France-born world-class midfielder Paul Pogba has been released early from suspension of his qualification for positive doping charges. He won an appeal by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
Although not all disciplinary measures have been eased, it will be possible to return to the ground in March next year.
The British media Daily Mail reported on the 5th (Korea Standard Time) that "Pogba's four-year doping ban has been reduced to 18 months after the appeal."
Many athletes who were disciplined for doping have tried to appeal against CAS, but have never had good results. Pogba has accomplished a difficult task.
"This is an important victory for Pogba. His suspension, which started in September 2023, will end in March 2025, and he will be able to make plans to resume his career now," the Daily Mail said. "The verdict stated that the DHEA, which was in question, affects women. Pogba's appeal was filed at the CAS headquarters in Switzerland in late August, and the verdict was recently delivered to Pogba."
Pogba did not hide his joy because his claim that he was innocent was accepted to some extent.
"The nightmare is over. I'm looking forward to the day when I can realize my dream again," Pogba said. "I've always said that I never intentionally violated anti-doping regulations. I was honest. I'm grateful to CAS for listening to my explanation."
"It was a painful time because everything I achieved disappeared behind me," he said. "Thank you for all your love and support. I can't wait to get back to the stadium."
Earlier in February, Pogba was suspended for four years by the Italian Anti-Doping Agency.
Fabrizio Romano, an expert in the European soccer transfer market, said on his social network service that Pogba cannot play for the next four years due to doping. Around the same time, Italian media reported that Pogba was suspended for four years.
Pogba, who led the French midfield in the 2018 World Cup in Russia and played a key role in winning the championship for the first time in 20 years, later left his former team, Manchester United (Manchester United), and moved to Italy's prestigious Juventus, where he belonged before moving to Manchester United, as a free agent in the summer of 2022. However, shortly after moving to Juventus, he had little time to play due to injury and was eliminated from the final entry for the Qatar World Cup.
He seemed to play in Serie A, Italy's first division, by improving his condition in the 2023-2024 season, but he was disgraced at the beginning of the season due to a positive doping test. Pogba took a doping test after the home opener against Udinese on August 20 last year, in which testosterone, a banned drug, was detected.
Testosterone is known to improve endurance and is a major banned substance designated by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Usually, after a doping test is conducted, two urine samples are taken, A and B, to increase accuracy. When sample A turned out to be positive, Pogba asked for sample B to be tested, but the results were the same.
Eventually, the Italian Anti-Doping Agency confirmed Pogba's four-year suspension on charges of positive doping tests. 안전놀이터
Pogba is known to have been given drugs separately from the United States, not from Italy, but the reaction is that he did not know his team Juventus at all. It has already begun work on terminating the contract, and seems to cancel the bonus payment for joining without transfer fees.