FA to seize player’s phone over suspect betting
Investigators will scrutinise calls, texts and social media after Brown’s booking in Cup tie
FA investigators will seize Ciaron Brown’s phone and scrutinise the Oxford United defender’s recent calls, texts and social media traffic as part of their probe into potential spot-fixing in Monday’s FA Cup defeat by Arsenal.
Sportsmail revealed last night that the FA had begun investigating after receiving evidence of an alleged betting scam, including WhatsApp messages from before kick-off which claimed that Brown would definitely be booked during the third-round tie on Monday.
The FA have the power to interview all related parties and demand they hand in their phones and laptops. Brown’s devices are understood to be the primary focus of their initial enquiries.
The Northern Ireland defender, 24, was booked in the 59th minute after pulling down Arsenal striker Eddie Nketiah, throwing the ball away and pushing midfielder Fabio Vieira.
Several punters have contacted Sportsmail to say that they won thousands of pounds after placing bets at odds of 8-1.
Eyewitnesses at the Kassam Stadium claim they saw several Arsenal fans celebrating wildly after Brown was booked and boasting of their winnings. There is no suggestion they were involved in any criminal activity.
Sportsmail has also learned that several bookmakers have so far refused to pay out, due to suspicion over the betting patterns and fears of possible irregularities.
The odds available on Brown being booked also collapsed from 8-1 on Monday morning to 7-2 shortly before kick-off in a strong indication of the weight of money placed on the outcome.
Oxford yesterday confirmed they had been made aware of the allegations and pledged to co-operate with the FA’s investigation, which is likely to include facilitating their collection of Brown’s devices.
‘Oxford United can confirm that they have been made aware of a specific allegation of irregular betting around our Emirates FA Cup game against Arsenal,’ a club statement read.
‘The club will co-operate fully with any investigation and while this is ongoing, we are unable to make any further comment.’
Industry experts appeared divided over the incident yesterday, with some attributing the amount of betting activity to a pricing error, but others suggesting there could be more to it.
Brown spent most of his career as a centre back until joining Oxford from Cardiff and switching to left back last summer.
Several analysts have argued that a League One defender was always likely to be booked in a match against the Premier League leaders, in which he was asked to mark Bukayo Saka.
One leading bookmaker told Sportsmail that their losses were not excessive and that those they did incur were down to a Brown booking being overpriced, news of which spread quickly on social media. Other firms appear to be more suspicious however, and are withholding the payment of winning bets until the FA investigation has concluded.
Another explanation given for the unusually high volume of betting is the rarity of markets on player bookings being available in matches featuring League One clubs, with most betting companies only offering them for televised games.
According to this theory a number of Oxford fans may have taken advantage of a rare chance to bet on him being booked in sufficient numbers to dramatically alter the market.
The full scale of bookmakers’ liabilities due to Brown’s booking is unclear, but the FA are taking the matter seriously.