The Appeal Board has upheld an appeal by Joey Barton against the Independent Regulatory Commission’s decision to suspend him for 18-months and fine him £30,000 after he broke FA betting rules.

Barton admitted to placing 1,260 football-related bets between 26 March 2006 and 13 May 2016 and was sanctioned following an FA hearing in April this year.

Following an Appeal Board hearing last week, where he challenged the suspension from football and all football activity, the sporting sanction has been reduced and will now expire on 1 June 2018, instead of the original decision expiry of 25 October 2018. The fine of £30,000 remains the same.

The Written Reasons for the Appeal Board’s decision can be found here, or in the download link below.