May 6 – Liga MX powerhouse León will learn their FIFA Club World Cup fate this week as the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) delivers its verdict on their desperate appeal against FIFA’s controversial expulsion from the tournament.
The eight-time Mexican champions find themselves in a legal tussle with football’s governing body over shared ownership structures – with one of their biggest traditional rivals, Pachuca.
FIFA ejected León from the competition claiming the club’s common ownership with Pachuca violates tournament integrity rules, which prohibit participating clubs from having ownership ties to other competitors.
Despite this unresolved ownership question, both clubs were initially drawn into separate four-team groups at December’s draw, with León slated to face European giants Chelsea FC, Tunisia’s Espérance Sportive de Tunis, and Brazilian heavyweights Flamengo.
FIFA judges formalised León’s exclusion in March, declaring that the clubs’ ownership “clearly indicates centralised decision-making under a single authority, which is inconsistent with FIFA’s principles of competitive integrity and operational independence.”
The stakes couldn’t be higher for the Guanajuato-based club. With $9.55 million guaranteed to participants, plus potential shares of the tournament’s eye-watering $1 billion prize pool based on results, León argues they’ve rightfully earned their place in the expanded 32-team competition as winners of the 2023 CONCACAF Champions League.
Should León’s appeal fail, FIFA will swiftly arrange a one-game playoff between MLS side Los Angeles FC and Liga MX giants Club América to determine the final participant before the tournament kicks off on June 14.
For a club with León’s proud international history – they famously represented Mexico at the 1970 Copa Libertadores as the first club from the country to compete in South America’s premier club competition – this legal fight represents more than money; it’s about their rightful place on the global stage.
Contact the writer of this story, Nick Webster, at moc.l1746535788labto1746535788ofdlr1746535788owedi1746535788sni@r1746535788etsbe1746535788w.kci1746535788n1746535788