A B C D
E F G H
FIFA outlaws recreational drugs at World Cup finals
PARIS (AP) -- Players testing positive for recreational drugs such as marijuana at the World Cup finals will be kicked out of the tournament, the secretary general of soccer's world governing body said Tuesday."You can call them recreational, but they're still drugs. And they will be banned," Sepp Blatter said at the end of a two-day workshop to prepare for the June 10-July 12 finals.
"Our players at a level as high as the World Cup finals must set an example to the youth of the world. Recreational drugs weren't banned at the 1994 finals (in the United States), but they will be now."
The FIFA decision follows the controversy surrounding Canadian snowboarder Ross Rebagliati, who was temporarily stripped of his Olympic goal medal in February when a drug test revealed traces of marijuana in his system.
An appeals panel overturned the International Olympic Committee's decision and reinstated the medal. Rebagliati said traces of the drug in his test came from inhaling second-hand smoke.
FIFA official Walter Gagg said a decision had been made during a meeting today to adopt a "much larger" list of banned substances with a view to the World Cup finals. He did not elaborate.
"The drug problem is getting much more complex from one world championship to the next," Gagg said. "Team doctors (who prescribe banned substances) are also getting much more professional."
However, he said FIFA believed the vast majority of soccer players never take drugs, and that the sport is "very clean."
"But of course there are a few exceptions," he said. "So we have to be very strict. This is an absolute must."
NEXT ROUNDS: Round of 16 || Quarter-finals || Semi-finals
GROUP A: Brazil, Morocco, Norway, Scotland
GROUP B: Austria, Cameroon, Chile, Italy
GROUP C: Denmark, France, Saudi Arabia, South Africa
GROUP D: Bulgaria, Nigeria, Paraguay, Spain
GROUP E: Belgium, Holland, Mexico, South Korea
GROUP F: Germany, Iran, United States, Yugoslavia
GROUP G: Colombia, England, Romania, Tunisia
GROUP H: Argentina, Croatia, Jamaica, Japan