How prevalent is doping in football?

G33

G33

Well-Known Member
With the number of matches, limited recovery time and the seemingly ever-increasing performance levels that players must attain are we, as football fans, daft to think doping isn’t currently widespread in football?

Relatively low-interest sports such as cycling typically come to mind when this subject comes up, but considering the billions of £ at stake in the highest level, I’d be shocked if there isn’t a ton of performance-enhancing drugs being taken in our sport.

It’s pretty much common knowledge now that Messi was on human growth hormone. After Klopp came in at Liverpool a large number of players started taking asthma medications. Even Guardiola, best manager in the world currently, was banned for taking anabolic steroids which no-one seems to remember (it had slipped my mind anyway). I suppose a better question might be: if doping is widespread in football, do you even care?
 
There are the obvious cases being teams using inhalers etc live Liverpool or more on the line enhancers like caffeine etc that we have used in the past.

But to be honest I look at the likes of any Pep team, Messi and Ronaldos consistency, the transformation of Bale and Lewandowski as 2 examples over the years, or Napoli this season and think there is absolutely no way they haven’t been juicing up, it’s hard to explain that level of over performance otherwise.
 
Jim Prideaux said:
Gary O’Connor tells a story about playing for Lokomotiv Moscow, they’d have a guy come in to extract their blood, then ‘clean it’ and put it back in.

Nothing dodgy about that.
Click to expand...
"Blood Spinning" is fairly common.

Only really came out in the UK after Spurs done it to Bale to get him back to play City in the league 10 years or so ago.

Still used frequently across sport.
 
EverGer said:
Nobody believed cause he’s a lunatic but there is no way he’s smart enough to make that up.
Click to expand...
Nobody needed to doubt him because of how common it is.

Have a read into any doping scandal within cycling and you'll realise it's just part of life for them.

Albeit cycling is an extreme example, it's still happening in football to increase the red blood cell count.
 
In 2013 a Spanish judge ordered the destruction of around 200 blood samples taken from elite athletes that included cyclists, footballers, tennis players etc. His action seriously undermined an investigation into widespread “doping” and called into question the credibility of anyone connected to the facilitator Dr Fuentes.
So it’s probably possible that it’s been going on for some time.
 
Don Vito said:
In 2013 a Spanish judge ordered the destruction of around 200 blood samples taken from elite athletes that included cyclists, footballers, tennis players etc. His action seriously undermined an investigation into widespread “doping” and called into question the credibility of anyone connected to the facilitator Dr Fuentes.
So it’s probably possible that it’s been going on for some time.
Click to expand...

Fuentes and his 'treatments' were rife in the doping of cyclists IIRC, and he was also working with many footballers during the 2000s.
 
In my personal opinion, I do think "performance enhancement" goes on, especially in the EPL.

Players are bigger, quicker, stronger and fitter (for 2 x 45 mins of work) than ever.

By the way, there's absolutely nothing wrong with using "everyday" substances such as caffeine, which we do regularly by all accounts. Coffee is a powerful training stimulant, and one I would recommend to anyone training regularly, especially pre-workout, and even all the way through workouts. In addition, there is a long list of other completely legal performance enhancing supplements that I would be disspointed if our club and players were not utilising.
 
Last edited:
ABlueDay said:
Did Messi not take HGH due to a health problem he had a child?
Click to expand...

Yes as I understand it that's the official story. But I think it's harder for me to believe that they used it for him as some sort of one-off case - if clubs/doctors can get away with it, why not use it (or whatever alternative treatment) on as many players as possible to improve the overall team performance?
 
mcbeath1872 said:
In my personal opinion, I do think "performance enhancement" goes on, especially in the EPL.

Players are bigger, quicker, stronger and fitter (for 2x 45 mins of work) than ever.
Click to expand...
IIRC, you've posted on a few threads in the past saying you use/have used steriods in the past?

Where does the "quicker" come from when it included "stronger and bigger" at the same time? Running 2 cycles at the same time or taking them to the end of one very quickly and starting another straight after?

Find it interesting as the amount of screening that's done for heart conditions now and how little any damage is noticed, when majority of studies show low level use does contribute to cardiovascular risk.
 
Unknown Pleasures said:
IIRC, you've posted on a few threads in the past saying you use/have used steriods in the past?

Where does the "quicker" come from when it included "stronger and bigger" at the same time? Running 2 cycles at the same time or taking them to the end of one very quickly and starting another straight after?

Find it interesting as the amount of screening that's done for heart conditions now and how little any damage is noticed, when majority of studies show low level use does contribute to cardiovascular risk.
Click to expand...

Hey there mate.

Sadly, I think you have mistaken me with another poster on this one my friend!

That said, there are a number of posters on FF who have dabbled with "performance enhancers" of various sorts, and I'm hopeful they will weigh-in on this thread soon.

Out of interest though, as a recreational trainee I'm personally not against experimenting with so-called "performance enhancers" (performance enhancing drugs, to put it plainly) in the future, perhaps when my income and education-level would support that. I've mixed with a fair amount of people who have done this, and assuming you have all the other elements of lifestyle, nutrition and training "dialled in", the advantages over a "natural" person are pretty stark.
 
Jim Prideaux said:
Gary O’Connor tells a story about playing for Lokomotiv Moscow, they’d have a guy come in to extract their blood, then ‘clean it’ and put it back in.

Nothing dodgy about that.
Click to expand...
Sounds look plain old blood doping.

Take a bag of your own blood, then add it back in when your body has recovered to your original blood levels. You increase your red blood cell count dramatically increasing your cardio. Basically what EPO does.
 
Jim Prideaux said:
Gary O’Connor tells a story about playing for Lokomotiv Moscow, they’d have a guy come in to extract their blood, then ‘clean it’ and put it back in.

Nothing dodgy about that.
Click to expand...
Juve in the 1990s working with the same guy that was juicing all the cyclists. Same deal as note above.
 
Unknown Pleasures said:
IIRC, you've posted on a few threads in the past saying you use/have used steriods in the past?

Where does the "quicker" come from when it included "stronger and bigger" at the same time? Running 2 cycles at the same time or taking them to the end of one very quickly and starting another straight after?

Find it interesting as the amount of screening that's done for heart conditions now and how little any damage is noticed, when majority of studies show low level use does contribute to cardiovascular risk.
Click to expand...
The three could absolutely be achieved simultaneously. I assume by quickness you mean straight up sprint speed, which is a result of fast twitch muscles fibre.

It would be harder to get stronger and bigger whilst increasing endurance, but there is definitely cycles out there that could achieve it. Especially with SARMs and things like Cardarine and ITPP.
 
G33 said:
Yes as I understand it that's the official story. But I think it's harder for me to believe that they used it for him as some sort of one-off case - if clubs/doctors can get away with it, why not use it (or whatever alternative treatment) on as many players as possible to improve the overall team performance?
Click to expand...
Yes that’s right - if they think they can get away with it of course they will try it - especially to keep their prize asset on peak performance

With that in mind then I wonder how many older players are taking testosterone under the guise of TRT treatment
 
Probably lots of new, as yet undetectable, SARMS and Peptides and shit taken around the top leagues as a matter of course. No steroids or test' though, as every player I see has arms like knitting needles.
 
Goes on all the time IMO.

I get the argument that no drug can make you better at taking a corner but with the athletic aspect of football today you would expect players to be getting popped for PEDs regularly.
 
It's rife in pretty much every sport these days. Out with football, in sports such as cycling or anything endurance based, we know they are a lot of doped athletes. Doping these days is so effective that it's reasonable to assume that people who come out and obliterate known dopers must be doping themselves, there's simply no way they could win otherwise.

Football obviously is a bit different from a pure endurance based sport because there is a huge skill based element to it as well. However, the physical demands of the modern game and the tempo and intensity modern managers and teams want to play, we are seeing a similar race to the bottom (or the top, depending on your perspective) that we do with purely endurance based sports. That is, teams have an advantage being able to play with higher energy and intensity levels, teams that are doping will obviously rise to the top, the only way for others to catch them is to dope themselves and so the cycle continues.

If it's not happening yet it will in the future. My own opinion, (with absolutely zero proof admittedly) is it already is happening. You see players putting in super human efforts 2-3 times a week for a 60 game season, it certainly arouses suspicion, not only how they are physically able to do it in the first place, but how they are able.to recover so fast which is another main benefit of using certain substances.

I'm sure there are already teams out there doped to the gills. If they were the only ones, it would be be obvious and stand out like a sore thumb.

Another factor to consider is injury recovery. If you suffer a bad injury, especially early in your career, and your entire future earning potential is in jeopardy, I bet most people would consider doing whatever they had to do to ensure they recover in the best way possible.

Personally, it doesn't upset me. I think if everyone is doing it, it's still a level playing field and football is so skill dependent the best team will still come out on top. Same time, if a player takes the chance and gets caught, well they know the risks, that's on them.
 
For a sport like football and the money involved I'd hazard a guess it's rife, with testing being pretty much non existent.

How many players have been done, even just in Scotland.

Jordan McMillan? And even the story behind that is dodgy and probably has a lot to do with the company he keeps.

I mean back in the 70's George Best was legendary for going on 3 and 4 day benders. Now I'm no toxicology expert, but what I do know is if you're drinking heavily, you can't stay up for days without a little white powder pick me up. Its the elephant in the room.

Outside football. Michael Jordan, Dennis Rodman, Alan Iversen, notorious for their week-long parties. Without a doubt fuelled by the finest Peruvian money can buy.

UFC. Check the amount if guys who were elite level. USADA was introduced and they miraculously fell off a cliff.
6,7,8 fight win streaks. Then lucky to win 1 in 5 after USADA.

I've no doubt football is rife with it.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.

Share this page

Latest posts

Back
Top