The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) publishes the Full 2026 List of Prohibited Substances and Methods
(List), which was approved by WADA’s Executive Committee (ExCo) during its meeting on September 11th 2025 and enters into force on January 1st 2026.
WADA also publish:
The Full 2026 Summary of Major Modifications and Explanatory Notes
as compared to the 2025 List; and
the Click Here to see the Full 2026 Monitoring Program
, which includes substances that are not on the List, but that WADA wishes to monitor in order to detect potential patterns of misuse in sport.
WADA Director General Olivier Niggli said: “We encourage athletes, their entourage and all stakeholders to acquaint themselves with the Summary of Major Modifications to avoid inadvertent use of substances and methods that are prohibited in sport for 2026. In particular, we kindly ask all Anti-Doping Organizations around the world to share the List and its related documents with athletes, their entourage, and other relevant stakeholders under their jurisdiction.
Major modifications for 2026
As outlined in the Full 2026 Summary of Major Modifications and Explanatory Notes
, the major modifications for 2026 include the following:
Further examples or clarifications have been added to the following substance classes to help athletes and their entourage better identify prohibited substances:
S1. Anabolic agents,
S2. Peptide hormones, growth factors, related substances, and mimetics,
S4. Hormone and metabolic modulators, and
S6. Stimulants.
The dosing intervals of salmeterol have been changed to avoid potential ergogenic effects, though the maximum daily delivered dose remains the same.
More details have been given about the prohibition of withdrawal of blood and blood components.
The non-diagnostic use of carbon monoxide (CO) has been added to the Prohibited Methods as a new section, M1.4. The use of carbon monoxide for diagnostic purposes, such as total hemoglobin mass measurements or the determination of pulmonary diffusion capacity, is not prohibited.
Cell components (e.g., nuclei and organelles such as mitochondria and ribosomes) have been added to the existing prohibition of using normal or genetically modified cells.
It has been clarified in the Glucocorticoids Washout Table that use of sustained-release formulations may result in detectable glucocorticoid levels past the washout period due to prolonged systemic absorption.
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