Chelsea rocked as FIFA expel team from Club World Cup

Cameron Smith

21 Mar 2025 16:25 GMT
3 min read

Chelsea have been informed of a huge fixture change following news that Mexican side Club Leon have been kicked out of the 2025 Club World Cup.

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Enzo Maresca’s side were due to face Leon in their opening match of the new tournament, but they will now play a different team following an official statement from FIFA.

Leon have been banned from competing at this summer’s Club World Cup after failing to meet FIFA’s multi-club ownership rules, with their owners - Grupo Pachuca - also in charge of fellow Liga MX outfit CF Pachuca.

As Pachuca also qualified for the Club World Cup, FIFA have now decided to ban Leon from the tournament.

An official statement from FIFA read: “Following disciplinary proceedings opened against CF Pachuca and Club Leon, the chairman of the Fifa Disciplinary Committee decided to refer the case directly to the Fifa Appeal Committee in accordance with article 56 paragraph 3 of the Fifa Disciplinary Code.

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“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 defined under article 10 paragraph 1 of the regulations for the Fifa Club World Cup 2025.

“In line with article 10 paragraph 4 of the regulations for the Fifa Club World Cup 2025, 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.”

© IMAGO - James Rodriguez joined Club Leon in January

Club Leon respond after FIFA Club World Cup banishment

FIFA are yet to confirm which club will replace Leon at the tournament, but they may be forced to finalise their decision soon as the opening fixture of the Club World Cup is scheduled to take place on 14 June.

Following FIFA’s statement, Club Leon issued an immediate response that read: “Club Leon expresses its disagreement with the decision made by Fifa, which could exclude us from the next Club World Cup.

“The decision as to which team will not attend the tournament is the responsibility of the organisation's Secretary General, who will notify us in the coming days.

“In recent months, we have presented each piece of evidence and documents confirming that Club Leon operates autonomously in all economic, administrative, and sporting aspects.

“Should Club Leon be prevented from participating in the 2025 Club World Cup with the same rights with which it earned a place on the pitch, we will pursue the matter to the fullest extent possible in the highest sporting courts.”