Paul Scholes hit with £8,000 fine for breaching FA betting rules

Paul Scholes has been fined £8,000 by the Football Association after accepting a charge of breaching betting rules.

The former Manchester United midfielder insists he made a "genuine mistake" while co-owner of Salford.

"I accept last week's ruling. I would like to apologise and I understand and fully accept the fine imposed by the FA," the ex-England international said in a statement.

"It was a genuine mistake and was not done with any deliberate intention to flout the rules.

"I wrongly believed that as long as there was no personal connection between me and any of the matches that I bet upon then there would be no issue.

"However, I understand now that this is not the case and I should have taken steps to verify this at the time."

Scholes was charged by the FA in April for placing 140 bets on matches between August 2015 and January this year.

He had quit as a Salford director two months earlier – albeit retaining his 10 per cent shareholding – in order to take over as manager of League Two club Oldham, where he lasted just 31 days before walking out.