Maguire handed £1,000 speeding fine as England World Cup squad travels without him

Harry Maguire has been fined £1,000 for speeding, with the conviction emerging in the same week his England teammates flew to the United States for their 2026 World Cup preparations — a painful coincidence for the 33-year-old centre-back who described his international omission as a shock.

Maguire was caught driving his £130,000 Range Rover at 37mph in a 30mph zone on Hale Road in Altrincham, Greater Manchester, on 28 December last year. The route runs between Manchester United’s Old Trafford stadium and his Cheshire home. Sentenced at Tameside Magistrates’ Court, Maguire also received three penalty points on his licence and must pay £120 in costs plus a £400 victim surcharge. It is his second speeding-related sanction in 2025, having been handed a 56-day road ban in January.

Maguire pleaded guilty in writing and submitted an apology to the court. “I was driving at 37mph in what I mistakenly believed was a 40mph zone, when it was in fact a 30mph limit,” he wrote. “I understand this was my responsibility and I fully accept the offence. I will be more careful in future and pay closer attention to speed limit signs.” He also asked the court to consider a speed awareness course in lieu of penalty points, though the points were applied regardless.

Two of Maguire’s Manchester United teammates faced separate criminal proceedings at the same time. Reserve goalkeeper Altay Bayindir was caught driving a Mercedes at 41mph in a 30mph limit in the Greater Manchester village of Hale Barns on 24 November last year — an incident that occurred within an hour of United’s 1-0 Premier League defeat to Everton. Bayindir, 28, pleaded guilty without mitigation and was fined £666 at Manchester Magistrates’ Court.

The third United player involved is Brazilian striker Matheus Cunha, 27, who faces a more serious situation. A Mercedes registered in his name was clocked at 37mph on the same stretch of Hale Road where Bayindir was caught, on 17 August last year — the day of United’s opening Premier League defeat to Arsenal. Cunha has been charged not only with speeding but also with failing to respond to police letters requesting the identity of the driver, an additional criminal offence. His case has yet to be resolved.

The timing of Maguire’s conviction adds another difficult chapter to what has been a turbulent period for the defender, who was left out of Thomas Tuchel’s England squad for the summer’s World Cup qualifiers and warm-up fixtures in the United States.