When a Premier League footballer is show a red or yellow card by a referee, it hits them in the pocket as well as in the form of a possible suspension.
The FA issues match officials with a suite of cautionable and sending-off offences in line with Law 12.3 of the Laws of the Game, categorised under 15 different charge codes [PDF] that tell the player and their club administrators about the implications of the disciplinary action.
Each charge code signifies the fine, suspension and penalty points incurred for the offences under its auspices, and referees use these codes to confirm the reasons for cautions and red cards after each game.
There are two main groupings of charge codes: yellow card codes begin with a ‘C’ for caution, sending-off codes with an ‘S’.
So, how much was Aston Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez fined for picking up a yellow card against Nottingham Forest in the Premier League on Saturday?
Time-wasting comes under “delaying the restart of play”, which is a C4 offence and therefore comes with a nice round fine of £10 whether the culprit plays for Villa, or a tenth-tier non-league club.
Indeed, all yellow card offences carry exactly the same monetary fine with the exception of a sin-bin caution – in operation for C2 dissent offences below the eighth tier of English men’s football – which doesn’t result in an additional fine.
Emi Martinez broke a rule during Aston Villa’s win over Lille (Image: Getty)
Red card offences are altogether more costly and not just because they pack a growing scale of suspension the more of them a player gets.
They range from £35 and an automatic one-match suspension for an S7 offence (dismissal for a second yellow card) or an S4/S5 offence of denying a clear goal-scoring opportunity to the full £55 fine, a whopping automatic six-match suspension and the maximum seven penalty points for S3 spitting. Yes, spitting.
FA disciplinary charge codes
A straight red card for S6 use of offensive, insulting or abusive language carries a £45 fine and two-match suspension, but what about the more familiar serious foul play and violent conduct dismissals?
Eddie Nketiah, Marc Guehi and Jan Paul van Hecke, the three players sent off for second bookable offences late in the Premier League match between Crystal Palace and Brighton, were each handed the same £35 fine issued to players dismissed for the same thing in county leagues around the country on the same day.
Red card fines for players are inclusive of a £15 administration fee. Best keep your noses clean!
