Soccer-Chelsea's Mudryk appeals to CAS over four-year doping ban - reports

Having joined Chelsea in January 2023 for an initial fee of 70 million euros ($81.83 ⁠million), ​Mudryk was provisionally ⁠suspended in December 2024 and the 25-year-old has not played since. "CAS confirms it has ⁠received an appeal by Mykhailo Mudryk against the FA, filed on 25 February ​2026," it said in a statement to the BBC and the ⁠Times.

Chelsea forward Mykhailo Mudryk has approached ​the Court of Arbitration ​for Sport (CAS) to appeal against ‌a ​four-year doping ban handed to him by England's Football Association (FA), British media reported on Wednesday. The ‌Ukrainian was charged with anti-doping rule violations in June last year after a sample taken in 2024 produced an adverse finding for a prohibited substance, ‌reported to be meldonium. Mudryk had said that the adverse finding ‌came as a "complete shock" as he had never knowingly used a banned substance. Having joined Chelsea in January 2023 for an initial fee of 70 million euros ($81.83 ⁠million), ​Mudryk was provisionally ⁠suspended in December 2024 and the 25-year-old has not played since.

"CAS confirms it has ⁠received an appeal by Mykhailo Mudryk against the FA, filed on 25 February ​2026," it said in a statement to the BBC and the ⁠Times. "The parties are currently exchanging written submissions, and a hearing is yet to be ⁠scheduled."

The ​FA said it could not comment because the case is ongoing. Reuters has contacted CAS for comment. Meldonium is the same substance Maria ⁠Sharapova tested positive for, with the Russian tennis player initially being banned ⁠by the ⁠International Tennis Federation for two years before an appeal led to her suspension being reduced to 15 months.

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