Almost all sports have doping problems, but many believe that football is a clean sport. Former FIFA president Sepp Blatter even once said that there is no benefit when using doping to improve the performance of football players, because what football players need is quality of play and skills, such as strength, endurance, speed, intelligence, tactical understanding and ball control. But is it true that football is free of doping?
In the past, football was actually just like any other sport. The doping used is no different from the doping used by athletes in other sports. The difference in football is that many doping cases seem to be ignored. Some cases of doping use in football in the past include:
1. Vitamin Germany 1954
In the 1954 World Cup, Hungary won thanks to the great action of its legendary Ferenc Puskas. Hungary managed to beat West Germany 8-3 in the group stage. The two teams then met again in the final round and West Germany surprisingly managed to win 3-2.
After the final, it was indicated that some West German players had consumed Pervitin before the match. Pervitin is a drug used by German soldiers to suppress fear during World War II.
2. Herrera Pils 1960
Inter Milan were fantastic in the 1960s. Under Helenio Herrera, the team won 2 European Champions Cups and was runner-up once. Ferruccio Mazzola, an Inter player at the time, wrote in his autobiography that Herrera used to give each player a pill to put under the tongue before a match.
The said pill is a stimulant that works to increase the heart rate.
3. “Chocolate Sprinkling” Ajax 1967
Ajax could be one of the greatest teams of all time under Johan Cruyff. The team won the European Champions Cup 3 times in a row in 1971, 1972 and 1973. But this team is not without a black record.
Barry Hulshoff, an Ajax defender at the time, said in an interview that each player was given daca tablets and capsules. Chocolate sprinkles By the Ajax team of doctors. After drinking it he felt very energetic but his saliva was dry.
4. Beckenbauer Blood 1977
German legend, Franz Beckenbauer also turned out to have a black record. In an interview given to the magazine Stern, Beckenbauer says how to have a prime body. Beckenbauer described that he often drew blood from his arm and re-injected it into the hip area before matches.
What Beckenbauer did was actually a blood doping activity commonly done by marathon runners and cyclists.
5. Zico Injection 1987
Brazilian legend Zico was also not free from doping. Zico himself admits that when he was 16-17 years old, he received injections 2-3 times a month. Zico explained that the injection was given to him during training to strengthen him.
After taking the injection, Ziko’s muscle mass increased dramatically. From Zico’s explanation, it was suspected that there was an injection Anabolic steroidsA hormone that works to increase muscle mass.
6. Ephedrine Maradona 1994
This fact is already known to many. It was then that football began to seriously address the doping problem. Maradona’s impulsive actions during the 1994 World Cup led to suspicion of doping.
After testing, Maradona tested positive for ingestion Ephedrine, Norephedrine, Pseudoephedrine, Norpseudoephedrine, And Metephedrine. These substances are a type of stimulant that gives a person extra energy which makes him very excited.
Of the six doping activities, only Maradona was then suspended for 15 months and fined the equivalent of £10,000, while the others received no ban.
In fact, since the confederation competition was held in the 1955–1956 season, UEFA developed anti-doping rules, but at that time it was only enforced in final matches and only when necessary. In the 1987–1988 season, anti-doping rules became mandatory and systematic at all levels of tournaments, even without prior notification to teams at club and international levels.
FIFA passed the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Code ahead of the 2006 World Cup Football became the last Olympic sport to adopt anti-doping rules FIFA imposes a minimum two-year ban on players who have used doping for the first time, although there are exceptions. If a player is accused of doping, if he can prove that the substance used was not intended to enhance performance, the punishment can be a warning for the first offence, then a two-year ban and a lifetime ban for the second offence. Prohibition for subsequent offences.
Unlike other sports that focus on the athletes’ physical abilities, such as cycling, weightlifting or athletics, the incidence of doping in football appears to be low due to a lack of evidence to the contrary. Football associations and anti-doping organizations should be able to cooperate more and conduct more investigations into the prohibition of substances used for doping. Improve global identification and data collection systems so that Football players are completely free from substance abuse to enhance their performance.