In Hampshire, a motorway journey involving Raheem Sterling has moved from roadside incident to court case, with fresh footage placing the former England forward inside his Lamborghini Urus shortly before the crash.
Key takeaways
- Sterling has pleaded guilty following the May road incident and will be sentenced on 25 November.
- Police said they found six nitrous oxide canisters in his vehicle, which also had four burst tyres and side-panel damage.
- He faced allegations of dangerous driving and declining to provide a breath sample after the collision.
- The video shows a white balloon in the car as Sterling drove on a Hampshire motorway, roughly 90 minutes from London.
- Recreational nitrous oxide use is prohibited in England, Portugal, the Netherlands and Belgium.
Raheem Sterling’s Hampshire case
The recording, made in May from another vehicle, shows Sterling in the Urus with the balloon while travelling along the motorway. The car’s pace appears to fluctuate before the time of the accident.
After the collision, officers discovered the nitrous oxide containers inside the Lamborghini. The vehicle had sustained damage to its side and was left with four blown tyres. Sterling was arrested in the aftermath.
The forward, who has played for Liverpool, Manchester City, Chelsea and Arsenal, entered a guilty plea on Tuesday. The court is due to deliver its sentence on 25 November.
Nitrous oxide and football’s wider record
Nitrous oxide, or N2O, is a colourless gas with a mildly sweet smell. It has legitimate medical uses as an anaesthetic and is also used to inflate balloons. When inhaled, it is absorbed quickly and can affect pain perception, producing relaxation, euphoria and laughter through a sedative effect on the central nervous system.
The substance can leave no trace in the body, a feature that has made it a subject of concern around elite sport because it may not appear in doping tests. Its recreational use is banned in several European countries, including England, Portugal, the Netherlands and Belgium.
Football has already seen a number of related episodes. Yves Bissouma, formerly of Tottenham and now with Ajax, received a one-match suspension from the London club in August 2024 after sharing social-media images involving nitrous oxide following a defeat.
In Italy, an investigation in April examined an alleged network involving party packages that included prostitution and nitrous oxide. Around 50 Serie A players, including footballers from Inter Milan and AC Milan, were reportedly among those under suspicion. The events were said to have taken place in luxury hotels and nightclubs in Italy and Greece, with Emanuele Buttini and Deborah Ronchi identified as the couple running the operation from Cinisello Balsamo, in the Milan area.
Jack Grealish, now an Everton attacker, was also filmed using the gas at a party when he was a 19-year-old Aston Villa academy prospect. He later issued a public apology and said the episode would not happen again.
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Raheem Sterling to Be Sentenced After Hampshire Road Incident
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Raheem Sterling will be sentenced on 25 November after pleading guilty following a Hampshire crash, with video and nitrous oxide canisters central to the case.
