Dele Alli banned for one match over coronavirus post

Tottenham midfielder Dele Alli has been suspended for one match by the Football Association over a post on social media about coronavirus.

Alli, 24, put a video on Snapchat in February in which he joked about the outbreak and appeared to mock an Asian man.

The England international has also been fined £50,000 and ordered to undertake an education course.

He will miss Spurs’ home match against Manchester United on 19 June.

The video posted by Alli showed him wearing a face mask in an airport lounge, before the camera moved to show a man of Asian appearance, and then zoomed in on a bottle of antiseptic handwash.

In his hearing, Alli said he had “very quickly” realised the video may have the “potential to cause upset” and deleted it before catching his flight.

He said he had been “betrayed” by a friend who sold the video on his private account to the media.

In a statement, Alli said: “In response to the FA decision, I would like to apologise again for any offence caused by my behaviour.

“It was an extremely poorly judged joke about a virus that has now affected us more than we could ever have imagined.

“I’m grateful that the FA has confirmed that my actions were not racist because I despise racism of any kind. We all need to be mindful of the words and actions we use and how they can be perceived by others.”

More than 41,000 people have died with coronavirus in the UK, and more than 416,000 worldwide.