Pie-R disasters: When sport and stunts leave a bad taste

For many football fans Wayne Shaw, the self-styled 'roly-poly' substitute goalie was the unsung hero of Sutton United’s FA Cup run.

The non-league side made it all the way to the last 16 of this season’s FA Cup before getting beaten 2-0 by Premier League giants Arsenal on Monday night.

Weighing in at 20 stone and parked firmly on the bench, Shaw had become a bit of a cult figure online.

There was a lot of love for Wayne even before he was pictured hoovering the dugouts before the big match…

And when he was pictured in the bar at half-time...

Then late in the game, after all Sutton’s substitutions had been made, Wayne relaxed in style - with a hot savoury item.

At least we thought so, but the over-the-top pie-scoffing raised a few eyebrows, and the 'magic of the cup' moment started to lose its sparkle when it emerged a major newspaper’s betting arm had been offering odds on it happening - which left some with a bad taste.

Was it actually a pie, or a pasty?

Either way, Shaw has now resigned and could be in trouble with the Football Association and Gambling Commission after he said after the game that he knew odds were being offered, external, but that it was just "a bit of banter".

Sutton boss Paul Doswell has this to say: "What happened didn't make us look very professional. Wayne himself offered his resignation to the chairman this afternoon, which has been accepted. It's a very sad end to what has been a very good story."

Whatever happens, Wayne Shaw is not the first athlete to feel the heat after getting embroiled in a PR stunt.

Bendtner's pants

Former Arsenal striker Nicklas Bendtner was playing for Denmark at Euro 2012 when he scored a goal against Portugal.

Wheeling away in a rare moment of celebration, Bendtner shifted down his shorts to reveal the logo of a betting company, who had supplied him with some branded 'lucky pants'.

Bendtner was deemed to have broken Uefa rules so was given a one-match ban and fined £80,000 for the stunt. Pricey pants.

LeBron's 'Decision'

When the NBA's biggest star LeBron James was coming to the end of his contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2010, basketball fans around the world were wondering what he might do.

After seven years, would the two-time MVP stay in his home state with the Cavs or leave Ohio in a bid to win an NBA championship with a stronger team?

US sports network ESPN persuaded the man known as 'King James' to reveal his decision to the world in a 75-minute TV special called 'The Decision'. ESPN would get the ratings, and Lebron's team could sell the advertising. Kerching!

James's choice to go to Miami sparked outrage in Cleveland, where fans burned replica jerseys in protest and the Cavs owner Dan Gilbert called the move " a cowardly betrayal, external".

While the clumsy handling of it was ridiculed, LeBron's move worked out. He won two NBA championships with the Heat before returning to Cleveland in 2014 and leading them to their first NBA title in 2016. Hero status restored.

Robbie Earle and the Dutch beer girls

When Dutch beer makers Bavaria sent 36 female models to a 2010 World Cup match between The Netherlands and Denmark in Johannesburg, they were after attention, but got more than they bargained for.

Fifa and South African police became suspicious after a group of 36 women dressed in bright orange dresses were spotted at the game, shouting and cheering in an attempt to get on the big screen and promote the beer.

Only official sponsors of the World Cup were allowed to advertise and ‘ambush marketing,' where companies hijack an event to get publicity, was not allowed in South Africa. The group was ejected from the stadium and two of the organisers were arrested.

However, things got weirder still when it emerged that some of the tickets they had used could be traced back to corporate hospitality tickets given to ITV football pundit Robbie Earle.

Earle got the sack from ITV, external, and is now a pundit on American TV.