On Friday, world soccer’s governing body announced that Club Leon and CF Pachuca will be eliminated from the Club World Cup in the US later this year for failing to meet multi-club ownership requirements.
Grupo Pachuca owns Leon and Pachuca. Leon qualified after winning the 2023 Concacaf Champions Cup, whereas Pachuca won last year. In November, Liga Deportiva Alajuelense filed a protest with FIFA based on the competition’s “eligibility principles” to play in the Club World Cup.
FIFA started disciplinary proceedings against both Mexican clubs, and the Disciplinary Committee chairman submitted the issue to the Appeal Committee.
“After having evaluated all evidence on file, the chairman of the FIFA Appeal Committee has decided that CF Pachuca and Club Leon failed to meet the criteria on multi-club ownership,” FIFA announced in a tweet.
“…FIFA has determined that Club Leon will be removed from the competition, with the club to be admitted as a replacement to be announced in due course.”
FIFA did not specify the multi-club ownership condition the Mexican clubs failed. Many of the competition’s ownership rules prohibit clubs from managing, administering, or playing for other clubs or holding interests or stocks in them.
Alajuelense, 30-time Costa Rican first division champions and 2023 Central American Cup winners, wanted to play instead.
Last month, the Costa Rican club stated they had gone to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) after FIFA failed to act on their complaint, asking a verdict a month before the event.
In the first edition of the expanded 32-team competition, FIFA promises $1 billion in prize money. Pachuca’s participation in the June 14-July 13 competition was unaffected, and the club maintained they were unaware of the decision.
Leon indicated they will dispute FIFA’s decision in the highest courts if they weren’t invited to the Club World Cup.
“In the last few months we have presented all the evidence and documents confirming that Club Leon manages itself in an autonomous manner in all economic, administrative and sporting aspects,” stated.
Leon were in Group D with Chelsea, Flamengo, and Esperance. Their opener was against Chelsea in Atlanta on June 16.