Ex-Man City staff member, who worked under Pep Guardiola, receives a 12-month BAN for breaching betting rules – after he wagered on club transfers and backed them to lose games
- A former Man City staff member has been suspended for breaching betting rules
- Richard Bredice worked under Pep Guardiola and placed 456 bets in six years
- Listen to It’s all about to begin! EUROS DAILY: ‘Gareth Southgate will coach Man United one day’
A former member of Pep Guardiola’s staff at Manchester City has been banned from all football activity for breaching betting rules, including betting on transfers at the club and against his own employer.
Richard Bredice has lost his job as chief performance analyst at Burnley after an independent commission handed him a 12-month sentence, six months of which was suspended and probation for two years.
Bredice placed most of his 456 bets during his six-year spell at City, until 2019, before moving to Anderlecht and then Turf Moor with Vincent Kompany.
In it he is said to have made twelve ‘inside information bets’, almost exclusively aimed at possible transfers to and from the Etihad Stadium, with a profit of just over £1,700.
Bredice denied the FA’s claim that he was aware of details of City’s plans and claimed the targets were already public knowledge when he announced his plans.
A former Man City staff member has been banned from all football activity for breaching betting rules, including betting on transfers at the club and against his own employer.
Richard Bredice worked under Pep Guardiola during his time at the Etihad and placed 456 bets
One bet, for £515, was placed the morning after a staff party and the committee concluded that the future of the anonymous player in question had been discussed at the party.
Bredice is said to have ‘strongly rejected’ claims that he was friendly with City players, particularly those who were the subject of his betting behaviour, claiming that they found him ‘frightening’ given their status.
Eleven of the twelve ‘inside information bets’ were successful, while 129 of the remaining 444 bets on matters unrelated to transfers resulted in winnings.
On the day of the Champions League tie against Shakhtar Donetsk in 2017, Bredice placed a successful £50 bet on the Ukrainians to win over City.
Of the 456 bets, Bredice is said to have placed 12 ‘inside information bets’ – almost all of which focused on potential transfers to and from the Etihad – for a profit of just over £1,700.
Bredice placed a successful £50 bet on Shakhtar Donetsk to beat Man City in 2017
A year earlier, he had bet £20 on Chelsea to progress past City in an FA Cup clash nine days before the teams met at Stamford Bridge. Bredice cashed out four days before the game, losing £1. Manuel Pellegrini went on to start a string of teenagers in a 5-1 defeat.
Bredice, who can appeal the verdict, was also fined £4,500 and ordered to pay £500 in costs.