Joey Barton's betting company 'are more to blame than anybody else' says former Everton star Leon Osman after Burnley star is given 18-month ban

  • Leon Osman hits out at betting company over Joey Barton's suspension 
  • Barton has been suspended from football for 18 months for betting on matches 
  • But Osman says the company should not have accepted the player's bets
  • Osman had his own account shut down in six weeks, despite having retired
  • But Barton was allowed to place bets on football for over a decade 
  • Revealed: The bets Joey Barton placed on his own team... and himself 

Betfair, the betting company that took bets from Joey Barton for more than 10 years, 'are more to blame than anybody else' for his suspension, according to former footballer Leon Osman.

Barton has been suspended from football for 18 months after he admitted a Football Association misconduct charge relating to betting on matches. 

But although Barton himself has taken responsibility for his actions - though vowed to appeal the penalty - Osman says the bookies are really to blame.

 Joey Barton has been suspended from football for 18 months after admitting a betting charge

 Joey Barton has been suspended from football for 18 months after admitting a betting charge

Leon Osman says the betting company that took his bets for more than 10 years are to blame

Leon Osman says the betting company that took his bets for more than 10 years are to blame

Osman said that when he tried to gamble after retiring his account was immediately shut down

Osman said that when he tried to gamble after retiring his account was immediately shut down

'The betting company hasn't done him no favours,' said former Everton and England midfielder Osman on BBC Radio 5 Live. 


'I feel that they are more to blame than anybody else in this predicament. Ten years they've been accepting bets from him.

'I stopped betting up until around three months ago, when I started betting again because I'm not playing anymore. 

'Within six weeks of me placing bets the betting company blocked my account. I had to phone up and explain to them that I am no longer playing football, or associated with Everton and suddenly they looked me through and released my account. Within six weeks of me having a bet.

'You're not telling me that in 10 years they've not noticed that Joey Barton's betting on football.'

Speaking on BBC radio, Osman laid the blame squarely on the betting company

Speaking on BBC radio, Osman laid the blame squarely on the betting company

Barton has also been fined £30,000 by the FA and warned about his future conduct

Barton has also been fined £30,000 by the FA and warned about his future conduct

Barton admits that the suspension may force him into early retirement from the game

Barton admits that the suspension may force him into early retirement from the game

Barton has vowed to appeal against the penalty, which has been branded an over-reaction by figures within the game, but sources close to the Liverpudlian revealed to Sportsmail that he is now thinking about a career beyond football. 

Barton, who joined relegation-threatened Burnley after an acrimonious split from Rangers, placed 1,260 bets on matches between March 2006 and May 2016, breaching FA Rule E8.

A number of the bets involved clubs he was associated with, but Barton was at pains to point out that he did not bet against his team while in the matchday squad.

In a statement, Barton, who admitted the charge, said he was 'very disappointed at the harshness of the sanction'.

He said: 'The decision effectively forces me into an early retirement from playing football. I accept that I broke the rules governing professional footballers, but I do feel the penalty is heavier than it might be for other less controversial players.'