No New Blood For Barcelona As Transfer Window Opens, Appeal For The Ban Dismissed With Finality
Catalan club's appeal against its transfer ban has been dismissed by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), which means that the club is not allowed to sign any players come 2015. The issue at hand that FC Barcelona appealed to CAS after being rejected by FIFA concerns lifting of a two-window ban. The ban is a punishment issued by the world's football governing body in April because of the "international transfer of minors."
The decision for Barcelona's appeal before CAS has hit its finality when CAS dismissed the appeal on Tuesday. As a result, FC Barcelona cannot and should not be allowed to sign any new blood until January 2016.
"The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has dismissed the appeal filed by FC Barcelona against the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) regarding the decision issued by the FIFA appeals committee on 19 August 2014," a statement from CAS regarding the dismissal of the appeal read.
As part of the final judgment issued by CAS, the Spanish football club will suffer a two-year transfer ban and a fine in the amount of 375,000 euros. It was also subjected to a reprimand after it was found out to violate the FIFA regulations relating to the registration of minor players.
Sometime in 2009 and 2013, FC Barcelona was playing with minor players in violation of FIFA protocols. Some of its players were found under 18 years old and they were transferred without following the necessary procedures set by FIFA. These were the bases of the sanction received by FC Barcelona.
The final decision following the dismissal of FC Barcelona's appeal has also enumerated the FIFA rules which were violated by the club. In the decision issued by CAS, it was reported that FC Barcelona was guilty for violating articles 19 and 19bis of the FIFA regulations on the status and transfer of players.
As a result, the preliminary decision at the FIFA level was simply reiterated by CAS. With the need to come up with the final decision before the next transfer window, CAS issued the final decision without the supporting grounds yet. According to CAS, the full arbitral awards as well as the reasons supporting the decision will soon follow.