Neville reveals unanimous England strike vote in support of banned Ferdinand in 2003

Gary Neville has confirmed that England’s entire squad voted unanimously to go on strike before their 2003 World Cup qualifying match against Turkey in Istanbul, in protest at the Football Association’s decision to suspend Rio Ferdinand before his drugs-test hearing had even taken place.

Speaking publicly about the episode for the first time alongside Ferdinand on the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast, Neville described how he approached then-captain David Beckham and pushed for a collective response after Ferdinand was dropped from the squad and effectively punished ahead of any formal verdict.

“England suspended you and banned you before the actual hearing, which was post-tournament,” Neville said. “I went to see Becks, who was the captain, and I said we need to get all the players together because I feel quite strongly about it. We got all the players together. We had an anonymous vote and it was unanimous. There are a couple of players who have come out since and said they voted against it, but they are lying. It was unanimous that we would all go on strike. It didn’t help you in the end.”

Ferdinand, who had missed a scheduled drugs test in September 2003, was handed an eight-month ban and a £50,000 fine in December of that year after being found guilty — a punishment that ruled him out of Euro 2004. Neville’s central grievance was that the FA had already removed Ferdinand from the squad before the disciplinary process had concluded, a sequence he described at the time as “such an injustice”.

Despite the ballot result, the players did board the plane to Istanbul. England drew 0-0, a result that was enough to secure qualification for Euro 2004, where they were eventually eliminated by host nation Portugal on penalties in the quarter-finals. David Beckham missed a penalty during the qualifier itself.

Ferdinand responded to Neville’s account with rare candour. “I have never said thanks, but thanks for that,” he said. “It didn’t get me anywhere, but it was a big risk for a player to do that. I really appreciate it.”

Neville had spoken briefly about his feelings at the time in December 2003, saying the squad “just did what we felt was right” and that the episode “showed we had something about us.” The full account of the unanimous vote, however, has not been made public until now.