UEFA removes Spanish club Osasuna from Europa Conference League due to former club officials fixing matches

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Spanish club Osasuna was removed from the Europa Conference League on Wednesday by UEFA because former club officials were implicated in fixing matches a decade ago.

Osasuna said in a statement it will appeal the ruling to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

By finishing seventh in La Liga last season, Osasuna earned a place in the playoff round of the third-tier European club competition, needing to beat one opponent in August to advance to the group stage.

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In this photo illustration, a UEFA Euro 2024 logo seen displayed on a smartphone. The 2024 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2024. It will be the third time that European Championship matches are played on German territory.  (Aleksandr Gusev/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

UEFA’s verdict lifts eighth-place Athletic Bilbao into the competition instead. A CAS ruling likely will be needed ahead of Athletic's scheduled first-leg game on Aug. 24.

Osasuna officials who are no longer with the club were implicated in fixing matches between 2012 and 2014.

However, UEFA’s competition rules state that teams implicated in fixing any game played since April 2007 can be removed from the next competition for which they qualify. Further disciplinary measures can follow.

Osasuna had not qualified for a UEFA competition since the 2006-07 season, when it reached the semifinals of the old UEFA Cup. The club from Pamplona could have expected to earn at least six million euros ($6.5 million) in UEFA prize money had the team advanced to the group stage of the Europa Conference League.

MANCHESTER