12 Serie A players and Leeds defender named in investigation for illegal betting

TURIN, ITALY – FEBRUARY 16: Weston McKennie of Juventus looks to control the ball whilst under pressure from Denzel Dumfries of FC Internazionale during the Serie A match between Juventus and FC Internazionale at Allianz Stadium on February 16, 2025 in Turin, Italy. (Photo by Valerio Pennicino/Getty Images)

Reports in Italy claim that 12 Serie A players, including Weston McKennie, Nicolò Zaniolo, Leandro Paredes, and Raoul Bellanova, have been named in a new investigation for illegal online betting.

Several Serie A players are currently under investigation for illegal online betting. Corriere della Sera first reported the news, and other prominent media, including ANSA, later confirmed it.

The Milan Prosecutor started investigating after Nicolò Fagioli and Sandro Tonali were banned. The Italian pair were suspended in 2024 for illegal betting, including on football matches. The alleged wrongdoing in the new investigation occurred between December 2021 and October 2023.

12 Serie A players and Leeds defender named in investigation for illegal betting

There’s no evidence that other players involved in the new investigation ever gambled on football games, but their names emerged after Italian authorities’ interviews with Tonali and Fagioli and an analysis of their devices.

Corriere della Sera has named the players under investigation: aside from Tonali and Fagioli, there are also Alessandro Florenzi(Milan), Nicolò Zaniolo (Fiorentina), Mattia Perin and Weston McKennie (Juventus), ex-Bianconeri player Leandro Paredes (now at Roma) and Angel Di Maria, Atalanta’s Raoul Bellanova, Torino’s Samuele Ricci, former Cremonese striker Cristian Buonaiuto, now at Padova, Matteo Cancellieri (Parma, former Lazio and Empoli), Adames Hector Junior Firpo (Leeds United) and tennis player Matteo Gigante.

The players are accused of using illegal platforms for online poker and betting, but not for football matches. On a criminal front, the potential punishment for investigated players is nearly irrelevant, as they’ll be ordered to pay a maximum of €250 if found guilty.

At the same time, the Italian Football Federation could open a new investigation, but if the players did not bet on football games, as it seems, a ban is highly unlikely.

For instance, Zaniolo was already involved in an investigation for illegal online betting, but escaped a ban as his activities didn’t involve gambling on football matches.