The former England winger was in August named among a 13-strong pool of former players, managers and officials tasked with dishing out two-match bans to divers.

But Sinclair today admitted to drink driving and racially abusing a police officer, throwing his role with the FA into doubt.

He was sentenced to 150 hours of unpaid work, disqualified from driving for 20 months and ordered to pay £500 compensation to the officer he abused.

Sinclair has also effectively been axed as a Match of the Day pundit, with the BBC admitting they “currently have no scheduled plans to use him” on their programmes.

The FA refused to comment but it is understood that since his arrest last November, Sinclair has not sat in judgement on any diving cases.

Under new rules, if the FA believes there is a strong case to answer, a three-man panel consisting of one former player, one ex-manager and one former referee is appointed from the 13-strong pool to decide onwhether “successful deception of a match official” has occurred.

Each panel member is asked to review footage of the incident in question independently and only if all three are unanimous will a diving charge result.

Sinclair was one of several former England players named in the pool, which also includes Terry Butcher, Danny Murphy, Lee Dixon, Chris Powell and Rachel Brown-Finnis.

The former QPR, West Ham and Manchester City player was arrested in Lytham and became agitated and accused police of being racist, a court was told.

Blackpool Magistrates’ Court heard he racially abused the officer who arrested him, but has since accepted the police were not racist towards him.

Solicitor Nick Freeman said Sinclair was “totally appalled by his behaviour, embarrassed and contrite”.