Paul Pogba has been suspended from football for four years after a failed anti-doping test.
Juventus midfielder Pogba, 30, was initially handed a provisional suspension by NADO (the Italian Anti-Doping Organisation) in September after the failed test, which followed his side’s 3-0 win at Udinese on August 20.
FIFA’s guidelines for suspensions on players who violate its anti-doping regulations ranges between two and four years, depending on whether it can be proven that the rule violation was intentional.
Pogba’s suspension is subject to a possible appeal.
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The France international was initially suspended in September after his test detected testosterone not produced by the body, according to NADO.
NADO said that testosterone not produced by the body was detected in the ‘A sample’ Pogba provided. Following Pogba’s provisional suspension, his ‘B sample’ was sent for further tests at the Acqua Acetosa clinic in Rome, which is where the failed test was confirmed.
Pogba was an unused substitute in the match against Udinese which preceded his failed test, but he did come off the bench in the club’s subsequent two Serie A matches — a 1-1 draw at home to Bologna and a two-goal victory at Empoli.
Pogba returned to Juventus in the summer of 2022 following six years at Manchester United, but fitness issues restricted him to just 10 appearances in the 2022-23 campaign.
The most recent of the midfielder’s 91 caps for France came in March 2022, and his two substitute outings are his only two appearances of this season.
Pogba is under contract at Juventus through to the summer of 2026.
Juventus are currently second in Serie A, 12 points behind league leaders Inter, are next back in action with a league trip to Napoli on March 3.
Have similar incidents happened before?
During his time at Ajax, traces of Furosemide were found in Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana’s system.
The substance was in a pack of tablets Onana’s wife was prescribed after giving birth and the goalkeeper accidentally took them. UEFA accepted Onana’s version of events but he was still given a 12-month ban, which was reduced to nine on appeal.
In July 2022, Atalanta defender Jose Palomino tested positive for clostebol metabolites. Palomino was unable to play for three months while he waited for an outcome but was absolved in September due to accidental contamination.
However, NADO is challenging the tribunal’s decision at CAS.
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