Paul Pogba to return in March after doping ban reduction

Juventus midfielder’s four-year ban for testing positive for testosterone has been reduced to 18 months

Paul Pogba is free to return to football in March after his four-year ban for doping was reduced to 18 months.
The Juventus midfielder tested positive for testosterone in August last year and was handed the maximum punishment by Italy’s anti-doping court.
Pogba appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport and it confirmed his ban was reduced, though did not elaborate on the decision.
The former Manchester United midfielder did not immediately comment but made a cryptic post on his Instagram feed of an image – presumably of him – wearing a pair of boots and socks with the initials “PP”.
Pogba then released a statement and said: “Finally, the nightmare is over. I can look forward to the day when I can follow my dreams again.
“I always stated that I never knowingly breached Anti-Doping regulations, I play with integrity and I want to thank the Court of Arbitration who heard my explanation.
“This has been a hugely distressing period in my life because everything I’ve worked so hard has been put on hold. Thank you for all the love and support.
“I can’t wait to get back on the pitch!”
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At the time, Pogba said “the verdict is incorrect” and appealed to the Switzerland-based CAS.
“I am sad, shocked and heartbroken that everything I have built in my professional playing career has been taken away from me,” he said.
Four-year bans are standard under the world anti-doping code but can be reduced in cases where an athlete can prove their doping was not intentional, if the positive test was a result of contamination or if they provide “substantial assistance” to help investigators.
Pogba, 31, was the most expensive player in history when he joined Manchester United from Juventus for a fee of £89 million in 2016.
He starred in France’s World Cup triumph in 2018 and returned to Juventus as a free agent in 2022. But injuries limited him to just eight Serie A appearances in his second spell at the club before his ban.
Pogba was suspended after the positive test was announced in September last year.
Meanwhile, Pogba’s brother will stand trial with five other men as part of an extortion case that targeted the player two years ago, the Paris prosecutor’s office has said.
A judge ordered the six men to appear before a court following an investigation into whether Pogba was the target of extortion by his brother, Mathias Pogba, and childhood friends, the office said.
The prosecutor’s office said Mathias Pogba was ordered to stand trial “for the offenses of attempted extortion and criminal conspiracy.” The court date has not been announced.
The five others – identified by their first names only – allegedly demanded €13 million from the France midfielder, and repeatedly intimidated him, claiming he didn’t support them after he became an international footballer. They are accused of extortion and attempted extortion by using violence, abduction and confinement to facilitate a crime or misdemeanor, as well as criminal conspiracy.