FOOTBALL –FIFA CLUB WORLD CUP 2025
THE COURT OF ARBITRATION FOR SPORT REJECTS APPEALS BY CLUB LEÓN, PACHUCA AND ALAJUELENSE
Lausanne, 6 May 2025 – The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has rejected the appeals filed by Club León, Club de Fútbol Pachuca (Pachuca) and Asociación Liga Deportiva Alajuelense (LDA) against FIFA decisions in relation to the FIFA Club World Cup 2025.
The FIFA Appeal Committee decided in March 2025 that Pachuca and Club León breached the Regulations for the FIFA World Cup Club 2025 (Art. 10.1) concerning multiple club ownership. Due to this breach, the FIFA Secretary General decided to remove Club León from the competition. Pachuca and Club León filed appeals seeking to annul the decision by the FIFA Appeal Committee and declare that the clubs comply with the Club World Cup eligibility requirements. Club León filed an additional appeal against the decision by the FIFA Secretary General to be reinstated in the competition.
All appeals were consolidated into a single CAS case which was heard at CAS headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland, on 5 May 2025. The President of the CAS Panel for this case was Prof. Roberto Moreno (Paraguay), with Prof. Massimo Coccia (Italy) and Dr. Daniel Cravo Souza (Brazil) as co-arbitrators.
The CAS Panel has issued an Operative Decision dismissing the three appeals and ruled that Pachuca and Club León failed to meet the criteria in the Regulations for the FIFA World Cup Club 2025 (Art. 10.1) concerning multiple club ownership. The Panel examined the evidence, including the Club León trust set up by the owners of the club, and concluded that this trust was insufficient to comply with the Regulations. Consequently, Club León remains excluded from the competition and Pachuca remains qualified. A full CAS Award with reasons for the Decision will be issued in due course.
A separate appeal by LDA against Club León, Pachuca and FIFA, filed on 3 February 2025, requested that Club León and Pachuca’s participation in the Club World Cup was contrary to FIFA regulations and that one of the clubs, or both, should be removed. The appeal also requested that LDA should be admitted to the competition in place of a removed team. This case was heard by CAS in person in Madrid on 23 April 2025 and was also rejected today, with reasons to follow later in the full award. The President of the CAS Panel for this case was Prof. Roberto Moreno (Paraguay), with Mr David Arias (Spain) and Mr Juan Pablo Arriagada (Chile) as co-arbitrators.
As a result of the CAS ruling, FIFA is responsible for designating the final qualified team to participate in the Club World Cup 2025. This document is an unofficial summary for media purposes.
For further information related to the CAS activity and procedures in general, please contact either Matthieu Reeb, CAS Director General, or Vanessa Tracey, Communications Officer. Palais de Beaulieu, av. Bergières 10, 1004 Lausanne, Switzerland.
