A landmark ruling has banned a 24-year-old man from every stadium in the country for racially abusing the Brentford striker Ivan Toney on social media.
Antonio Neill sent an abusive message to Toney on 14 October 2022, which the player shared with the public via his account.
The Premier League, working with the club, player and the police, investigated the message which was treated as a hate crime and was traced to a suspect in the North Shields area of the UK.
Neill pleaded guilty to sending an offensive message when he appeared before magistrates in Newcastle on 25 January and on Monday was handed a four-month jail sentence suspended for two years for the online offence as well as a three-year football banning order.
Brentford welcomed the resolution of the case, adding:
“Court appearances set a strong precedent for anyone else who commits hate crimes and it is our hope that sentences increase in severity until this sort of crime is eradicated. Ivan Toney has been subject to sickening racist abuse on a regular basis, and we want to see tough action taken against anyone found guilty of such abuse.”
The order forbids Neill from attending any regulated football match in the UK, which includes Premier League, Championship, League One, League Two and National League fixtures, as well as England home internationals.
The banning order also prevents him from travelling abroad to watch international friendlies, qualification matches and tournaments.