A list of dozens of Italian footballers who have been using banned substances was handed over by a state prosecutor to national sports chief Gianni Petrucci yesterday.

Turin judge Raffaele Guarinello, who has been leading a doping enquiry since last August, when former AS Roma coach Zdenek Zeman first voiced fears of a drugs phenomenon in Italian soccer, handed over his list during a 90-minute meeting between the two men.

Guarinello's list features players from all levels of professional football in Italy - the Serie A, B and C - and covers the past three or four seasons. All those on the list are believed to have abused certain medicines, in breach of restrictions.

In a review of dope test failures, Guarinello found on almost every occasion that a player selected for a dope test would state, at the moment of taking the test, that he had been prescribed medicine for therapeutic reasons.

This explanation would then satisfy laboratory officials, who would subsequently shelve the test results. The likelihood now is that the National Olympic Committee will launch an internal enquiry of its own.