Brighton & Hove Albion have banned reporters and photographers of The Guardian from attending games at the Amex Stadium in response to its coverage surrounding owner Tony Bloom’s betting activities.
The south coast club knocked back the paper’s request for passes to Sunday’s 1-1 draw with West Ham, saying that it “would be inappropriate for journalists and photographers from The Guardian to be accredited to matches at the Amex.”
Why Have Brighton Banned The Guardian?
The row erupted after an article that appeared in The Guardian last Tuesday (December 2) under the headline: ‘Key aide to Nigel Farage was frontman to Premier League billionaire’s betting syndicate, lawsuit claims.’
It states that Bloom was named in a 19-page document filed in the High Court as part of a dispute with a former associate Ryan Dudfield.
Dudfield claims he is owed £189 million in unpaid gambling profits from the Starlizard Betting Syndicate, Bloom’s Camden based private company which, according to the document, makes around £600 million a year in winnings.
The allegation in the document is that frontmen were sometimes used when the syndicate placed wagers, with Farage associate George Cottrell one of the account holders along with “footballers, sportsmen and businessmen”.
Bloom has always been totally open about the fact he is a professional gambler and is known in poker playing circles as ‘The Lizard’.
A follow-up article appeared in The Guardian on Friday alleging that he could be an anonymous gambler behind £52 million in winnings including bets on Brighton.
That would break FA rules regarding club ownership and betting and prompted Bloom to take action against the paper.
Tony Bloom’s Statement Following Reports In The Guardian
Brighton’s official website carried a statement issued on behalf of Tony Bloom “following an inaccurate and misleading report in The Guardian”.
“I can categorically assure our supporters that I have not placed bets on any Brighton & Hove Albion matches since becoming the owner of the club in 2009,” said Bloom.
The FA introduced new stringent rules on betting for club owners in 2014 and Bloom declared in his statement that he had followed those guidelines with full transparency.
“The policy prevents me from betting on any match or competition that Brighton & Hove Albion is involved in,” he said.
“Since 2014, I have always fully complied with these conditions, and all of my bets on football are audited by one of the world’s leading accounting firms on an annual basis to ensure full compliance with The FA’s policy.”
The latter is now in the hands of his lawyers, who have been in contact with the Guardian, while Brighton is liaising with the FA and the Premier League.
