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Players participating in the upcoming season's main UEFA Champions League tournament will now be able to be tested for illegal substances not only after matches, but at any time, UEFA announced on Wednesday.
More than 950 players from 32 teams, which will participate in the Champions League group stage, may be randomly tested. Until now, UEFA could only take blood samples after matches.
Now, players participating in the Champions League tournament can be tested for blood and urine samples at any time.
These rules, coming into effect from July 1, are a kind of response to the World Anti-Doping Agency's statement, accusing FIFA of being lenient towards footballers using doping.
WADA proposes strict two-year disqualification penalties for doping users, but FIFA often applies much lighter penalties.
