Social drugs

The FA uses the term ‘social drug’ to refer to any illegal drug (as defined by the Misuse of Drugs Act) that may be used by a player and which may be harmful to their short or long-term health as a footballer. There are several reasons for keeping football free from social drugs:

• To prevent players from causing long or short term damage to their health through the use of illegal substances.

• To identify misuse and the causes of misuse. Evidence has shown that appropriate treatment can help players before use and/or eventual addiction begins to jeopardise their career.

• To protect the reputation and integrity of the game, for players, officials and supporters.

• Players who train under the influence of illegal drugs could potentially harm the health of other players, (e.g. through misjudged tackles).

The current FA Doping Control Regulations prohibit the use of the following social drugs in football:-

• Amphetamine
• Cannabinoids (e.g. hashish, marijuana)
• Cocaine
• Diamorphine (heroin)
• Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD)
• Methadone
• Methylamphetamine
• Methylenedioxymethylamphetamine (MDMA or ecstasy)
• Methylenedioxyethylamphetamine (MDEA)

The type of substances detected under The FA social drugs programme are regularly reviewed with assistance from the Kings College World-Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Accredited Laboratory, UKAD, and various specialist drugs groups such as Lifeline. This ensures that any new drugs entering the market and therefore potentially available to players, can be included in The FA Social Drug screen and can be detected if misused by players.

For social drugs not included in the FIFA prohibited substances list (usually social drugs detected out-of-competition), The FA impose sanctions according to Regulation 30 of The FA Doping Control Regulations.

Treatment and Rehabilitation

One of the main purposes of The FA Social Drugs programme is to keep the game free from drug misuse and to ensure that players do not jeopardise their future career through addiction to illegal substances. This may be either through the substance affecting a player’s performance at training or on the field of play, or by risking their reputation through media exposure of a drug problem or positive test. However, despite the extensive dissemination of drugs education to players by both The FA and PFA, it is inevitable that some players will still misuse illegal substances and be caught by a drug test.

For any player who incurs a positive test for a social drug, an appropriate sanction may be imposed according to The FA Doping Control Regulations in force at the time. However, in addition to sanctions, The FA also has a comprehensive system in place to help identify whether the player has an addictive problem and/or whether the player’s drug misuse is due to factors such as their lifestyle, or social circle. This enables The FA to determine whether the player needs help with addiction, or needs to make changes to their lifestyle in order to avoid the misuse of drugs in future (or both).

Once a disciplinary decision has been made, in addition to any sanctions imposed, a player may be sent to any one of a number of FA-approved specialists in drug misuse and addiction to determine whether a course of rehabilitation is appropriate. If so, the player may be required to undergo a rehabilitation programme as part of the conditions of their return to/continued participation in football. Should the player fail to complete the programme to the satisfaction of The Football Association, the sanction imposed may be reviewed and possibly extended.

The player rehabilitation programme is run in close consultation with the Professional Footballers Association, which helps to ensure that players are given the best support possible should they be found to have a serious drug problem.

Reinstatement Target Testing

In most cases, the sanction imposed on a player who has returned a positive test for a social drug will also be conditional on the player successfully completing a programme of random no-notice tests (including if the sentence is suspended). This helps The FA to measure the success of any rehabilitation programme for a player with an addictive problem, and continued target testing ensures that the player does not return to previous patterns of drug use. Also, if a player has deliberately deceived the Disciplinary Commission about their drug use to justify the imposition of a lesser sanction, continued target testing will help detect whether the player does indeed have a drug problem that was not disclosed.

Any player who tests positive as the result of a reinstatement target test will be required to return before The FA Disciplinary Commission and will be likely to face a more severe sanction or the imposition of any suspended ban.

Reporting of Results

The name of any player incurring a positive test for a performance enhancing drug must be reported by UKAD within 20 days of The FA Disciplinary Commission determining that an anti-doping rule violation has occurred. This is if the substance is included in the FIFA list of prohibited substances. If the substance detected is not included in the FIFA list (eg. a cocaine finding out-of-competition), UKAD are not required to reveal the name of the player and the decision is therefore at the discretion of The FA.

Wherever possible, The FA, PFA and UKAD will attempt to maintain confidentiality for all players who test positive for a social drug not included in the FIFA list of prohibited substances. As rehabilitation is an integral part of The FA Social Drugs Programme, it is often likely to have a negative effect on a player’s rehabilitation if the details of the positive test are made public. In many cases, players may be suffering from psychological conditions or addictive tendencies and revealing the name of the player is unlikely to assist the efforts of medical specialists, The FA and PFA in the player’s rehabilitation process.