The Court of Arbitration for Sport Rejects León’s Appeal to FIFA Regarding Club World Cup Entry
The Court of Arbitration for Sport has denied Mexican club León’s appeal to FIFA concerning its participation in the upcoming FIFA Club World Cup this summer.
Despite meeting the qualifications for the 32-team tournament, FIFA had removed León from the Club World Cup lineup back in March due to their ownership by Grupo Pachuca, which also owns another Liga MX club, Pachuca. FIFA regulations prohibit clubs with the same owners from competing in the prestigious tournament.
On Tuesday morning, the CAS released a statement announcing the dismissal of León’s plea to be reconsidered for the competition, which is set to kick off on June 14 in the United States.
“The CAS Panel has made a decision to dismiss the three appeals, stating that Pachuca and Club León did not meet the criteria outlined in the Regulations for the FIFA World Cup Club 2025 (Art. 10.1) regarding multiple club ownership,” the statement read.
The panel thoroughly reviewed the evidence, including the Club León trust established by the club’s owners, and concluded that the trust was not sufficient to comply with the regulations. As a result, Club León remains excluded from the tournament while Pachuca retains its qualification. A detailed CAS Award with the reasons for the decision will be released in the near future.
Furthermore, a separate appeal by LDA against Club León, Pachuca, and FIFA was also rejected by CAS. The appeal argued that the participation of both León and Pachuca in the Club World Cup violated FIFA regulations and requested the removal of one or both clubs, with LDA being admitted in their place. This appeal was heard in person in Madrid on April 23, with detailed reasons for the rejection to be provided later in the full award.
León and Pachuca earned their spots in the tournament by winning the Concacaf championships in 2023 and 2024 respectively.
Despite the ownership issue, both clubs were drawn into separate four-team groups during the draw in Miami last December. León was slated to face Chelsea, Esperance, and Flamengo in their group stage matches.
In a ruling made in March, FIFA emphasized that the ownership structure of the clubs indicated centralized decision-making under a single authority, which contradicted FIFA’s principles of competitive integrity and operational independence.
FIFA is expected to replace León with a playoff match between LAFC from MLS and América from Liga MX.
The Club World Cup will culminate at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on July 13, preceding the FIFA World Cup final which will also take place in the same venue in 2026.
The tournament will showcase teams that have won continental titles between 2020-2024 and have demonstrated consistent success during that period. Additionally, FIFA has granted entry to Lionel Messi and Inter Miami to represent the host country.