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CAS cuts Pogba ban, back playing by March

The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has reduced a ban imposed on French international footballer Paul Pogba from four years to 18 months.

The Juventus midfielder had been banned by the Italian National Anti-Doping Agency (NADO) after a test found high levels of testosterone.

Pogba had appealed the severity of the ban, which ran from 11 September 2023, though he did not seek a determination of no-fault or negligence form the panel.

‘Not intentional’

The CAS panel partially upheld the appeal, finding that the midfielder had committed an anti-doping rule violation.

“The CAS panel based its decision on the evidence and legal arguments made that Mr Pogba’s ingestion of DHEA, the substance for which he tested positive, was not intentional and was the result of erroneously taking a supplement prescribed to him by a medical doctor in Florida,” the court stated.

It added, however, that Pogba was “not without fault” and that, as a professional football player, he should have paid a greater care in the circumstances.

BBC Sport quoted sources close to the player as saying that he could resume training in January and would be eligible to play again from March.