Zlatan Ibrahimovic Wins Slander Case Over Alleged Doping Accusation

Sweden’s former national athletics coach Ulf Karlsson has been found guilty of slander against Manchester United striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

Karlsson was taken to court over comments he made at a public debate on doping in April 2016, where he made reference to Ibrahimovic “putting on 10 kilos (22 pounds) of muscle mass … in one year”.

He pleaded innocent to slander, but a court in Karlstad found in favour of Ibrahimovic, ruling that the remarks had been damaging to the player’s reputation.

The accusations related to the time the 35-year-old, who joined United last summer, was playing for Juventus between 2004 and 2006.

Karlsson was ordered to pay a fine of 24,000 kronor (£2,175).

The court’s verdict read: “Even if his remarks do not contain a direct accusation that Zlatan Ibrahimovic had taken steroids, the court finds that these remarks, given the context in which they were made, can not be taken any other way than to give the impression that Zlatan Ibrahimovic would have taken steroids during his time at Juventus.”

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