Lucas Paquetá cleared of betting charges by FA commission | OneFootball

Lucas Paquetá has been cleared by an independent regulatory commission of any involvement in an alleged illegal betting scheme.

The West Ham midfielder had consistently denied the claims, and the panel concluded there was insufficient evidence to support the charges.

The Brazilian was accused of four breaches of FA rules, with the allegation being that he deliberately tried to receive yellow cards in order to manipulate the betting market - supposedly allowing others to profit from bets placed on those bookings.

Suspicion was raised after an unusual betting pattern was flagged, focusing on yellow cards in West Ham matches featuring Paquetá. Many of the bets were reportedly traced back to the Isle of Paquetá in Brazil.

The matches under scrutiny included Premier League fixtures against Leicester City (12 November 2022), Aston Villa (12 March 2023), Leeds United (21 May 2023), and Bournemouth (12 August 2023).

Throughout the investigation, Paquetá maintained his innocence and has now been officially cleared of the betting-related charges. However, the process has had a significant impact on his career - most notably halting a potential transfer to Manchester City, which stalled due to fears of a lengthy ban.

In a released statement, Paquetá said: "Since the first day of this investigation, I have maintained my innocence against these extremely serious accusations.

"I can’t say much more at the moment, but I’m incredibly grateful to God and looking forward to playing football with a smile again."

Despite being cleared of the betting allegations, the commission did find Paquetá guilty of failing to fully cooperate with the FA’s investigation - specifically, not providing required information or answering certain questions.

A decision on any punishment for this separate charge is still to come, but it’s expected to be far less severe than if he had been found guilty of influencing matches for betting purposes.