Peterborough United player fined for breaching the FA's betting regulations
Peterborough United’s on-loan defender Tom O’Connor has been sanctioned for breaches of the Football Association's betting rules
O’Connor, who is on loan at London Road from Wrexham, has been fined £4,200 and given a formal warning. The offences, which took place between April 2017 and May 2021 when he was a young player at Southampton and Gillingham, were not deemed serious enough to warrant a ban.
Five of the bets were placed on competitions involving his own club at the time.
An independent Regulatory Commission imposed the fine and warning after O'Connor admitted the charges.
According to the FA document, the total amount staked across all 16 bets was £147.66, with an overall loss of £73.66. In a written statement, O’Connor apologised to the FA and admitted he knew the rules but had been ‘naive and stupid’.
O’Connor said the bets were small-stake ‘honest punts’ placed out of boredom and insisted none were based on inside information. He also told the commission he has not bet on football since May 2021.
One bet was placed on his own team as part of a £1.11 accumulator shortly after he turned 18. The breach was treated as an aggravating factor, although it was said to be a bet for his side to win.
Centre-back O'Connor (26) has been on loan at Posh since the end of August and has made 18 first-team appearances.