Twitter 'dare' England v Malta pitch invader banned Published duration 2 February 2018

image copyright Getty Images image caption Harry Kane scored England's fourth goal in the win against Malta

A teenage football fan who ran onto the pitch during an England World Cup qualifier in return for retweets has been banned from matches.

The 16-year-old told Twitter followers he would disrupt the game in return for 400 shares of his post.

Once he hit the target, he climbed over security fencing during England's 4-0 victory in Malta on 1 September.

He was given a three-year football banning order at Huntingdon Youth Court.

The boy, who cannot be named, wrote: "400 retweets and I'll invade the Malta v England game".

After running onto the pitch, he stopped to speak with two England players before he was detained.

He was arrested by local police after entering the field of play and held in custody overnight before being fined €200 (£175).

The next day he tweeted: "€200 fine, probably a life-time ban, a night in lockup and a one-year ban from Malta! Oh well it was worth it."

PC Mark Wood, from Cambridgeshire Constabulary, said: "The use of social media in this way should be discouraged - it is important that others do not follow his example and understand the consequences of such actions."

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