10 Insane Football Punishments You Won't Believe

We've all been there. You're not feeling great, something else has come up, or maybe you just can't be bothered, so you decide to cancel plans. Aside from maybe some awkwardness, usually, there are no repercussions from just deciding to stay home, particularly if you give some notice.

For a football team, however, it's not quite so simple.

So, when Middlesbrough notified the Premier League that they would be unable to complete a scheduled fixture with Blackburn Rovers due to a sickness crisis that had left 23 players unavailable, there was always going to be repercussions.

However, few could have known just how dire they would be.

The ruling body did not agree with Boro's reasoning for cancelling the match, and imposed a £50,000 fine and docked the club three points. The consequences of the point deduction would prove to be grave as Boro were ultimately relegated at the end of the season, two points adrift from safety.