Chelsea captain John Terry was given a four-match ban by the Football Association (FA) after being found guilty of racially abusing Queens Park Rangers' Anton Ferdinand on Thursday. An FA statement said an independent regulatory commission had issued a suspension for a period of four matches and a fine of £220,000 ($356,722, 276,000 euros) pending appeal.
Terry has 14 days from receiving the written reasons for the decision to lodge an appeal against a decision relating to an incident that took place during Chelsea's match away to QPR at Loftus Road on October 23 last year. The ban will not come into force until the appeals procedure is complete.
In the short term, that means central defender Terry, who played in the 6-0 English League Cup rout of Wolves on Tuesday, is available for Chelsea's Premier League match away to London rivals Arsenal on Saturday. Terry's representatives said he was "disappointed" by the decision and would consider his position before deciding whether to appeal.
Their statement said: "Mr Terry is disappointed that the FA Regulatory Commission has reached a different conclusion to the clear not guilty verdict of a court of law. "He has asked for the detailed written reasons of the decision and will consider them carefully before deciding whether to lodge an appeal."
European champions Chelsea responded to Thursday's verdict by saying: "Chelsea Football Club notes and respects today's decision by the Football Association regarding John Terry. "We also recognise that John has the right to appeal that decision. It is therefore inappropriate for us to comment further on the matter at this time." The FA's statement said they had charged Terry on Friday, July 27, with using "abusive and/or insulting words and/or behaviour towards Queens Park Rangers' Anton Ferdinand and which included a reference to colour and/or race contrary to FA Rule E3 (2)". The statement explained the charge was placed on hold pending the outcome of the criminal trial.
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