West Ham star Lucas Paqueta has been warned about his conduct following his failure to co-operate with an FA investigation into spot-fixing allegations against him.
The midfielder was cleared of spot-fixing in July after a two-year investigation but he has been formally reprimanded after failing to answer questions and provide information.
Daily Mail Sport initially broke the story of the FA’s probe back in 2023 and he was eventually cleared of four spot-fixing charges by an independent commission.
The FA later confirmed they would not appeal against the commission’s decision to clear the Brazilian of the spot-fixing charges.
He has swerved a fine but been slapped on the wrist all the same.
In their written reasons, the commission said Paqueta had been ‘acting on advice at all times’ in his dealings with the FA but ‘as a participant he has an obligation to respect and abide by the (FA) regulations’.
Lucas Paqueta has been warned after failing to co-operate with the FA’s spot-fixing probe
The West Ham star was cleared of four spot-fixing charges in July after a two-year FA probe
Any sanction should be at the lower end of the scale, with a suspension an option for more serious breaches of these rules.
Paqueta could have been hit with a fine – the starting point for a sanction – but this has been reduced to a reprimand.
The commission observed that the FA was ‘apparently not interested in what the player had to say at the second interview’, when he offered to answer questions arising from the disclosure which had taken place after the first interview.
They added: ‘In any event, the player provided answers to the matters raised by the FA by his provision of a witness statement on December 15, 2023, thus in reality complying with the request for information.
‘He had previously volunteered the production of his mobile devices for interrogation. Significantly, this was all prior to charges being brought and did not ultimately frustrate the investigation. No evidence of prejudice has been advanced by the FA.’
The commission also took into account Paqueta’s clean disciplinary record, the ‘weighty’ legal costs he had already incurred and the ‘mental stress’ the case generated for Paqueta, with the investigation prompting the collapse of a move to Manchester City.
The commission also noted the torment caused to Paqueta by the ‘realisation that, had the (spot-fixing) charges been found proved, his footballing career would almost certainly have come to an end’.
The commission determined the FA should bear 90 per cent of the costs of the commission and Paqueta 10 per cent. This was based on the fact the spot-fixing charges which were not found proven accounted for the ‘overwhelming majority’ of the cost involved.
Paqueta could still sue the FA over the collapse of his move to Manchester City.
Back in August 2023, when Daily Mail Sport broke the news, it was suspected that he had been purposefully picking up yellow cards in order to influence betting markets.
That led to Paqueta being charged in May 2024 with four counts of spot‑fixing – related to cautions shown in Premier League fixtures against Leicester City, Aston Villa, Leeds United, and Bournemouth – and a further two of obstructing an FA investigation.
Alongside that charge sheet was believed to be a recommendation that he receive a life ban if found guilty.
It turned into one of the most high-profile corruption cases ever seen in English football but now the Brazilian star has been cleared of the major charge, though the FA said there were ‘two breaches of FA Rule F3 in relation to alleged failures to comply with his obligations to answer questions and provide information’ that he could still face punishment for.
