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Report: FA Investigating Suspicious Betting Pattern Around Arsenal Player's Yellow Card

The Football Association (FA) is investigating a yellow card received by an Arsenal player after a suspicious prop bet from earlier this season was flagged by bookmakers, according to The Athletic

The incident reportedly occurred when an unusual amount of money was bet on a specific Arsenal player being shown a yellow card during a Premier League match, which caught the attention of bookmakers.

“The FA is aware of the matter in question and is looking into it,” the FA told The Athletic in a statement. 

The Athletic confirmed that it knew the identity of the player in question but didn't release the player's name due to privacy concerns. 

Prop bets involve betting on specific outcomes that usually don't have to do with a game's result, rather than betting on an overall outcome like an Arsenal win or loss. They can also be more easily manipulated by players, evident in former Southampton player Matt Le Tissier's admission that he once tried to manipulate a prop bet during his career. 

In his autobiography, Le Tissier wrote that he once attempted to kick the ball out of play in order to profit on a prop bet, which said the first throw-in would occur after the first 70 seconds in a match. 

Meanwhile, in 2018, Lincoln City's Bradley Wood was banned by the FA for six years for intentionally earning yellow cards in the FA Cup. 

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