002. More recently Didier Drogba, was cautioned for common assault for coin throwing at Stamford Bridge during Burnley’s shock victory over Chelsea.

However, there are occasions when the crown prosecution service decides that there is enough evidence and individuals are prosecuted.

Probably one of the most infamous incidents in recent times involved Eric Cantona’s iconic kung-fu kick on an opposition supporter at Selhurst Park in 1995. He received a nine month ban from the football authorities and was stripped of the United captaincy. Cantona was sentenced to 120 hours of community service for his actions. Lee Bowyer’s £200,000 fine for his on-pitch brawl with Dyer (the equivalent of six weeks wages) and three match ban was in addition to the £600 fine that the court imposed for using threatening behaviour.

The most severe punishment was handed out to Duncan Ferguson in 1994 in a match between Glasgow Rangers v Raith Rovers, where Ferguson head butted John McStay. He managed to avoid a red card but was subsequently sentenced to three months in prison.

In light of these incidents it is worth questioning whether the courts have any role to play in dealing with on the pitch misdemeanours. In short, the answer must be yes. Whilst there have been few criminal acts on the football pitch, courts have increasingly played an important role in dealing with civil claims, i.e. where an injured player seeks damages for a challenge that has either ended or severely restricted their playing career.

Player Compensation

The recent claim of Ben Collett (in 2008) for loss of future earnings has highlighted the willingness of the courts to make substantial awards based on the potential of a player. Collett had been a promising young player for Manchester United. According to Sir Alex Ferguson, he had an ‘outstanding’ chance of being offered a professional contract when he turned 18. However before this could happen he was injured in a youth match by a Middlesbrough player and had his leg badly broken as a result of a tackle. Both the player and the club admitted liability and the court held that an award in the region of £4.5 million was adequate compensation.

Whilst the Collett claim may be seen as highlighting the important role that courts can play in awarding large sums of money, there have also been instances where compensation has not been awarded. In 1994 Paul Elliot, who was playing for Chelsea at the time of his career ending injury, sued Dean Saunders of Liverpool because of a tackle made by Saunders. The claim failed in part because the judge believed that Saunders was legitimately trying to challenge for the ball. This can be distinguished from the Collett claim because the player and the club admitted fault for the tackle and the only issue to be decided was the amount of compensation due.

Conclusion

George Orwell once noted that,

“serious sport has nothing to do with fair play…. it is war minus the shooting.”

One would be hard pushed to equate today’s sports athletes to soldiers. Those who compete in amateur and professional sport alike however, have the right to expect that the old fashioned value of playing ‘hard but fair’ is still applicable in modern football and sport more generally. It therefore is only in limited circumstances where court decisions will have any impact on the sports field.

For further information, please contact Daniel Geey or Rajan Patel.