It has now been more than a year since Paul Pogba played professional football. Sentenced to a four-year suspension for doping after testing positive for non-endogenous testosterone metabolites on September 11, 2023, the Juventus midfielder saw a small glimmer last Friday, when the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS ) of Lausanne decided to reduce his sentence to eighteen months of solitary confinement. The authority explained its decision.
On Monday, the CAS published a press release to clarify things. Recalling that Paul Pogba “was found guilty of an anti-doping rule violation and (was) sanctioned with a four-year suspension and a fine of 5,000 euros”he then explained that he had chosen to reduce the sentence based on his decision “on the evidence and legal arguments put forward according to which Mr. Pogba’s ingestion of DEHA (…) was not intentional”.
Resumption possible in March 2025
The arguments of the defense of the 2018 world champion were therefore heard by the Court of Arbitration for Sport. The prosecution could, however, decide to appeal if it wished. In any case, this is what the CAS clarified in its publication.
“The decision of the CAS panel is final and binding, except for the right of the parties to appeal to the Swiss Federal Court within thirty days on limited grounds. »
In the meantime, Paul Pogba publicly welcomed this decision, he who could officially resume next March. His club Juventus, however, does not seem very keen to reinstate him. But that’s another story.
