Yeray Álvarez suspended 10 months for canrenone positive

Athletic Club defender Yeray Álvarez has been suspended for 10 months after testing positive for a banned substance in a UEFA-authorised doping control following Athletic Bilbao's 3-0 home defeat by Manchester United on May 1. UEFA said the 30-year-old centreback's sample contained canrenone, a substance listed under S5 Diuretics and Masking Agents on the World Anti-Doping Agency prohibited list. The sanction runs from the date Álvarez accepted a provisional suspension on June 2 and bars him from competition until April 2, 2026, although UEFA rules permit him to return to training and club facilities from February 2, 2026.

UEFA's disciplinary body concluded at a meeting on August 19 that Álvarez committed a non-intentional anti-doping rule violation. The governing body said two UEFA Ethics and Disciplinary Inspectors investigated the case after disciplinary proceedings were opened on June 10. UEFA added that, under anti-doping regulations, athletes are ultimately responsible for substances they ingest, even when no intent to enhance performance is established.

Álvarez has maintained that he did not take a performance-enhancing drug deliberately. In July he said on social media...