FIFA plans playoff game for final Club World Cup spot after Mexican club León was expelled

GENEVA (AP) — The final entry for this summer’s Club World Cup in the United States could be decided in a playoff game between Los Angeles FC and Mexican team América, depending on the outcome of a legal case involving a team that was kicked out of the tournament.

Mexican club León was expelled by FIFA this month for breaching tournament rules as it has the same owner of another team taking part — Pachua — leaving one slot open at the 32-team event.

FIFA said late Sunday that it has drawn up plans for a playoff game between LAFC and América to fill that place but is awaiting the outcome of at least one legal case at the Court of Arbitration for Sport before confirming it will take place.

FIFA said LAFC would be in the playoff because it finished as runner-up to León in the 2023 CONCACAF Champions League, while América is the next-best ranked team in the FIFA Club World Cup confederation ranking.

It was unclear why América — one of Mexico’s best-supported teams — is eligible to be included when FIFA rules cap each country at two entries unless it has more than two winners of a continental championship in the qualifying period.

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“The winner of the playoff would qualify unless legal proceedings rule otherwise,” FIFA said in a statement.

Those legal proceedings include León preparing an appeal at CAS against the FIFA expulsion order, plus a separate case brought by Costa Rican club Alajuelense which believes it has a claim on qualifying instead.

The entry being fought over by lawyers is worth an initial $9.55 million payment from FIFA plus a share of the $1 billion in total prize money depending on results in the group stage and knockout rounds. The winner of the tournament is expected to earn up to $125 million.

Sports’ highest court said Monday it will hold a hearing April 23 in Madrid in the case that has been brought by Alajuelense.

In the expected second case, CAS said it had not yet received a formal appeal from León.

The opening game at the Club World Cup between Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami and Al Ahly of Egypt will be played June 15 and León had been scheduled to play the following day.

The primary path for teams worldwide to qualify for the first edition of FIFA’s relaunched and expanded club tournament was to win a continental title from 2021 through 2024. Qualified teams include Real Madrid, Manchester City, and Seattle Sounders.

The rules regarding multi-club ownership were in place last June when Pachuca won the CONCACAF Champions Cup, one year after León won the previous edition. Both are owned by Grupo Pachuca, whose owner said in December that León was put up for sale to comply with FIFA rules.

Though teams from the same country cannot be drawn together in the same Club World Cup group, they could meet in a knockout rounds game.

FIFA drafted tournament regulations in October — including “Article 10: Multi-Club Ownership” — but let León and Pachuca both enter the draw on Dec. 5, where Ivanka Trump and her son Theodore helped start the ceremony in Miami. The golden Club World Cup trophy has been sitting in the Oval Office with U.S. President Donald Trump.

León was scheduled to play Chelsea, then Esperance from Tunisia in Nashville and Flamengo of Brazil in Orlando.

Fans were able to buy tickets, and make travel and hotel plans, for more than three months before FIFA announced its appeal judges’ decision that León was out.

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