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León, from Mexico , went to CAS (Court of Arbitration for Sport) to challenge FIFA's decision to exclude the club from the Club World Cup. The football governing body alleged in March that the Mexican team is controlled by the same group as Pachuca, which is also in the competition, and that both failed to meet the criteria established to be able to compete in the competition simultaneously. Before the exclusion, León was in Flamengo's group.

The CAS has registered appeals filed by León and Pachuca against FIFA on May 2. They state that the clubs meet the eligibility requirements for the World Cup. The Court said the appeals will be heard in the week of May 5.

On the 23rd, CAS will hold a hearing based on a request from Alajuelense, from Costa Rica, which filed a formal complaint asking for León to be removed from the FIFA tournament. The Costa Rican team believes that it should be called as a new participant.

Before the trial, each of the parties involved will have the right to choose a referee from the options registered by CAS. In addition, there will be a main referee, who will be the one who will make the final decision on whether to keep León in the World Cup or permanently remove him from it - and also whether Alajuelense will inherit the possible spot. FIFA had announced that it will only make a decision on who will be the new member of the World Cup after knowing the CAS decision.

According to regulation 10 of the Club World Cup, "no natural or legal person may control or exercise influence over more than one club participating in the competition".

Pachuca and León belong to the Pachuca Group , which is managed by businessman Jesús Martínez Patiño and also controls other football clubs, such as Mineros de Zacatecas, from Mexico, Coyotes de Tlaxcala, from Mexico, Talleres, from Argentina, and Everton, from Chile.

Representatives from Pachuca and León even met with FIFA officials to show that they are run independently despite belonging to the same conglomerate.

See the statement issued by FIFA about León's elimination

Following the disciplinary proceedings opened against CF Pachuca and Club León, the chairman of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee decided to refer the case directly to the FIFA Appeals Committee, in accordance with article 56, paragraph 3 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code.

After assessing all the evidence on file, the Chairman of the FIFA Appeals Committee has ruled that CF Pachuca and Club León did not meet the multi-club ownership criteria set out in Article 10, paragraph 1, of the Regulations of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup™.

In accordance with Article 10, paragraph 4 of the Regulations of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup™, FIFA has determined that Club León will be removed from the competition , and the club to be admitted as a replacement will be announced in due course.

Behind the scenes of Ednaldo Rodrigues' management at the helm of the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) were revealed this Friday (4) , in a report by Piauí magazine. The president's maneuvers and arrangements to ensure his reelection in the entity were revealed, in addition to millions in spending paid by the CBF on parliamentarians, figures from the artistic class and members of the Judiciary.

UNDERSTAND THE CASE

According to the publication, the CBF paid for a group of 49 people with no direct connection to the organization during the World Cup in Qatar, including first-class flights, a five-star hotel and tickets to Brazilian national team games . The “party” is said to have cost the organization R$3 million . The beneficiaries include a congressman, senator, judge, singer, businessman, journalists and socialites, as well as members of their respective families.

Ednaldo Rodrigues responded by stating that “it is common practice for sports entities to invite relevant people and personalities to attend major events,” he said.

Another point highlighted in the report is the salary adjustments for state federation presidents during Ednaldo's term. Until 2021, before the current president took office, the heads of affiliates received R$50,000. Currently, their salaries are around R$215,000, an increase of almost 200%, with the right to a 16th salary.

It is worth noting that Ednaldo was unanimously reelected president of the CBF , with votes from the 27 affiliates and the 40 clubs in Series A and B of the Brazilian Championship.

A special treat was given to Roberto Góes, president of the Amapá Football Federation and also vice-president of the CBF. The national organization paid for a stay at a five-star hotel in Jardins, an upscale neighborhood in São Paulo, and airfare from Macapá to the capital of São Paulo for the director to travel with his wife, sister and daughter. The reason was reportedly a surgical procedure for his partner, lawyer Gláucia Costa Oliveira. After the surgery, he asked to stay another ten days in São Paulo, a request authorized by Ednaldo.

It all cost the CBF R$114,000. Ednaldo stated that “the expenses of the families of these people (federation presidents) are paid for by them personally.”

Despite the high amounts mentioned, the report reveals the suspension of all air travel and accommodation paid for by the CBF for referees in the Brazilian Championship Series A , who were supposed to undergo training and physical evaluation every two weeks at a private club in Rio. The entity claimed budgetary restrictions and the evaluation began to take place only by videoconference.

The assessment was taking place in parallel with a project presented by Wilson Luiz Seneme, former head of the Refereeing Commission , who suggested the development of an exclusive training center, with a cafeteria, accommodation and football fields surrounded by video cameras for simulating plays, in addition to the creation of a referee school.

Both programs, estimated at R$60 million, were approved by Ednaldo. However, Seneme ended up being dismissed from the CBF after the accumulation of poor performances by referees last season. Refereeing professionals criticized the lack of funds to carry out the evaluations in Rio.

PAYMENT TO AN ADVERSARY AND COURT ACTION

The publication also details the payment of R$2.5 million to Gustavo Feijó by the CBF . The Alagoas club director was a rival of Ednaldo and was chosen by Flavio Zveiter as vice-president in the bid of the son of judge Luiz Zveiter to become president of the organization. At that time, Ednaldo was removed from his position due to legal dispute.

Arthur Lira (PP-AL), president of the Chamber of Deputies, worked for Feijó to become the head of his ticket, but the candidate withdrew after receiving payment, referring to a lawsuit against the CBF in Alagoas. Months before, already back in office, Ednaldo paid R$10 million to hire Maria Claudia Bucchianeri Pinheiro, Lira's former lawyer and current minister of the Superior Electoral Court (TSE).

The report also provides details about the labor lawsuit filed by architect Luísa Xavier da Silveira Rosa against the CBF. Hired during Rogério Caboclo's administration to build 14 training centers, her resignation to go work at FIFA was denied by Ednaldo, who appointed her as director of assets, making her the first woman on the organization's board. However, the move was a “marketing ploy,” according to Luísa's lawyer. This is because the professional suffered “retaliation, loss of responsibilities and all kinds of humiliation,” in addition to receiving less than half the salary of her predecessor. As a result, she accused the president of moral harassment.

Luísa also witnessed the hiring of prostitutes to serve guests at CBF events and heard “all kinds of misogynistic comments.” She also reported “ingratiating compliments and unwanted invitations” from Rodrigo Paiva, former communications director, and Arnoldo de Oliveira Nazareth Filho, linked to the Amazonas Football Federation. In both cases, she filed a lawsuit for sexual harassment. Paiva, in response, stated that “his professional career has always been marked by incentives to deconstruct the culture of harassment.” The Amazonas director did not comment.

The President of the CBF , Ednaldo Rodrigues , met with the general executive coordinator of the Men's Teams, Rodrigo Caetano, and with the technical coordinator, Juan Santos, to discuss the choice of the new coach of the Brazilian Team.

PLANNING

The aim is to announce the new coach before the next FIFA Date for the Yellow Team, in June, when Brazil will face Ecuador and Paraguay, in the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers, in the USA, Canada and Mexico.

"We will announce the name of the coach soon"

"The meeting with the general executive coordinator of the Men's National Teams, Rodrigo Caetano, and with Juan focused on choosing the new coach of the Brazilian National Team . We will soon announce the name of the coach, in time to make the call-up for the two qualifying games, on the FIFA date in June" , explained Ednaldo Rodrigues.

MATCH OBSERVATION

As part of the schedule for the commitments, the Selection Department will begin observing the games in Brazil starting this Saturday (5) . The first will be Botafogo x Juventude, at Nilton Santos. Matches from the Brasileirão, Libertadores and Copa Sul-Americana will also be analyzed, including Flamengo .

Since Tuesday (1st), Juan and performance analyst Thomaz Araújo, who will be part of the observations throughout the country, have been following matches in European championships . In the Health and Performance area, physician Andréia Picanço and physiologist Guilherme Passos have started to outline strategies for the National Team's preparation. The plan is to provide accurate information to help the coach in his new job .

The general executive coordinator of the Men's Teams, Rodrigo Caetano, explained that contacts with president Ednaldo Rodrigues have been much more frequent at this time when the aim is to define the new technical committee.

"We have had meetings with President Ednaldo, with Juan participating in some of them, with the focus on finding the name of this future coach of the Brazilian National Team. As soon as we have this defined by the president, we will begin negotiations to announce the name of the new commander of the Brazilian National Team as quickly as possible" , said Rodrigo Caetano.

" The Selection Department continues to provide reports, make on-site observations , which we will begin at the end of the week, and monitor all relevant competitions outside the country, to gather as much information as possible for the future commander. This work is daily and constant, and has always been done before. And now, we are continuing normally" , added the general executive coordinator.