The catalogue of the longest bans in the Premier League is a varied assembly of crimes – and we’re here to go through them: all the way from the oddly bizarre down to the downright cynical. Most frequently, players are brandished a red card for a bad tackle, shouting expletives towards officials or – for some players on this list – shoving the referee in anger.

A straight red card means that a player is also handed a three-match suspension – but, depending on the severity of the incident, the repercussions are sometimes much larger. It’s typically at the discretion of the Football Association (FA) as to how long a player spends away from action, with bans across the top tier ranging from days to months.

Players are able to receive long-term bans due to off-field issues. This can be for breaching betting regulations, taking banned performance-related substances or even failing to attend a scheduled drug test. From violent conduct to drug taking to gambling, the reasons why some footballers have missed substantial time away from the beautiful game are endless.

So, with all that in mind, what are the longest bans served by Premier League players? The Sun named the 10 longest bans in the history of the Premier League, and their list has been updated following the latest bans to hit the headlines.

17

Rodrigo Bentancur – Seven Games

The first entry on the list is different from all the others, as it regards comments made by a player about one of their teammates. Tottenham midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur was hit with a seven-match ban after making a racially insensitive remark about club captain Son Heung-min during an interview for Uruguayan television ahead of the 2024 Copa America.

Bentancur implied that he would not be able to tell his captain from his cousin as they “all look the same,” a discriminatory reference to Son’s ethnicity. While the 27-year-old publicly apologised for the comments and Son himself forgave his teammate and said he wanted to move past the situation, the FA still felt it was necessary to punish the former Juventus star, stating that he had breached “FA Rule E3 in relation to a media interview.” Bentancur was also slapped with a £100,000 fine for his actions.

16

Aleksandar Mitrovic – Eight Games

Pushed a match official

In an FA Cup affair with Manchester United, the Serbian powerhouse had a moment to forget as, following teammate Willian’s red card, he left his side two men down. Overcome with anger and frustration, Mitrovic shoved referee Chris Kavanagh for showing red cards to Willian and Marco Silva and was then sent for an early bath himself.

On the back of his ill-fated interaction with Kavanagh, the Fulham man was given an eight-game ban, one that the Ref Support CEO was a supporter of. Mitrovic made his Fulham return on May 13 when his side travelled to Southampton, a game in which they won, and he scored the second of the affair.

15

Luis Suarez – Eight Games

Racially abused Patrice Evra

Suarez was slapped with an eight-game ban after being found guilty of hurling racial abuse towards Manchester United and France defender Patrice Evra in December 2011. Alongside his suspension from playing, the Uruguayan centre forward was slapped with a hefty fine of £40,000.

Upon his return to action against Manchester United, Suarez couldn’t help himself but add more fuel to the fire by refusing to shake Evra’s hand as the two teams passed each other before kick-off. In support of their striker, Liverpool players wore t-shirts protesting his innocence following the incident – something that Jamie Carragher later apologised to Evra for.

14

Luis Suarez – 10 Games

Biting Branislav Ivanovic

Synonymously known to be a bit of a troublemaker when playing in Europe, Suarez features on this list twice. He was suspended for 10 games after he bit Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic in 2013 during a Premier League fixture.

Undoubtedly one of the most controversial and infamous moments in English topflight history, his knack of using his teeth followed him around as he repeated his highly controversial actions on Giorgio Chiellini while on international duty. Suarez was – on that occasion – fined £66,000 and received a four-month ban for biting the Italy international in a World Cup game.

13

David Prutton – 10 Games

Pushed referee after sending off

Prutton was given a 10-game ban, as well as a £6,000 fine, when he pushed the referee, Alan Wiley, after being sent off in a game for Southampton against Arsenal in 2005. The suspension, at the time, was the longest served by a Premier League player for physical assault on a match official.

Prutton admitted to two separate counts of improper conduct towards the man in the middle as he made a beeline towards assistant referee Paul Norman, who suggested he should be sent off for a reckless challenge on the Gunners’ winger, Robert Pires. The Southampton midfielder later issued a sincere apology for manhandling the referee, though it was to no benefit as he endured a ten-match stint away from the field.

12

Paolo Di Canio – 11 Games

Pushed referee after sending off

Despite ending his time in the Premier League as a cult hero, Di Canio didn’t help his cause in a match between Sheffield Wednesday and Arsenal in 1998. After being shown a red card, he pushed – just like Prutton – referee Paul Alcock and sent him flying before storming off the pitch in disgust.

He was given an 11-game ban and a £10,000 fine as the football authorities were outraged with his behaviour, especially from someone as senior as Di Canio was. Certainly not his finest moment on a football field, Di Canio served his suspension and returned to brilliance 11 games later.

11

Joey Barton – 12 Games

Assaulted three Man City players in one game

Midfielder-turned-troublemaker Barton faced a 12-game ban on the back of his three-man assault at the Etihad Stadium – one of many shameful episodes during his career. Plying his trade for QPR, the player received his marching orders for elbowing Carlos Tevez in the side.

A kick for Sergio Aguero followed before his attempt to headbutt Manchester City skipper Vincent Kompany. Also fined a whopping £75,000 following a seven-and-a-half-hour hearing with the FA’s commission, the QPR captain had placed his position at the club in the balance, especially as he was found guilty of two charges of violent conduct. Though, this was just another day in the office for Barton.

10

Kolo Toure – Six Months

Tested positive for performance-enhancing drug

Toure was given a six-month ban in 2011 after testing positive for performance-enhancing substances as the FA informed the Ivorian that his A sample returned a positive result and that he was unable to partake in any fixtures until an investigative resolution had been reached.

Toure, brother of Yaya, pleaded his innocence as he believed the failed test was down to taking his wife’s water tablets. As such, the Manchester City star’s ban was eventually overturned as the FA were under the impression that he had taken the banned substance unknowingly. He returned to action in September, all ready and raring to go for the new campaign.

9

Adrian Mutu – Seven Months

Tested positive for using cocaine

In September 2004, Chelsea forward Mutu was banned from football for seven months after testing positive for use of cocaine. The Blues then terminated his deal with immediate effect and then started to seek compensation from the Romanian for breach of contract.

Aside from his FA-led ban, Mutu was given a fine of £20,000, though the length of his ban was entirely reliant on his attending his rehabilitation sessions in full. He completed his rehabilitation programme with the Sporting Chance Clinic, set up by Tony Adams, and did not feel like an appeal was necessary. FIFA eventually ordered Mutu to pay a figure around the £16 million mark to his old club.

8

Ivan Toney – Eight Months

Breached FA Betting rules

One of the more high-profile bans of recent times, Brentford frontman Ivan Toney was charged with 232 breaches of the FA’s betting laws during a four-year period between 2017 and 2021. On top of his eight-month ban, he was fined £50,000 and was given a stern warning over future conduct.

In a statement, Toney said, per Sky: “Today I have received notification of my eight-month ban from football following a hearing before an FA Regulatory Commission that took place yesterday. I am naturally disappointed that I will be unable to play for the next eight months.”

Returning to the Brentford fold in 2024, Toney struggled to pick up where he left off, scoring just four times in 17 appearances for the Bees. Nevertheless, he still has a reputation for being one of the best strikers in the Premier League.