On July 4, four days after his Arsenal contract expired, Thomas Partey was charged with five counts of rape and one count of sexual assault by UK authorities. The alleged offences, which he denies, are said to have taken place between 2021 and 2022 and involve three women.

Partey, 32, had joined Arsenal in 2020 from Atletico Madrid for £45 million and went on to make 167 appearances for the club. His departure came just weeks after Arsenal were in talks over a potential contract extension, despite being aware of the police investigation.

According to reporting by The Athletic, Arsenal were first contacted in September 2021 by one of the women making allegations. At that point, they were made aware both by the individual and the Metropolitan Police that Partey was under investigation.

Despite this, Partey remained a regular feature in the first team and continued to be promoted through club media. The club, who pride themselves on adherence to rules and community values, are now facing difficult questions about whether they acted appropriately.

UK law prohibits naming suspects of sexual offences unless and until they are charged. This limited what Arsenal could say publicly. Internally, they also had to navigate Premier League contract rules that only allow suspensions on full pay for two weeks. Suspension beyond that would require player consent.

According to Alex Clarke, a senior employment lawyer, Arsenal likely lacked grounds to withhold pay or bench the player without risking legal and financial consequences—especially if the player were eventually exonerated.

While Partey continued to play, some Arsenal staff reportedly expressed discomfort with the club’s handling of the case. According to sources, multiple employees felt uneasy about the decision to offer a contract extension, and the issue sparked fan protests, including from groups such as Arsenal Supporters Against Sexual Violence.

In May 2025, manager Mikel Arteta publicly backed Partey, calling his performances the “most consistent” of his Arsenal tenure and emphasizing his importance to the squad.

One of the women who made the allegations said she received abuse online every time Partey played, including threats and harassment. She said she had expected more from a club of Arsenal’s stature.

While legal limitations shaped what the club could do, some argue they still had the option to take a stronger stance. Other players, like Mesut Özil and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, have been sidelined for non-criminal reasons, suggesting the club did not necessarily have to play Partey.

Yet any move to exclude Partey for non-football reasons could have been seen as an implicit judgment on his guilt—an implication the club likely wanted to avoid given the seriousness of the allegations and the legal principle of innocent until proven guilty.

In contrast to Manchester City’s suspension of Benjamin Mendy during his legal proceedings (which eventually led to a partial financial settlement in his favour), Arsenal opted not to suspend Partey at all. That decision, though legally defensible, is now under public and ethical scrutiny.

Arsenal declined to comment on the specifics of their internal handling, citing ongoing legal proceedings. But with Partey no longer at the club, pressure is growing on Premier League institutions to clarify how such cases should be handled in future.

This moment presents a broader question: can football balance legal rights with ethical responsibility?

For a club like Arsenal—renowned for its values, diversity, and community outreach—that question may now define how its actions are judged, both by its fans and the wider public.