The police investigation into the death of former Arsenal academy player Billy Vigar is ongoing, a coroner’s court has heard. Vigar died from a significant brain injury in September 2025, five days after colliding with a concrete wall surrounding a pitch while playing for Chichester City at Wingate and Finchley’s stadium.
Investigation and Court Hearing
Acting Detective Sergeant Colin Chandler, from the Metropolitan Police, told a pre-inquest review hearing that he anticipated he would need another two to three months on his investigation. He did not provide details on the lines of enquiry that the police are exploring. Vigar’s parents, Keith and Camilla, were present for the hearing at Barnet Coroner’s Court on Thursday, as were representatives from the Football Association and Barnet Council. Former Bath City player Alex Fletcher, who fractured his skull when colliding with concrete barriers next to the club’s pitch in 2022, was also present, as was Professional Footballers’ Association representative Adam White. BBC Sport has contacted the Met for comment.
Family Criticism of Authorities
Speaking to BBC Sport on the one-year anniversary, Vigar’s parents stated that the FA could have stopped Billy losing his life because they had so many warnings. During the hearing, Camilla Vigar told senior coroner Andrew Walker that she did not understand how the FA waited for Billy to die before taking action when there was so much warning beforehand, citing the death of Ben Hiscox in 2015 and Alex Fletcher’s accident in 2022. She noted that an investigation after Fletcher’s incident highlighted about 160 high-risk clubs, with Wingate being one of them, but argued they did nothing. Keith Vigar also raised an issue during the hearing regarding Barnet not being treated as an interested party, questioning how the investigation carried out at Wingate and Finchley by Barnet as the local authority was handled, describing it as a conflict of interest where the council was marking its own homework.
A further hearing has been scheduled for 10 February.
