Former FA chief wins £100,000 damages for libel

FORMER FA chief executive Martin Glenn has been awarded £100,000 damages after suing a former assistant director of football at Fulham FC for libel and harassment.

Judge Richard Spearman said Craig Kline had subjected Mr Glenn to a “prolonged” social media attack over several months.

The judge delivered a ruling on damages yesterday after High Court hearings. He said Mr Glenn had sued over a “long series of publications”, mainly Twitter posts, between November 2018 and June 2020.

Mr Glenn had been accused of corruption and covering up child sexual abuse, the judge heard.

Mr Kline had described himself as a whistle-blower.

Judge Spearman heard how, in an email, Mr Kline had “claimed” that while at Fulham he had witnessed “illegal activity and crime”, including “racism, endangerment of minors, refusal to report, refusal to allow reporting, fake suspensions, cover-ups, destruction of evidence, fabricated evidence, fraud, money laundering, threats of various sorts including threats of violence, and similar offences”.

He said a “senior official” at Fulham had “explained that he could corrupt any investigations that resulted from my reporting by simply calling in favours from ‘his mate’ Martin Glenn”.

Mr Glenn said he had needed to show “the absolute untruth and maliciousness of the campaign” Mr Kline had waged against him.