Real Madrid has denied that Sergio Ramos failed a drug test after the 2017 Champions League final.
A report in German publication Der Spiegel – released as part of their Football Leaks series claimed Ramos failed to declare he had taken dexamethasone ahead of the Cardiff final, in which Real beat Juventus 4-1. However, Real released a statement on Friday, in which they denied the claims. The statement read: 
“In relation to the information published by Der Spiegel referring to our captain Sergio Ramos, the club states the following:
1. Sergio Ramos has never breached the anti-doping control regulations.
2. UEFA requested timely information and closed the matter immediately, as is usual in these cases, after verification by the experts themselves of the World Anti-Doping Agency, AMA, and of UEFA itself.
3. Regarding the rest of the content of the aforementioned publication, the club does not pronounce itself before the evidence of its insubstantial nature.”Dexamethasone is a glucocorticoid on the banned list of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). The substance can have anti-inflammatory effects and increase concentration. WADA does not prohibit players from taking dexamethasone before games, as long as it is declared during a doping test.
Der Spiegel claims Ramos and the Real Madrid team doctor instead registered betamethasone, another glucocorticoid on WADA´s banned list. However, the German magazine also reports that UEFA was satisfied the mistake was an administrative error and took no disciplinary action.
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