Football · Bolivia · FIFA Disciplinary Committee

Boris Cespedes: doping case, ban and appeal

Ban ended CAS did not publish an end date. The end date is calculated from the published 15 month length and the credit from 14 May 2025, which gives mid August 2026, and Blick reported on 16 June 2026 that the suspension ends on 14 August 2026.^1,3

Violation

Presence of a prohibited substance: acetazolamide (S5, diuretics and masking agents, a specified substance), after an in competition test at Bolivia v Uruguay, a FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifier, on 25 March 2025^1,2

Results disqualified

Not stated in the CAS release

Appeals

• CAS, 8 June 2026: ReducedThe sole arbitrator found the player "narrowly established" that the substance more likely than not came from altitude sickness medication prescribed by Bolivian federation medical staff. Fault was classed as normal, with a range of 12 to 24 months, and the ban was reduced to 15 months with credit for the provisional suspension from 14 May 2025.¹

Athlete's response

He told Blick after the CAS ruling, in French, "C'est un soulagement" ("It is a relief") and said he wanted to find a club.

Sources

1. Court of Arbitration for Sport, CAS partially amends sanction for player Boris Cespedes, CAS media release 11815 (8 June 2026)
2. Reuters (via The Star, Malaysia), Soccer-CAS reduces Bolivia midfielder Cespedes' doping ban to 15 months (9 June 2026)
3. Blick, Un poids qui s'enleve, le TAS a tranche, Boris Cespedes peut de nouveau s'entrainer et chercher un club (16 June 2026)