Notts' Macari given suspended ban for betting

Lewis Macari signed for Notts County from Stoke City in December 2023 after a successful loan spell

Notts County defender Lewis Macari has been given a suspended three-month ban for breaching betting rules over the course of almost three years.

The 23-year-old has also been fined £750 by an independent regulatory commission and warned about his conduct after he pleaded guilty to placing 354 bets on matches between 25 February, 2020 and 4 December, 2022.

However, he will not serve a suspension as long he does not break the Football Association's rules on betting again in the next 12 months.

None of the bets Macari made came during his time with League Two side Notts County.

The Scottish defender, who is the grandson of former Manchester United midfielder and ex-Stoke City boss Lou Macari, was on the books at Stoke when he placed the bets.

Of the 354 bets made across four different seasons, 44 were placed on Stoke during his time there.

Among the bets was an £5 accumulator that included Stoke's Under-23 side beating Kidsgrove Athletic in the English County Cup.

While he was part of that team, it was not a match he was involved in. And, while Stoke won, other results went against him meaning the bet was unsuccessful.

In total, he placed just over £3,000 worth of bets and made a net loss of about £470.

With the bets placed when Macari was aged between 18 and 20, it was stated in the regulatory commission's written reasons that he "demonstrated a level of wilful ignorance as to the FA betting rules".

During the time that Macari placed bets, he also had a loan spell with Dundalk in the League of Ireland.

It was there, and his his exposure to first-team football, that the player argued that he "realised that he could not be betting when he was a 'proper' professional".

In an interview during the investigation into his bets, Macari said he was aware of betting rules but added he was "not quite switched on into thinking it really mattered to me" as he had not been around first teams.

In July, just a week after Macari had been charged, Notts boss Martin Paterson said the club would "support and protect" their player.

The defender has remained part of the squad throughout, featured in pre-season matches on the club's trip to Germany soon after he was charged and has since gone on to feature five times for the Magpies this season.