Former Tottenham, Newcastle and Norwich defender Sebastien Bassong has been charged by Transport for London with evading a 7-pound Underground fare by pretending to tap a travel card registered in someone else's name. The former Cameroon international, now a TV pundit, denies the charge, saying he borrowed the card without knowing it was invalid.
According to reports, the 40-year-old was stopped by a TfL revenue officer after allegedly pretending to tap an Oyster card enclosed in a white wallet before tailgating through a wide-aisle barrier behind another passenger. A TfL employee, Adebukola Anifowose, said in a witness statement that when Bassong was asked to produce the card, he presented a Transport for London Staff Nominee Pass without the required accompanying photocard. System checks later confirmed the pass did not belong to him and had last been used in October 2025; it had been registered to a male companion's ex-girlfriend who claimed to be a Docklands Light Railway driver. "No valid ticket was shown for being in the compulsory ticket area. The fare avoided was £7," the witness statement said.
Bassong, of New Southgate in north London, was told to respond to the charge by September 15 but failed to do so. He told the Sun he had been handed the card by someone else and had no idea it was not valid: "I didn't know about the prosecution and I haven't received a letter. I was using a card given to me, and I was stopped, and I didn't know it wasn't good enough. I use the Tube every day. I'm a good citizen."
Bassong enjoyed a lengthy Premier League career, making 177 appearances and scoring six goals with two assists after joining Newcastle from Metz in 2008 and moving to Tottenham a year later for £8 million; he later spent five years at Norwich City. He won 15 caps for Cameroon and was part of the Indomitable Lions squad at the 2010 World Cup. Since retiring he has moved into television punditry, where he remains a familiar face.
The case is being prosecuted by Transport for London, and Bassong awaits its outcome while continuing his broadcasting work. The incident has drawn attention precisely because of its modesty — a £7 fare for a former top-flight star — and because fare-evasion prosecutions of public figures are rare. His defence, that he borrowed a card in good faith, will now be tested in court.