There have been plenty of horrible ends to players’ careers down the years, but it’s not very often they are so self-inflicted and damning.
Dropped by his club, handed a record £6k fine and vilified all over the world at the same time. You’d have to go a long way to find a former top-flight star having to call it a day in more controversial fashion than former Everton left-back Michael Ball.
The ex-Goodison star, who turned 45 today (Wednesday, October 2) saw his career come to a close in truly remarkable fashion in 2012 following a horrible homophobic message he sent on social media to one of the nation’s TV soap favourites.
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Ball began his career at Everton following a spell in the Liverpool youth system where he played alongside Michael Owen and Steven Gerrard. And after moving across Stanley Park to star for the Toffees where he played his first senior match in 1997, things were on the up. An international call-up from England boss Sven-Goran Eriksson arrived in 2001, and Ball duly made his debut against Spain as a second-half substitute.
Stints with Rangers in Scotland and PSV Eindhoven in Holland followed, along with silverware at both clubs, before a return to England and Manchester City in 2007. A solid deputy for Richard Dunne and Micah Richards, Ball impressed in his two years before being let go at the end of his contract following knee surgery.
(Image: ITV)
After a short stint as a free agent, Ball signed with Leicester in August 2011 on a one-year deal with Eriksson in charge of the Foxes at the time. And that’s where his career nosedived for good.
Controversy struck when Ball took to Twitter and aimed a broadside at Coronation Street star Anthony Cotton – who played fan favourite Sean Tully on the Weatherfield cobbles – who was taking part in ITV’s ‘I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here!’ show in November 2011.
In his post, which was subsequently deleted, Ball wrote: “That f***ing queer. Get back to your sewing machine in Corrie, you moaning b*****d.”
The FA were alerted to the tweet and imposed the largest fine ever received by a player for homophobia, with the sanction coming down just 24 hours after Ball had seen his contract at Leicester torn up, which the club said was based solely on playing grounds.
(Image: Alex Livesey /Allsport)
Ball admitted acting in an improper way and never played professionally for another club ever again. Responding to more homophobic content on his social media feed before the Ball incident, Cotton had said: “Homophobia has no place in our society.
“What anyone thinks of me, the actor off the telly, is none of my business. But as a gay man, I am proud of who I am and the community I am part of. Some people are gay, get over it.”
Sadly, there are still instances of this type of behaviour on show at football grounds across the country, with Tottenham telling their supporters just this week to expect the “strongest possible action” after perceived homophobic chanting in a song for their own player, Dominic Solanke, which targeted Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta.
Meanwhile, Wolves and Luton were both fined last year for their fans singing similar derogatory phrases.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
