Jamie Vardy will be informed he has breached the Football Association’s code of conduct for England players and warned about his future behaviour if the Leicester City striker, fined by his club for a racial slur, gets another chance to play for the national team.
Vardy has already been hit with a substantial fine and ordered by his club to undergo a course in diversity awareness after he was caught on CCTV abusing a fellow gambler in a casino and calling him “Jap” on three occasions.
The FA will not follow it up with any disciplinary charges and is satisfied with the manner in which Leicester have dealt with the incident. However, Vardy’s behaviour goes against the code of conduct, drawn up by the FA’s hierarchy in 2012, which instructs England players to remember they “are ambassadors for their country and role models for younger players‚“ and “the highest standards of conduct and behaviour are therefore expected at all times, including when players are not on international duty”.
Saido Berahino has already received a written warning after the West Bromwich Albion striker was convicted of a drink-driving offence earlier this year and the incident Vardy now describes as a “regrettable error in judgment” makes him the second player to have breached the rules, which specifically state that any form of discrimination will not be tolerated.
Vardy was called up by Roy Hodgson for the first time in England’s last two games against Republic of Ireland and Slovenia, mostly because of a number of withdrawals by other senior internationals.
The same may have to happen again if he is to keep his place for the double-header against San Marino and Switzerland on 5 and 8 September, with Hodgson naming his squad next Tuesday, but if the 28-year-old is involved again in the future the FA’s technical director, Dan Ashworth, intends to speak to him about his behaviour and remind him of his responsibilities.
