Manchester City have accepted a Football Association charge of breaching anti-doping whereabouts rules.
City were charged by the FA earlier this month following an alleged third violation of rules concerning ‘club whereabouts’ in the space of 12 months.
No specifics have been released, but it is believed the charge is toward the club in general rather than on any specific individuals.
Clubs are required to keep the FA informed of the location of their players in order to facilitate drug testing.
This includes providing the times of training sessions, home addresses of players, or other addresses where the team
may stay overnight.
The rules state that a breach will occur “if the information contained in such reports is either initially inaccurate or has not been updated by the club as necessary to ensure it remains accurate”.
City are likely to be fined, as this is their THIRD infringement in the space of a year – not a good look for the Manchester club.
The FA operate on a 3-strike policy regarding these sorts of infringements.
The sanctions City will face are to be determined following a hearing in front of an independent regulatory commission, which could take place within the next fortnight.
The charge is for a breach of FA rules only and is not under the jurisdiction of the World Anti-Doping Agency or UK Anti-Doping, who do not deal with team violations.
It is unknown if City will infact release a statement or comment on the situation, but by accepting the charges it is likely this will be the last we hear of it after a fine is handed out.
The club will have to be careful in future, as anymore sorts of infringements like this could well lead to a much more severe punishment, something Pep Guardiola’s side will certainly want to avoid.
