Ousted Asian football chief Mohammed Bin Hammam has appealed against a lifetime ban imposed by football’s governing body over corruption in the FIFA presidential race, CAS said Wednesday.
“The appellant requests the annulment of the FIFA decision,” said the Court of Arbitration for Sport in a statement.
The Qatari was slapped with the ban in July after he was found guilty of trying to buy votes in the FIFA presidential race by offering Caribbean football officials $40,000 each.
CAS said the parties in the dispute would first exchange written submissions. A hearing, whose date would be determined at a later stage, would then be held.
Bin Hammam lost his post as head of Asian football to China’s Zhang Jilong after FIFA’s ruling.
The Qatari appealed to CAS to block Zhang’s appointment by the Asian Football Confederation but the court struck down the request.
Nevertheless Bin Hamman had vowed to continue with his quest to clear his name, and had described the charges against him as “politically motivated.”
His suspension also led to his withdrawal from FIFA’s leadership election, handing incumbent president Sepp Blatter a fourth consecutive term in office. The controversy highlighted allegations of corruption in FIFA and sparked calls for reform of its governance structure.
It also led to a series of sanctions on several Caribbean football officials, who were in the infamous meeting in Trinidad on May 10 and 11 when Bin Hammam was accused of trying to buy votes.
