Standing in court in his prison uniform, one of America's best-known sportsmen apologised to his children today as he was sentenced to almost two years in jail for his role in an illegal dogfighting business.

The American footballer Michael Vick, 27, who voluntarily started serving his sentence three weeks ago, stood in court in Richmond, Virginia, to receive his 23-month sentence from US District Judge Henry Hudson.

Dressed in his black and white uniform, he said to a packed court: "I would like to apologise to the court, to my family, to my kids, for what I have done."

Today's sentence, which was higher than the 12-18 months requested by the prosecution, marks a huge fall from grace for a man once regarded as one of the National Football League's top quarterbacks.

Vick pleaded guilty in August to a charge of conspiracy in connection with a dogfighting enterprise known as "Bad Newz Kennels" from 2001 through April this year.

A darling of the NFL who had a 10-year, $130 million contract with the Atlanta Falcons, he was immediately suspended indefinitely without pay by the league. After pleading guilty, he apologised to the NFL commissioner, the Falcons' owner, his teammates and fans.

In a gesture interpreted by some as an attempt to show goodwill in order to get a lower prison sentence, Vick turned himself in to federal officials on November 19 to begin serving his prison time three weeks early.

“It was higher than anyone expected but given the severity and the length of this criminal enterprise and the number of dogs that were harmed in it, it seems a fair sentence,” Allie Philips, director of public policy for the American Humane Association, told the Reuters news agency.

Animal rights had activists gathered outside the hearing today, holding banners saying: "Report Dogfighters!" and "Dogs Deserve Justice."

"I hope that people who are involved in this bloodsport realize this is a dead-end activity with meaningful consequences," John Goodwin, the manager of animal fighting issues for the Humane Society of the United States, said.

Vick was the third defendant to receive sentencing for involvement with Bad Newz Kennels.

Last week, two co-defendants received sentences totalling 18 months and 21 months. Purnell Peace grew up with Vick in Newport News, Virginia, a city they nicknamed “Bad Newz”, and Quanis Phillips, Vick’s former high-school teammate, was his closest friend.

A third defendant, Tony Taylor, the first to plead guilty in the case, will be sentenced on Friday.

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