Nottingham Forest lose appeal against fine over social media posts on VAR

An independent appeal board has rejected Nottingham Forest's appeal regarding a fine of £750,000 levied against the Premier League club for social media comments that criticized a Video Assistant Referee (VAR) during the previous season, as announced by the FA on Monday.

The club expressed frustration after being denied three penalty opportunities in a 2-0 defeat to Everton last April. Shortly after the match, they took to X to suggest that VAR official Stuart Attwell had a preference for Luton Town, a team competing with them to avoid relegation.

Despite Nottingham Forest's assertion that their posts did not imply bias or question the integrity of the officials, they were nonetheless fined and cautioned for misconduct by an independent commission in October.

Forest appealed the decision, calling the fine "disproportionate."

"The appeal board dismissed a subsequent appeal by Nottingham Forest FC in relation to both liability and sanction, and it has also ordered the club to remove the social media post," the FA said in a statement on Monday.

Forest, having been penalized four points for violating the league's financial regulations, managed to evade relegation by securing a 17th place finish. In contrast, Luton, which concluded the season in 18th place, faced relegation.

In the current season, Forest has performed more favorably, currently occupying the third position in the standings ahead of their match against Ipswich Town on Saturday.

SportsLigue