Former England and Manchester United midfielder Paul Scholes has been fined £8,000 after admitting breaking Football Association betting rules.
Scholes was charged after it was alleged that he placed 140 bets on football matches between 17 August 2015 and 12 January 2019.
The FA also warned him as to his future conduct.
“I would like to apologise and I understand and fully accept the fine imposed by the FA,” said Scholes.
“It was a genuine mistake and was not done with any deliberate intention to flout the rules.
“I wrongly believed that as long as there was no personal connection between me and any of the matches that I bet upon, then there would be no issue.
“However I understand now that this is not the case and I should have taken steps to verify this at the time.”
Scholes, who spent 31 days in charge of Oldham Athletic before resigning on 14 March this year, has a 10% stake in League Two newcomers Salford City.
The 44-year-old, who won 11 Premier League titles with Manchester United and was capped 66 times by England, retired from playing in 2013 and became a part-owner of Salford in 2014 alongside former United players Gary and Phil Neville, Ryan Giggs and Nicky Butt.
In the written reasons for its verdict, the FA said:
- Scholes placed eight bets on former club Manchester United during a period when Giggs and Butt were employed by the club
- He also placed a bet on Valencia beating fellow Spanish club Barcelona when Gary Neville was the manager
- Scholes placed eight bets on FA Cup ties, but after Salford City had been knocked out
An independent regulatory commission found no evidence Scholes was in a position to influence these games.
Overall, the bets placed by Scholes totalled £26,159 and he made a profit of £5,831.
