Charlton Athletic fan first ever to be banned from all UK football stadiums for taking cocaine at game

A British football fan has been banned from attending any football match in the UK after he was caught with cocaine at a Charlton Athletic match.
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A 52-year-old football fan who was caught snorting cocaine at a League One match has become the first man in Britain to be banned from all football stadiums for taking drugs. Tony John Bordley, took the class A drug after he travelled to watch his team Charlton Athletic play rivals Burton Albion FC.

However, security guards heard Bordley acting suspiciously in the toilet cubicles on the East Stand of the Pirelli Stadium and called over Staffordshire Police’s football officer PC Rich Lymer, who was on duty at the time.

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Bordley was approached by PC Lymer on November 12 after he came out of the cubicle, and he admitted taking cocaine before handing over a bag of the drugs from his wallet. PC Lymer then arrested Bordley for possessing a controlled drug of class A and was removed from the ground.

However, when Bordley, of Belvedere, Kent, admitted the charges he was given a three-year football banning order at Cannock Magistrates’ Court on November 30, making him the first fan to ever be issued with a Football Banning Order (FBO) for drug offences. The new legislation came into force last month and means that fans who commit a class A drug offence at matches can now be banned for up to ten years as well as receiving a criminal conviction.

Bordley has been banned from attending any football match in the UK for the next three years and will also be unable to travel abroad to watch England internationals. Part of the order also means he can’t go within two miles of a football match, to stop him from mixing with supporters on matchdays. He will also have to surrender his passport when England plays away fixtures.

PC Lymer said: “We’ve become the first police force in the country to secure a banning order for this offence which will greatly benefit matchday experiences in Staffordshire moving forward.

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“That intent on taking harmful drugs into football stadiums will be dealt with proportionately and brought to justice."

The football fan was caught with cocaine at the Pirelli Stadium in NovemberThe football fan was caught with cocaine at the Pirelli Stadium in November
The football fan was caught with cocaine at the Pirelli Stadium in November

Chief Constable Mark Roberts, NPCC Lead for Football Policing, added: “This court result should act as a warning to anyone who is considering taking drugs to football. If you get caught, you will be banned from all matches for a minimum of three years and will also receive a criminal record.

"Drugs and alcohol continue to be persistent drivers of poor behaviour in football, and wider society and the introduction of these banning orders is a positive step in tackling the problem."

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