Italy/sports betting: 10-month suspension for a footballer after attempted betting fraud

Mamadou Tounkara, a Senegalese footballer born on 19/01/1996, has been sentenced to a 10-month suspension by the Italian Football Federation's National Federal Court for having asked a former team-mate he played with at Foggia in 2023-24 to receive a yellow during a match, with a view to placing a bet on the yellow card beforehand, according to the court, which published the sentence handed down by its Disciplinary Section on 27/03/2025, on 07/04/2025.

The Senegalese forward, who has mainly played in Italy during his career, had contacted Südtirol player Jacopo Martini via WhatsApp to persuade him to be cautioned during the Catanzaro-Südtirol game (3-0, Matchday 10 of the 2024-25 Serie BKT season) on 27/10/2024.

Jacopo Martini alerted his club, which in turn notified the Federal Prosecutor's Office. Mamadou Tounkara initially denied the allegations, before being forced to admit the obvious when shown screenshots of messages sent to his former team-mate, "pointing out that at the time he was going through serious economic difficulties."

"Brother, if you come in, I need a yellow…