IN THE MATTER OF A FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION INDEPENDENT REGULATORY COMMISSION BETWEEN: THE FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION and MR ARSENE WENGER WRITTEN REASONS AND DECISION OF THE INDEPENDENT REGULATORY COMMISSION FOLLOWING THE HEARING ON 5 JANUARY 2018 1
Background 1. These are the written reasons for a decision made by an Independent Regulatory Commission which sat by WebEx on 5 January 2018. 2. The Regulatory Commission members were Mr Gareth Farrelly, Chairman and Independent Football Panel Member, Mr Udo Onwere, Independent Football Panel Member and Mr Tony Agana, Independent Football Panel Member. 3. Mr Mark Ives of the FA Judicial Services Department acted as Secretary to the Regulatory Commission. 4. By letter dated 2 January 2018, The Football Association ( The FA ) charged Mr Arsene Wenger with Misconduct for a breach of FA Rule E3 in respect of the Premier League fixture between West Bromwich Albion FC v Arsenal FC on Sunday 31 December 2017. 5. It was alleged that Mr Wenger s language and/or behaviour in the Match Officials changing room after the end of the fixture was abusive and/or improper and/or questioned the integrity of the Match Referee. 6. The FA designated this as a Non Standard Case due to a previous breach of FA Rule E3 which had taken place in a Premier League fixture v Burnley FC on 22 January 2017, and also the aggressive nature of the reported behaviour. 7. In the Extraordinary Incident Report Form the Referee, Mr Michael Dean stated As we ve entered the dressing room after the game Mr Wenger stood behind us in the doorway and told the West Brom steward to let him in. He was very aggressive leaning towards me, pointing aggressively at me saying you re not honest on numerous occasions. I replied so you re calling me a cheat. He replied I maintain what I say, you re not honest. He then said you ve done this to us many times before, you re supposed to be professional, you re a disgrace. He was then ushered out of the room by the West Brom safety officer. 8. This was further supported by Assistant Referee, Mr Simon Long in his Extraordinary Incident Report where he stated that At the conclusion of the match, we entered our dressing room, immediately followed by Mr Wenger, the manager of Arsenal. He stood in the dressing room doorway, preventing the West Bromwich Albion stewards from closing the door, whilst demanding let me in. Mr Wenger took a step inside the dressing room and aggressively confronted the referee, Mr Dean, leaning towards him and continuously jabbing his finger towards his chest whilst repeatedly saying you re not honest in a raised voice. Mr Dean 2
responded by stating so you re calling me a cheat?, to which Mr Wenger responded I maintain what I say. Mr Wenger continued his aggressive tone and went on to say you ve done this to us many times before. You re supposed to be professional, you re a disgrace. Mr Wenger was then ushered out of the dressing room by the Safety Officer of West Bromwich Albion, who closed the door behind Mr Wenger. 9. The other Assistant Referee, Mr Ian Hussin in his Extraordinary Incident Report stated Upon entering the referee s dressing room, Mr Wenger (Arsenal Manager) followed ourselves and was standing in the doorway and said to the West Bromwich Albion stewards to let me in. Mr Wenger was aggressively leaning towards Mr Dean (Referee) pointing at him and saying you re not honest several times. Mr Dean replied saying so you re calling me a cheat? Mr Wenger replied I maintain what I say, you re not honest. Mr Wenger further commented saying you ve done this to us many times before, you re supposed to be professional, you re a disgrace. Mr Wenger was then escorted away from the dressing room by the West Bromwich Albion Safety Officer. 10. For completeness, the Fourth Official, Mr Christopher Kavanagh in his Extraordinary Incident Report stated As we entered the dressing room after the final whistle Mr Wenger appeared in the doorway telling the stewards to let him in. As he entered his body language was very aggressive. He started pointing at the Referee and shouting you are not honest continuously. Mr Dean replied so you re calling me a cheat? Mr Wenger replied I maintain what I say, you are not honest. He continued you are supposed to be a professional referee, you are a disgrace. Mr Dean then asked Mr Wenger to leave the dressing room and was ushered out the door. 11. The Charge was admitted on 4 January 2018. 12. Mr Wenger did not request a personal hearing and the case was dealt with on the papers only. 13. Arsenal FC submitted a detailed letter in response to the Charge. The Club also included a statement from Mr Wenger himself, a copy of the Premier League Delegate Report from the game in question and the Written Reasons from a previous case of a similar nature, the contents of which were read and noted. 3
14. The Regulatory Commission were informed of the previous sanction imposed on Mr Wenger for a breach of Rule E3 which occurred from a fixture against Burnley on 22 January 2017. On that occasion Mr Wenger was sanctioned with a four match touchline ban and fined 25,000. 15. The Regulatory Commission considered all of the evidence presented and ruled there to be a number of critical points. It is accepted that Match Officials at all levels have a difficult role as do football managers. However, Mr Wenger, as per his written statement, is an incredibly experienced football manager. He has occupied this position since 1996. This is his second Misconduct Charge within a twelve-month period. Whilst arguable, it is not accepted that there is ambiguity of interpretation in the language used based on English not being Mr Wenger s first language. There is simply no justification for this behaviour. 16. Due to the serious nature of the breach the Regulatory Commission were minded to impose additional terms to any sporting sanction. The Commission discussed a possible stadium ban but agreed it was not warranted in this case. However, in the event of a further incident of this nature, it is expected that a Regulatory Commission would consider this. The Commission then considered if a Standard touchline suspension should be imposed or if an Extended touchline suspension was more appropriate. For clarity, an Extended touchline suspension covers the following in addition to the terms of a Standard : During a period of an extended touchline suspension a Participant, in addition to the [Standard] restrictions, may not: - Enter the changing rooms or Field of Play at any time from 30 minutes prior to kick-off to 30 minutes following the end of the match, including extra time and kicks from the penalty mark. This also includes the half time period. 17. The Members also noted the Standard Penalty Guidelines for Technical Area occupants and/or tunnel incidents at Premier League level. Standard Penalty 1, including abusive/insulting language, is where the charge is admitted and the Standard Penalty is accepted; this incurs a one match touchline ban and an 8,000 fine. Standard Penalty 2, including abusive/insulting language, is where the charge is denied but subsequently found proven by a Regulatory Commission; this incurs a two match touchline ban and an 12,000 fine. As this was a Non-Standard charge, the Commission had a complete discretion on sanction. 18. The Regulatory Commission decided that on this occasion a Standard touchline ban was appropriate for Mr Wenger. Given the reported behaviour, whilst noting all the aggravating factors, in particular questioning the integrity of the Match Referee, the Members considered a four match touchline ban to be appropriate. However, acknowledging that the charge was admitted, along with the additional mitigation submitted by the club, credit was given by way of a one match reduction; therefore, a three match touchline ban was the sporting sanction considered fair and proportionate having noted all the relevant factors. The same principle applied to the financial 4
penalty and, whilst noting Mr Wenger s weekly football income, 50,000 was reduced to 40,000. Conclusion 19. The Regulatory Commission came to a unanimous decision, having carefully considered all of the evidence, and have imposed the following sanction on Mr Wenger: (i) He is immediately suspended from the touchline, until such time as Arsenal FC have completed three (3) first team competitive matches in approved competitions; and (ii) Fined the sum of 40,000. 20. This decision is subject to the relevant Appeal Regulations. Mr Gareth Farrelly, Chairman Mr Udo Onwere Mr Tony Agana 10 January 2018 5