Rangers' Barton charged for alleged football bets

The Scottish Football Association announced Wednesday that Rangers midfielder Joey Barton has been charged for breaching rules against betting on football.

Barton - who was suspended by the club in September for three weeks on the heels of a training-ground argument with fellow 'Gers midfielder Andy Halliday - has been charged for alleged betting activity on matches between July 1 and Sept. 15, 2016, according to the statement from the Scottish FA.

The Scottish FA alleges that Barton bet on 44 matches during that period, which is a breach of Disciplinary Rule 31.

Barton has until Oct. 12 to respond to the allegations, with a principal hearing date scheduled for Oct. 27.

The former Newcastle and Queens Park Rangers player joined the Glasgow giant in the summer on a two-year deal. Barton, 34, has had a career littered with incidents, including imprisonment in 2008 for common assault and affray and a four-month suspended sentence just two months later for assault causing bodily harm for an attack on former teammate Ousmane Dabo.

Barton has been charged thrice for incidents of violent conduct, including punching Morten Gamst Pedersen and for attacking three players during the final match of the 2011-12 campaign against Manchester City.