The Chelsea captain John Terry’s racial slur to a rival player is costing him four soccer matches and $356,000, thanks to the English Football Association.
The FA barred Terry from playing in the next four matches after Terry was found guilty for racially abusing the Queens Park Rangers defender, Anton Ferdinand, last October during a Premier League game. Terry also now owes the FA $356,000 in fines.
Pending appeal, both sanctions are on hold. A criminal court found Terry not guilty of racially aggravated public order offense in July, but the FA decided to continue pursuing allegations and found Terry guilty.
In response to the FA pursuing charges, Terry announced Monday that after nine years with England, he is retiring from international soccer.
The FA did not disclose exactly why they are punishing Terry, only that he used “abusive and/or insulting words and/or behavior … which included a reference to color and/or race.’”
“Mr. Terry is disappointed that the FA Regulatory Commission has reached a different conclusion to the clear not guilty verdict of a court of law,” Terry’s management team said in a statement.
Terry is now deciding if he will appeal the sanctions. “He has asked for the detailed written reasons of the decision and will consider them carefully before deciding whether to lodge an appeal.”
England coach Fabio Capello quit his job last February after the FA removed Terry as England captain for the second time before the trial began.
During the criminal court case, Terry claimed he was only sarcastically repeating the racial slur but never denied actually saying it.
Ferdinand admitted that he provoked Terry, making stabs at Terry’s rumored affair with a former England teammate’s ex-girlfriend.
The magistrate of the criminal court told the Associated Press that there was nothing to show Terry was lying, but that Terry’s explanation was “under the cold light of forensic examination, unlikely.”
The former England captain is not the only Premier League player the FA found guilty of racism this year. The FA prohibited Liverpool striker Suarez from eight matches last season for abusing Manchester United defender Patrice Evra.
When they found Suarez guilty, the FA told AP they did not care if he “intended his words to be abusive or insulting.”
