On 20 December 2017, the FIFA Appeal Committee decided to partially uphold the appeal lodged by the Peruvian international player Paolo Guerrero. The decision rendered by the FIFA Disciplinary Committee on 7 December suspending the player for one year was therefore partially set aside and the initial period of ineligibility of one year imposed against the player has been reduced to six months.

The FIFA Appeal Committee after taking into account all the circumstances of the case, in particular the degree of fault of the player, considered a six-month period of ineligibility to be a proportionate sanction.

The player tested positive for the metabolite benzoylecgonine, a substance included in WADA’s 2017 Prohibited List under the class “S6. Stimulants”, following a doping control test conducted after the match of the preliminary competition of the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™ played in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on 5 October 2017.

By testing positive for a prohibited substance, the player has violated article 6 of the FIFA Anti-Doping Regulations and, as such, contravened article 63 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code.

The suspension period starts on 3 November 2017, the date on which the player was provisionally suspended by the chairman of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee. In line with article 29 of the FIFA Anti-Doping Regulations, the suspension covers, inter alia, all types of matches, including domestic, international, friendly and official fixtures. The terms of the decision were duly notified today.