Footballers who have been to jail

Football and in general any type of sport is good for both mind and body. It helps the athlete stay in shape and also gives them an opportunity to make good money by simply being good in a particular sport. That is why millions of youngsters dream of one day becoming a professional footballer. While the beautiful game is always enjoyable for everyone, the athletes are not always clean goody goodies, who respect the law everywhere they go. Humans can be mischievous and even cruel, not matter what their occupation, age, gender or nationality.

Even footballers sometimes commit crimes and are duly punished for their crimes. But who are the

footballers who have been to jail

? Why were they sentenced to serve a prison sentence? Surely you too are eager to find out more about these athletes, the crimes they committed and the prison sentence that they served. So follow us below as we delve deeper into the lives of football players who have been in prison and get to see how strong Prison FC actually is.

Footballers who spent time in jail 

From Ronaldinho’s funny business of using a fake passport to travel to Paraguay, to Ian Wright’s problems early on during his adulthood and Bruno Fernandes de Souza’s horrible acts of murder and kidnapping, there are many different cases of crime that we need to talk about. There are many footballers who have been to jail and these are only prime examples of world-class football players, who did not obey the law and got themselves in trouble. So without further ado, here is everything you need to know about these troublemakers and their respective careers in football.

Joey Barton

• Conviction: Assault

Many of the newcomers only know about

’s new era of footballers, who are all world-class talents and usually aim to provide the best of performances every week. But there used to be a time when Joey Barton was a beloved Man City midfielder back in the mid-2000s. Barton is a 39-year-old English former footballer, who used to be an effective central midfielder at clubs such as Manchester City, Newcastle, QPR, Marseille,

and Rangers.

The Englishman was an original Man City youth academy product and was ready to serve his side for years to come. Even though the first few years went great for the midfielder, things got a bit out of hand both on and off the pitch. Barton was known for his short temper and that is why everyone knew something was eventually going to happen. Amongst the

footballers who have been to jail

, Barton is actually one of the few to have been sent to prison for more than once.

He was involved in more than a couple of incidents of assault throughout the years, with the first offence involving the former professional footballer driving his car towards a pedestrian in Liverpool. He was sentenced to serve 77 days in prison for that offence and went on to receive a four-month suspension from football as he admitted to assaulting his former Man City teammate Pusmane Dabo. Being on the list of professional sportspeople convicted of crimes, Barton was involved in numerous other controversies as well, which is why his footballing career was riddled with several incidents like those mentioned here.

Duncan Ferguson

• Conviction: Assault

We all know who Sir Alex Ferguson is and how his incredible journey in making

one of the greatest clubs in the world went. But he is not the only famous Ferguson from Scotland as there is another world-famous football personality named Ferguson. Duncan Ferguson is a 50-year-old former footballer, who used to play for Rangers, Everton and Newcastle back in the day. He started his career at Dundee United went on to make himself one of the greatest Scottish center-forwards of all time.

Ferguson currently works as Everton’s manager and we all know how that is going in the Premier League right now. But one thing you might not know about or remember, is the fact that the former Scotland international is amongst the

footballers who have been to jail

. The Everton manager is known for having a short temper, which is why he used to get into silly fights and thanks to his physicality, he almost always emerged victorious.

Known has Disorderly Duncan during his days as a footballer, the Scottish striker was convicted of assault on four occasions, one of which was related to the incident during which he head-butted John McStay, who used to play for Raith Rovers back in 1994. His actions led him to be sentenced to three months in prison as he was sent to Barlinnie prison in order to serve his sentence. However, it only took Ferguson 44 days of serving jail time to be released from prison.

The Everton manager will surely not do such a stupid thing ever again, but his name will always be on the list of professional sportspeople convicted of crimes. The Scottish center-forward retired way back in 2006, having won the Scottish Premiership with Rangers and the FA Cup with Everton.

Tony Adams

• Conviction: Drunk-driving

We have no Mr. Real Madrid, Mr. Liverpool or Mr. Barcelona, but we do have Mr.

and that man is none other than the English former center-back Tony Adams, who earned the nickname for his outstanding contributions to Arsenal throughout his career. Adams is a 55-year-old former defender who rose to prominence as an incredibly solid and consistent defender at Arsenal’s youth academy.

He went on to join the club’s senior side back in 1983 and spent more than a decade helping his side win numerous trophies. He helped the Gunners lift 3 FA Cups, 2 English League Cups and 2 Community Shields, while also becoming the champions of the English top-flight on four different occasions. That is why Adams is fondly remembered by the older generation and his legacy will continue to inspire the younger generations to follow in his footsteps. But youngster must be wary not to follow in the Englishman’s footsteps all the time.

Adams might have been a great center-back during his days as a professional footballer, but he was not a person to follow all the rules and guidelines on or off the pitch. That is why he was caught drunk-driving in 1990, for which he was sentenced to four months in prison. The former England international only got to serve 58 days imprisoned in Chelmsford Prison and was released afterwards. This incident put the former Arsenal center-back on the

list of professional sportspeople convicted of crimes

.

This was not the only time Adams was arrested for drunk-driving as he got himself in trouble once again after crashing into a wall near his house. Alcoholism is a serious issue many in the world struggle with, which is why Tony Adams decided to found the Sporting Chance Clinic to support the athletes that suffer from addiction. Perhaps Adams is one of the better ones amongst the footballers who have been to jail, which is why he is still loved by the Arsenal community and has the respect of everyone who knows him.

Ian Wright

• Conviction: Tax evasion

When we say “tax evasion”, many would be quick to jump to conclusions, thinking about the time Lionel Messi had to pay a hefty fine in order to settle his tax evasion case. But what Ian Wright had to do was nothing close to such matters as the Englishman was simply not well-endowed enough to pay his taxes.

The 58-year-old has earned a reputation for himself as a great presenter and pundit on TV, which is why many have come to know him for his character and analysis prowess. Wright is a former center-forward, who used to play for clubs such as

, Arsenal,

, Nottingham Forest and Celtic, before finally retiring at Burnley. One might think that world-class famous footballers certainly earn enough money to be able to pay taxes and insurance and they might be correct.

But as one of the more innocent

footballers who spent time in jail

, Wright committed his crime when he was only 19 years old and was not reasonable enough to accept the fact that he had to pay taxes and insurance for the two cars that he owned. That is why he went on to spend two weeks at Chelmsford Prison in 1982 and learned his lesson the hard way. Those two weeks were more than enough to convince Wright to never commit a crime ever again.

As one of the footballers who have been to jail, Wright stated the following about the importance of his prison sentence in his life: “I did say I would never ever come to a place like that again. I knew I had to start doing the straight and narrow right thing. That was it.”

Ronaldinho

• Conviction: Forgery

When it comes to playing beautiful and at time magical football, few players reach Ronaldinho’s level. The Brazilian is lauded as one of the greatest footballers of all time as he used to dazzle us with incredible footwork and mesmerizing skill-moves back in the day when he used to play for clubs such as

, Paris Saint-Germain and

. The 41-year-old might be remembered for his outstanding and illustrious career, but the mid-life crisis seems to have hit the former Brazil international hard as he got to spend some time behind bars for silly reasons.

The World Cup winner has won everything there is to win in football, which is why everyone was shocked when they heard the news about Ronaldinho’s conviction. While the former attacking midfielder can literally travel around the world through legal routines thanks to his status, the Brazilian chose not to wait for his Paraguayan visa to arrive and traveled to the country without a visa.

But just like any other culprit, Ronaldinho was caught red-handed when he arrived at Paraguay and was jailed for forging his passport documents in 2020. The former Barcelona player spent five months in prison and went on to attract quite a lot of attention as one of the footballers who have been to jail. Of course while serving jail time can prove to be too rough for many, it seemed to be an absolute blast for the South American, who is loved and adored by everyone around the world.

That is why he was able to hold football matches with his inmates and got to have a relatively easier time in Prison. As one of the football players who have been in prison, Ronaldinho added quite a lot to

Prison FC

's squad depth and actually spent his 40th birthday behind bars.

George Best

• Conviction: Drunk-driving, assault

The late George Best was and always will be considered as one of the greatest forwards of all time. Born in Northern Ireland, Best played for numerous clubs throughout his career, including Manchester United, Stockport, Fulham and teams from the United States. Of course he is fondly remembered for his time at Manchester United, for whom he got to score 137 goals and cemented his place in the footballing halls of fame with his incredible play-style.

Everyone knows about the United Trinity, which is the statues of Geroge Best, Denis Law and Bobby Charlton, standing together while facing Old Trafford. The Irishman received the Ballon d’Or in 1986 to further prove to the world that he is indeed one of the greatest forwards of all time. But while Best is known in history for his incredible talent in scoring numerous goals, he used to be a part of several controversies back in the day as everyone talked about his shenanigans off the pitch.

One simply does not get to be amongst the

football players who have been in prison

that easily. That is why Best was convicted of drunk-driving, assaulting a police officer and later failing to answer bail, which is why he was sentenced to spend some time behind bars. The Manchester United legend went on to spend three months in prison back in 1984 and he had to spend that year’s Christmas, jailed at the Ford Open Prison.

Sadly, the former Ireland international died aged 59 in 2005 due to complications from immunosuppressive drugs, which were actually prescribed after his liver transplant in 2002. Surely no one is going to remember him as one of the footballers who have been to jail, as he is always going to be a part of Manchester United’s history, inspiring thousands of kids to push further to achieve their dream of one day becoming a professional footballer.

Benjamin Mendy

• Conviction: Rape, sexual assault

Who would have thought that someone who has won it all throughout his footballing career and can easily spend their time with beautiful women in a legal way, would go on to allegedly rape and sexually assault 18-year-olds and even minors? That is exactly what has happened to Benjamin Mendy, who is currently awaiting trial for several counts of alleged rape and sexual assault.

The 27-year-old was considered to be one of the best left-backs in the world during his days at Manchester City, with whom he got to win three Premier League titles, alongside lifting other trophies as well. The 2018 World Cup winner was charged with four counts of rape and one count of sexual assault in August 2021, after which he got to spend his time behind bars due to the fact that he had broken his previous bail conditions.

Manchester City suspended the French footballer due to these allegations are now waiting to see if he is found guilty or not. The former Monaco and Marseille left-back could have earned his rightful place in the history of Manchester City’s early years of success, yet he chose to cement his name on the list of footballers who have been to jail. We will have to wait and see how his case goes and if he is going to be found guilty.

Rene Higuita

• Conviction: Smuggling

When it comes to iconic trademark moves in the world of football, few could ever come close to Rene Higuita’s fantastic scorpion-kick clearance. The Colombian cemented his place in the footballing halls of fame with that single iconic save in the clash between England and Colombia and is still known by millions for his rather peculiar way of goalkeeping. Higuita played almost his entire career in Colombia, except for the short periods that he spent in Spain and Mexico, playing for

and Tiburones Rojos.

He was nicknamed El Loco or “The Madman” simply for his risky saves as a sweeper-keeper. But while the world remembers him for his unbelievable saves and risky maneuvers, there are shady details about his life as well. Having grown up and lived in Colombia during a time when Pablo Escobar was basically ruling over the whole country, Higuita was sucked into the world of crime simply because there was no other way.

The former Colombia international was involved in a kidnapping incident, which was connected to Pablo Escobar’s crime ring. Even though Higuita was only playing the role of the delivery guy by delivering the money, he was still sent behind bars for seven months to answer for his crime. As one of the more famous names on the list of jailed footballers, the goalkeeper served his sentence in Bogota and never looked back.

Adam Johnson

• Conviction: Sexual activity with a minor, child grooming

There are few crimes that can be worse than child grooming or having sexual contact with a minor. That is why everyone shunned Adam Johnson for his deeds and left him with no club to play for when he was convicted of these crimes. Johnson is an English winger who is currently inactive, since no sane football club is ready to offer him a contract.

The now 34-year-old started his career at Middlesbrough and went on to spend his career at clubs such as

, Watford, Manchester City and Sunderland, before finally facing the consequences of his off-the-pitch actions in 2016. The Englishman was convicted of sexual activity with a minor back in 2016, after which he was sentenced to six years in prison. Upon hearing the news about his case,

were quick to terminate his contract as they did not want to have anything to do with such a flop. Johnson served half of his six-year sentence, before being released due to good behavior.

Even though he is not behind bars anymore, Johnson’s career is certainly ruined forever and his reputation is gone with it as well. As one of the footballers who have served jail time, the former Sunderland winger lost not only his footballing career, but his wife as well since they got divorced after Johnson was convicted of these horrible crimes.

Bruno Fernandes de Souza

• Conviction: Murder, kidnapping, conspiracy, corruption of minors

No, not that Bruno Fernandes. This one is not the Manchester United star many have come to love and respect. Bruno Fernandes de Souza is a Brazilian goalkeeper who started his career at

and went on to become a trophy-winning goalie in the Brazilian Serie A throughout the years. However, everything changed for both the shot-stopper and his supporters when he was charged with several horrible offenses back in 2010, including assault, torture and murder.

Fernandes was later found guilty of hiring a hitman to murder his girlfriend, hiding her body and kidnapping his own son from his girlfriend. Based on the allegations that were proven, Bruno was sentenced to 22 years in jail in 2013. As one of the more dangerously criminal footballers, the Brazilian spent three years behind bars, before spending two months out of prison while waiting for a pending appeal.

Since 2019, the former Flamengo goalkeeper has been serving a partial house arrest, in which he is able to work and train during the day, while having to serve his prison sentence at home after work. He has since played for clubs such as Pocos de Caldas, Rio Branco FC and Atletico Carioca. However, Bruno will never be the same goalkeeper and person in the eyes of football fans, since he was involved in one of the worst cases amongst the footballers who have been to jail.

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