Adam Johnson: Footballer accused of grooming a teenager says success made him 'arrogant'

The former Sunderland player insisted he had not committed serious sexual offences

Footballer Adam Johnson, centre, arrives at Bradford Crown Court with his legal team to give evidence for the first time in his trial (PA)

England footballer Adam Johnson has said that his on-pitch success had made him “arrogant” and slowed his emotional development but insisted he had not committed serious sexual offences after grooming a schoolgirl.

The former Sunderland player took to the witness box in his trial for alleged sexual activity with a child to admit that he had sent explicit emails to other women despite still being in a relationship with his long-term girlfriend, Stacey Flounders.

A jury at Bradford Crown Court heard that the 28-year-old footballer acknowledged he had not been “a very good person” to Ms Flounders, with whom he has a young daughter. But Mr Johnson denied he had been intent on having a “sexual encounter” with his 15-year-old victim and insisted that when he had asked her via social media if she had turned 16, he had been trying to find out if she was old enough to drink alcohol.

Giving evidence for the first time, Mr Johnson, who was dismissed by Sunderland FC earlier this month after he admitted grooming and kissing the schoolgirl, described how his success as a Premiership footballer meant he had grown used to adulation.

He told the court: “I think it’s every young boy’s dream. You get put on a pedestal, people screaming your name – it’s the best feeling in the world. But you also get everything done for you and get a lot of things easy.”

Asked if he had become arrogant, the winger, who joined Sunderland from Manchester City for £10m in 2012, said “yes” and said he thought the lionisation of footballers meant his maturity had “slowed down”.

He told the court he had been exchanging sexually explicit texts with “other women” in their twenties behind Ms Flounders’s back following the birth of their daughter, adding that responsibility for a downturn in their relationship had been “mine, all mine”.

But the player, who joined his first professional club at the age of 15, said his behaviour with the schoolgirl had not progressed beyond exchanging “flirty” and “inappropriate” texts girl and then kissing her in his Range Rover in January last year as a “thank you” from her for having been given a signed shirt.

When asked by his lawyer, Orlando Pownall QC, whether he had carried out two further, more serious sexual assaults, including having oral sex with his victim, Mr Johnson replied: “No, I never.”

The footballer, who left school with four GCSEs, said he had not realised that exchanging texts with the girl on WhatsApp with the intention of kissing her amounted to an offence of grooming. He said he felt “ashamed” and “embarrassed” at having sent the messages, which cover 43 A4 pages.

Asked why he had asked the teenager, who is related to a schoolfriend of the footballer, not to tell anyone she was exchanging messages with him, Mr Johnson said: “Loads of reasons – I had a girlfriend, I knew what could be made of speaking to a girl that age, I didn’t want her to tell her friends and then come and ask me for shirts as well.”

The player admitted he knew it had been a “possibility” that he would be touching the girl sexually in his car and had enjoyed the encounter.

The court heard that Mr Johnson denied trying to establish the girl’s age for reasons linked to the age of consent, saying that when he had asked her the date she was due to turn 16 it had been part of a conversation about when she was old enough to drink alcohol.

In a statement read to the court prior giving evidence, Mr Johnson said he accepted his actions had been “wholly unacceptable” and claimed he’d had no further contact with her after the kiss because of her age and his existing relationship. Addressing his victim, the footballer said: “She’s a child and ought to have been safe in my company.”

The trial continues.

Age of consent: 'Players' discussion'

Adam Johnson told the court he had searched for the age of sexual consent on the internet because of a dressing-room discussion about the law in different countries.

The player searched Google for “legal age of consent” four days after he kissed the 15-year-old girl. But Mr Johnson said: “We were having a discussion in the dressing room about a programme that was on a couple of days ago about different ages. There are players in our team from all sorts of countries, and we were having a discussion about laws and ages in different parts of the world.”