Capello Must Remove John Terry from England Captaincy

A London judge today lifted a gag order that had prevented the British press from publishing reports about John Terry’s affair with the girlfriend of England, and former Chelsea player, Wayne Bridge.

Yes, you read that right. England’s captain and “Dad of the Year” was sleeping with his teammate's girlfriend.

Terry has tried to use the human rights laws to obtain a gagging order against the press, claiming his right to a "private and family life." But the judge who threw out the order said he thought Terry was more concerned about the threat to his lucrative sponsorship deals.

The judge said:

“Terry had made no mention of personal distress and appeared to be ‘a very robust personality.’ He said the secrecy claim was more likely to be about ‘protection of reputation’ and was ‘essentially a business matter.'”

Terry’s reputation has been steadily going downhill over the last 12 months.

In November, Terry was severely embarrassed when an email sent by the firm representing Terry appeared to be an attempt to use Terry’s position as England’s World Cup captain for financial gain.

Under the headline "Are you looking for a leader to represent your brand?" it stated:

“The FIFA 2010 World Cup Finals in South Africa is fast approaching! With this in mind Riviera Entertainment is identifying suitable commercial endorsement opportunities for its client John Terry for the period building up to the finals and beyond. John Terry is available to create effective brand awareness and endorse products and services globally.”

As if that wasn’t bad enough, last month Terry was secretly filmed giving an unauthorized tour around Chelsea’s training facilities to journalists posing as businessmen, in return for £10,000 cash. The "businessmen" were warned that the club must not know. Other Terry tours could be organized for a similar fee.

Fabio Capello has a reputation as being a tough manager, and now he has to show it.

Terry needs to be stripped of the England captaincy before the Egypt game in early March.