Terry poised to learn his fate in FA race case

John Terry will return today for a fourth and perhaps final day of his disciplinary hearing into a charge the Chelsea skipper used racist language on the pitch.

Luis Suarez’s racism hearing last year took four days to complete and Terry’s appearance before an FA independent regulatory panel will last at least that long. Terry spent eight hours yesterday at the hearing at Wembley Stadium, where he 
denies a charge that he used a racist slur towards QPR’s Anton Ferdinand in October last year.

The 31-year-old was accompanied by Chelsea chairman Bruce Buck for the duration of the hearing and both departed shortly before 4.30pm. Liverpool striker Suarez was banned for eight matches for racially abusing Manchester United’s Patrice Evra but was found to have done so on a number of occasions during the match. Terry is accused of a single utterance towards Ferdinand, which has led to some speculation that, if found guilty, the Chelsea player would be more likely to receive a four-match ban.

Close analysis of the full reasons behind Suarez’s ban shows that Terry could easily face a similar length ban if found guilty. In Suarez’s case, the FA argued for an increased sanction “to ensure that it is widely understood that the FA deprecates and will not accept racist behaviour. In other words, a deterrent sanction is called for”.

Terry and his advisors are hoping that he will be completely exonerated and, if he is not, an appeal looks almost certain to be lodged.