FIFA Club World Cup position hangs in the balance for León | OneFootball

León's place at the FIFA Club World Cup is in jeopardy, with the competition set to begin on June 14, 2025.

Joining Monterrey and Pachuca to represent Mexico at the competition, but as León and Pachuca are owned by the same company (Grupo Pachuca), concerns have been flagged as an ownership arrangement, which has helped both clubs qualify for the event, ultimately raising question marks over the legitimacy of their entry. As per FIFA guidelines, this type of ownership dynamic is prohibited and falls under the definition of "multi-ownership".

The challenge came from Costa Rican side, Deportiva Alajuelense, who lifted the 2023 Central American Cup, the same year León were crowned champions of the CONCACAF Champions Cup. In that year, it was the Mexican side who went to the former annually-hosted Club World Cup, at the expense of the Costa Ricans who believe they are entitled to compensation for missing out on the showpiece event.

FIFA failed to respond to the initial claims made back in November, with the case being taken to the Court of Arbitration of Sport (CAS), who have set a deadline of April 2 for León to provide an argument along with evidence to justify that their involvement in the competition is valid.

It is a nightmare situation for the club who are second in the Liga MX Clausura and managed to lure Colombian superstar James Rodríguez to the club with the Club World Cup in mind. At the time of writing, León remain in Group D of the competition, where they will meet Chelsea, Flamengo and Esperance Sportive de Tunis.