Fresh from dismantling Rivers United 3–0 in their CAF Champions League opener last weekend, Egyptian champions Pyramids FC have been hit by a major setback as their influential winger Ramadan Sobhi has been slammed with a four-year ban by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) over an anti-doping violation.
The Egyptian Anti-Doping Organisation confirmed on Wednesday that the 28-year-old, who played a crucial role in Pyramids’ first-ever CAF Champions League title last season, has been sanctioned after CAS upheld an appeal by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).
“We have received an official letter confirming Ramadan Sobhi’s four-year suspension in a doping case,” said Hazem Khamis, head of the Egyptian Anti-Doping Organisation.
According to the body, the punishment stems from doping allegations and suspected sample tampering, an issue Khamis described as “unprecedented in Egypt.”
Sobhi, a former English Premier League player with Stoke City and Huddersfield Town and capped 37 times by Egypt, has not publicly commented.
His lawyer told local media that an appeal to the Swiss Federal Court is being prepared in a final bid to overturn the ruling.
The suspension is a major blow for Pyramids, who had relied heavily on Sobhi during last season’s continental run and expected him to play a key role again this campaign.
Second Legal Battle: Academic Fraud Case Deepens Woes
Compounding the club’s troubles, Sobhi, according to an Egyptian publication, Kingfut, also remains in custody over a separate academic fraud and forgery case, with a Giza criminal court ruling that he be detained until at least December 30.
The forward is accused—alongside three others—of forging exam documents, falsifying attendance records, and paying a proxy to sit examinations on his behalf at a tourism and hotels institute.
Though Sobhi has denied all wrongdoing, the allegations have dragged him into one of the most high-profile academic fraud cases in recent Egyptian sports history.
He was initially granted bail after paying LE100,000 but was later arrested at Cairo International Airport upon his return from Istanbul when an earlier in absentia ruling triggered a warrant for his detention.
Pyramids Yet to Respond
Pyramids FC, who are already dealing with injuries to key players, have not released any official statement on either the doping sanction or the academic fraud case.
The timing is particularly damaging, coming just days after their convincing victory over Rivers United in Cairo as they began their CAF Champions League title defence.
With Sobhi now facing a four-year absence from football and a looming court trial, Pyramids’ early-season momentum has been overshadowed by the uncertain future of one of their most influential players.
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