US withholds WADA dues; calls for reforms to global anti-doping watchdog

The United States has withheld a dues payment of $3.6m to the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) for not conducting an independent audit of operations, the US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) said.

The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy’s “full support” of this decision, according to USADA CEO Travis Tygart, on Wednesday, as the only way to safeguard athletes’ rights, accountability, and fair competition.

WADA said the US government owes a total of $3.625m, with WADA’s overall 2025 operating budget at $57.5m.

Following WADA’s contentious handling of positive doping tests by 23 Chinese swimmers who were later permitted to compete, the decision to hold back 2024 WADA dues is made.

The current WADA leaders, reportedly, left the US with no other choice after failing to fulfill several implausible requests, including an independent audit of WADA’s operations, to ensure that WADA is properly positioned to protect athletes, Tygart said.

Significant changes at WADA must be made to prevent this from occurring because WADA failed to uniformly enforce the international standards in place to protect the integrity of competition and athletes’ rights to fairness.

WADA confirmed the non-payment in a statement, saying that the decision would prevent US representatives from joining the organization’s executive board until 2025.

The United States government’s agreed contribution to the 2024 budget has been confirmed by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), which was 31 December 2024.

Public authority representatives from a nation that has not made their dues are exempt from sitting on the Foundation Board or the Executive Committee in accordance with Article 6. 6 of the WADA Statutes. Any Foundation Board or Executive Committee member from a nation who has not made its annual contribution for the previous year will automatically lose their seat on January 1 of each year.

The global anti-doping body’s selected investigator confirmed in July that WADA had handled the case involving the Chinese swimmers and reiterated those findings in September.

Since WADA’s founding in 2000, Tygart claimed that the US has been the top government participant in the budget since then. The US, Tygart claimed, is also aware that President Donald Trump has the authority to withhold payments from WADA in concert with the US Congress.

Following the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia’s state-sponsored doping scandal.

The Rodchenkov Anti-Doping Act, which President Trump signed into law in 2020, was passed because of WADA’s failure during this tragic saga, which saw Russia ultimately rob hundreds of athletes from the US and other countries at the highest levels of competition, according to Tygart.

That prompted legislation allowing the US government to withhold payment from WADA if, in Tygart’s words, “it did not act in a fair, effective, and transparent manner”.

Tygart claimed that US athletes’ rights to compete in international competitions will be unaffected by non-payment of dues.

According to Tygart, “The non-payment will not have an impact on the US’s current anti-doping program, and USADA will continue to vigorously implement its WADA Code program to ensure that all US Olympic and Paralympic athletes’ rights are protected.”

We need a strong, independent WADA, and we will continue to cooperate with all stakeholders to ensure that the world’s athletes’ promises of clean sport are fulfilled.

Tygart also cited significant US-related events as possible future events, including the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles and the 2026 FIFA World Cup.