Hugo Lloris pleaded guilty to one charge of drink-driving as a court heard police had to help him from his £65k Porsche – which they found covered in vomit. The 31-year-old Frenchman, who captains the north London side, has been hit with a £50,000 fine and has been banned from driving for 20 months. Lloris was driving his 2018-plate Porsche Panamera along Gloucester Place, Marylebone, on August 24 when he was pulled over during a routine stop by police. Prosecutor Henry Fitch said police in an unmarked car spotted Lloris’ vehicle driving at 15mph in a 30mph zone. He also veered his car “towards parked vehicles” before correcting himself.
When police stopped the vehicle, they discovered vomit and said Lloris had to be helped from the car. Defending, David Sonn said Lloris’ “spectacular fall from grace was not lost” on the goalkeeper. The court heard the goalkeeper had been dining in a restaurant and was showered with drinks from fellow diners.The Spurs captain was stopped by officers in Gloucester Place, near Baker Street, at 2.30am where he failed a breathalyser test. He was taken to Charing Cross police station where he had his prints, DNA and mug shot taken, having been stopped in his new £65,000 Porsche Panamera. He remained for six hours before being charged and released, while his club said they would be taking the matter “extremely seriously”. The shot-stopper, who had apparently been out dining with Arsenal defender Laurent Koscielny and Chelsea striker Olivier Giroud at a Mayfair restaurant, returned home by foot on Friday morning after the incident. According to official court papers, the France star was stopped with 80 microgrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath – more than double the legal limit of 35mg.
The footballer was met by a scrum of photographers who surrounded the Frenchman as he walked inside the court building this morning. Several photographers tripped and ended up sprawled on the ground. Such was the demand to get into the court that journalists sent to cover the case need tickets to attend. Lloris, who was in Paris on Monday night to celebrate France’s World Cup success with his international teammates, has previously apologised, calling his conduct “completely unacceptable”I wish to apologise wholeheartedly to my family, the club, my team-mates, the manager and all of the supporters. “Drink-driving is completely unacceptable. I take full responsibility for my actions and it is not the example I wish to set.”.
Lloris, wearing a dark suit and no tie, was flanked by two members of his entourage as he made his way from his vehicle into the court, confronted by dozens of photographers and video journalists. Lloris, of East Finchley, north London, signed for Spurs from Lyon in 2012, making 209 appearances in the Premier League and keeping 75 clean sheets. He did not make the squad for Spurs’ last league match, a 2-1 defeat at Watford, on September 2.
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