Anti-Doping

Welcome to the Chris Farnell Lawyer blog. Following the approval of the new World Anti-Doping Authority Code (“WADA Code”) in November 2019, FIFA has revised the FIFA Anti-Doping Regulations.FIFA has published the final version of its Anti-Doping Rules (“ADR”) which comes into force on 1 January 2021. This announcement follows the consultation and approval of the new World Anti-Doping Code (“Code”) by the World Anti-Doping Agency (“WADA”) which took place in November 2019. It incorporated further measures in an attempt to ‘address the challenges in the fight against doping in football worldwide’ which will no doubt be well received by member association countries and stakeholders across the world.  

Key changes are: A player will now be considered to be “in-competition” from 23:59 on the day before a match in which the player is scheduled to participate through to the end of that match (including the sample collection process relating to the match).

The FIFA ADR introduces the concept of “protected persons” (players or other persons who are minors and/or who do not have any experience of international competitions) and “recreational players” (players who have not played at the international or national level for the last five years).

Players or other persons confronted with a potential anti-doping rule violation shall be guaranteed the right to a fair hearing before an impartial and independent hearing panel.

Failure by players, player support personnel, or other persons to cooperate during FIFA’s investigation of an anti-doping rule violation or offensive conduct towards FIFA Doping Control Officers during a doping control will be punished according to the FIFA Disciplinary Code.

Substances of abuse are prohibited substances that are abused in society outside the context of sport. If a player is found to have taken such a substance, they will be banned from playing for three months

To assist with the implementation and harmonisation, FIFA has confirmed it shall arrange a series of webinars with member associations to identify and highlight the key changes. 

In summary, these are welcome and necessary changes to the ADR. They take account of the changing landscape of doping in sport and signal a move away from a one-size-fits-all approach. 

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