A Greek court has reduced the sentence handed to Harry Maguire to a 15-month suspended term following his retrial over an incident that occurred on the holiday island of Mykonos in August 2020.
The Manchester United defender, who has earned 64 caps for the England national football team, was originally given a suspended sentence of 21 months and 10 days in 2020 after being found guilty of repeated bodily harm, attempted bribery, violence against public employees and insult.
A day after that initial ruling, Maguire’s legal team filed an appeal. Under Greek law, filing an appeal automatically nullifies the original conviction and triggers a full retrial. The new hearing was eventually held on the island of Syros after a series of postponements between 2023 and 2025.
At the conclusion of the retrial, the court found Maguire guilty of non-serious assault, resisting arrest and attempted bribery. The judges ruled that the offences were less severe than those cited in the original decision and therefore reduced the punishment to a 15-month suspended sentence.
Sources close to the case say Maguire denies any wrongdoing and plans to challenge the verdict before the Greek Supreme Court in an effort to clear his name. The 32-year-old footballer has previously declined opportunities to settle the case out of court, insisting that he wants the matter resolved through the legal process.
Despite the legal development, Maguire remains part of the Manchester United squad preparing for Wednesday’s English Premier League clash against Newcastle United. He was substituted during the club’s recent victory over Crystal Palace after falling ill during the match.
The case has drawn attention to the differences between the Greek and British criminal justice systems. Maguire was first convicted in 2020 by a court on Syros following an altercation on nearby Mykonos. That ruling imposed a 21-month suspended sentence for aggravated assault, resisting arrest and attempted bribery.
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In Greece, however, appeals against lower criminal court verdicts automatically cancel the original decision and lead to a full rehearing of the case. This differs from the system in the United Kingdom, where appeal courts usually focus on whether legal errors occurred rather than reconsidering all the evidence.
The retrial experienced repeated delays due to procedural issues within the Greek legal system, including lawyer strikes and court scheduling backlogs. Maguire was not required to attend the hearing in person because defendants facing offences of this level in Greece can be represented by their lawyers.
Under Greece’s statute of limitations, legal proceedings for offences of this nature must be completed within eight years. This means the case must be resolved before August 2028 or it will automatically expire under Greek law.
