Mexican club Leon lost its appeal against FIFA at sport’s highest court on Tuesday and will not play in the Club World Cup next month in the United States.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) said its judges rejected Leon’s attempt to overturn being removed by FIFA from the 32-team tournament for being in the same ownership group as another Club World Cup entry, Pachuca.
Why was Leon’s appeal rejected?
FIFA judges excluded Leon in March for a breach of tournament integrity rules that prohibit two or more teams being in the same ownership group.
Leon and Pachuca qualified for the Club World Cup by respectively winning the 2023 and 2024 editions of the CONCACAF championship.
Their owner, Grupo Pachuco, said it was prepared to sell one of the clubs to comply with FIFA rules but that it was not possible before the tournament started.
FIFA lawyers argued that despite the intention of Leon’s owners, they still had not been compliant with rules when signing a Club World Cup entry agreement in February.
What happened to Alajuelsense’s appeal to replace Leon in CWC?
A separate and long-shot appeal by Costa Rican club Alajuelense to replace León was incorporated into the overall case and also rejected on Tuesday, CAS said.
Which club will replace Leon at FIFA Club World Cup 2025?
The urgent ruling, one day after the appeal hearing, will let FIFA organise a playoff game — between Los Angeles FC and another Mexican team America — to complete the lineup for the tournament that starts on June 14.
Club Leon was drawn in a group to play Chelsea in Atlanta on June 16, then Esperance from Tunisia in Nashville, and Flamengo of Brazil in Orlando.
Content Source: sportstar.thehindu.com