Mexican soccer team Club León has officially lost its appeal against FIFA and will no longer participate in the upcoming Club World Cup in the United States. The ruling was handed down Tuesday by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), clearing the way for either Los Angeles FC or Club América to take León’s place in the 32-team tournament.
CAS announced that its panel of judges found León’s legal challenge insufficient. The club had argued that a trust structure created to separate its ownership from fellow participant Pachuca should satisfy FIFA’s regulations. However, CAS disagreed, concluding that the trust failed to meet the standards set by the governing body.
FIFA’s regulations prohibit multiple clubs with the same ownership group from competing in the same tournament to protect the integrity of the competition. This rule, already long-established in UEFA competitions, aims to prevent potential conflicts of interest. León and Pachuca are both owned by Grupo Pachuca and had each qualified for the tournament by winning the CONCACAF Champions League in 2023 and 2024, respectively.
The urgent ruling now enables FIFA to move forward with plans for a playoff match between LAFC and Club América to determine who will join the tournament lineup. The game has yet to be scheduled, but the winner will secure a place in the event and a minimum payout of $9.55 million from FIFA’s $1 billion prize pool.
Despite being aware of the ownership issue, FIFA allowed León to be part of the tournament draw held in Miami five months ago. León had been set to face Chelsea on June 16 in Atlanta, followed by matches against Esperance (Tunisia) in Nashville and Flamengo (Brazil) in Orlando.
Grupo Pachuca had expressed willingness to sell one of the clubs to comply with FIFA’s rules, but said it was unable to complete the sale in time for the tournament. After assessing the situation, FIFA’s appeal committee formally excluded León in March for non-compliance with the multi-club ownership rules.
León argued that FIFA should follow UEFA’s lead and accept the trust arrangement as a temporary solution. But FIFA lawyers countered that the ownership structure still didn’t meet the requirements when León signed the participation agreement in February.
In addition to León’s case, Costa Rican club Alajuelense filed a separate appeal to be considered as a replacement but that was also dismissed by CAS.
FIFA has stated that LAFC, as the runner-up to León in the 2023 CONCACAF Champions League, would be next in line. Club América was included based on its standing in the Club World Cup’s confederation ranking, although questions remain since FIFA typically limits each country to two entries unless it has multiple continental title winners during the qualifying period.
The contested tournament spot is highly valuable, not only for its financial reward but also for the prestige of competing in FIFA’s revamped, high-profile global club competition.
