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Former England Manager Sam Allardyce Says 'Entrapment Has Won'

Ex-England Manager Sam Allardyce has said that "entrapment has won" after newspaper allegations "led to him stepping down as manager of the national side," according to the BBC. Allardyce "left in disgrace" after just 67 days after the London Telegraph said he advised undercover reporters posing as businessmen how to "get around" player transfer rules. He said that it was a "silly thing to do." But when asked if it was his last job in management, the 61-year-old said, "Who knows? We'll wait and see. Unfortunately it was an error of judgement on my behalf. I've paid the consequences. Entrapment has won on this occasion and I have to accept that." The FA called his conduct "inappropriate" and said that his contract was ended by "mutual consent." Allardyce: "The agreement was done very amicably with the FA and I apologize to those and all concerned in the unfortunate position I've put myself in" (BBC, 9/28).

PAYOUT: In London, Martyn Ziegler reported Allardyce is "expected to receive a payoff" of about £1M ($1.3M). The FA said that Allardyce’s position had became "untenable" as soon as the details of his remarks to undercover reporters posing as Far East businessmen wanting to set up a football agency became known on Monday evening. But after departing his position by mutual consent, it is understood that Allardyce, who had signed a two-year contract worth £6M ($7.8M), "will be paid a seven-figure settlement" (LONDON TIMES, 9/28).

AFA 'DIVIDED': Also in London, Jamie Jackson reported the Association of Football Agents is "divided about whether to respond" to Allardyce's resignation and the "wider issue of player representation best practice and will discuss the issue during a board meeting in London on Wednesday." One option up for debate is for the AFA to "release a statement that will distance itself from the practices Allardyce has outlined" regarding circumventing the FA's rules on third-party ownership and transfers and to suggest that the governing body "has much work to do" (GUARDIAN, 9/28). The PA reported former FA Chair Greg Dyke said that the England manager has to be "whiter than white" -- and questioned why Allardyce was apparently negotiating a £400,000 ($520,000) payday when he was being paid £3M ($4M) a year. Dyke said, "The FA have made exactly the right decision. If you want to be the England manager you have to be whiter than white and I'm afraid what we've found out from the Daily Telegraph today is that the person who was the current England manager was not whiter than white -- and I don't think they've had any option [other than] to take the action they [have] done" (PA, 9/28).

POOR JUDGEMENT: ESPN.com's Gabriele Marcotti wrote if "you watched the video and read the transcript you might be left wondering what exactly he did wrong, other than coming across as crass, gossipy and, at one point, silly." Even Allardyce's "gravest statement -- when he discusses third-party ownership of players' economic rights and how agents and investors get around the rules -- is rather innocuous." True, "third-party investment has been illegal in England since 2008 and worldwide since 2015, but it's equally true that it's hugely difficult to police and it still goes on in covert form." Yes, "Allardyce illustrated one method of getting around the regulations." He is "simply explaining how it's done and it's something anyone with a primary school education could work out on their own anyway" (ESPN.com, 9/28).

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