Fulham manager Arbeloa fined £25,000 over comments on Manchester United

Fulham manager Álvaro Arbeloa has been fined £25,000 and issued a warning by the Football Association (FA) over comments suggesting that match officials were biased in favour of Manchester United.

The sanction follows remarks made by the Spanish coach after Fulham’s 1-1 Premier League draw with Manchester United at Craven Cottage on September 20, 2026.

Arbeloa questioned the officiating after Manchester United secured a late equaliser through Matheus Cunha in the 89th minute.

Speaking after the match, he said: “All fouls for them. You can see before they scored, the foul against Maguire, he’s a guy who is 100 kilos. Every decision was for them.”

He added: “And I knew, I knew after the game against Man City that they don’t let Manchester United lose here.”

The comments referred to a controversial decision in Manchester United’s previous match against Manchester City, in which Erling Haaland’s goal was initially ruled out for offside before being allowed following a video assistant referee (VAR) review. Manchester City won the match 1-0 at Old Trafford.

The FA subsequently charged Arbeloa with misconduct, alleging that he had acted improperly by making comments in a post-match interview that implied bias and questioned the integrity of a match official.

In a statement published on October 13, the governing body confirmed that Arbeloa had admitted the charge. An independent regulatory commission imposed the £25,000 fine and issued a warning regarding his future conduct.

According to the commission’s written reasons, Arbeloa’s remarks suggested that match officials had shown bias repeatedly during the Fulham fixture and potentially acted deliberately to compensate for an error in the Manchester derby.

The commission considered the implications of publicly questioning officials’ integrity and the potential effect of such allegations on confidence in the game.

The sanction was therefore imposed over the nature of Arbeloa’s comments, rather than the result of the match itself.

Fulham appeared poised to secure their first league victory of the season after Manchester United defender Lisandro Martínez scored an own goal to give the hosts the lead.

However, Cunha’s late, deflected effort earned United a point and left Fulham disappointed after coming close to securing all three.

Arbeloa, who took charge of Fulham in July 2026, had expressed frustration at the decision to award United a free-kick following a challenge involving Harry Maguire shortly before the equaliser.

His post-match criticism centred on what he considered a pattern of decisions favouring United.

The FA’s action brings the disciplinary case to a conclusion, with the fine and warning formally confirmed by the governing body.