FIFA rejects Luis Suarez’s appeal against total 4-month ban for biting

FIFA has rejected Luis Suarez’s appeal against his lengthy ban for biting an opponent in a World Cup match. The governing body today said its appeals committee rejected the appeal in its entirety. Suarez can still appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. The Liverpool star was banned for nine competitive international matches, four months from all football and fined 100,000 Swiss francs (US$112,000) for biting the shoulder of Giorgio Chiellini during Uruguay’s 1-0 win over Italy in a group stage game in Brazil.

The FIFA appeal committee has decided to reject the appeals lodged by both the Uruguayan player Luis Suarez and the Uruguayan FA, and to confirm the decision rendered by the FIFA disciplinary committee on June 25, 2014 in its entirety.

Delia Fischer, FIFA head of media

It’s the third time Suarez has been banned for biting an opponent, after similar incidents at both Ajax in the Dutch league and Liverpool in the English Premier League. The incident was missed by match officials, and FIFA’s disciplinary committee studied video evidence before charging the forward. Suarez can now ask the CAS to freeze his sanctions during his appeal process. If granted, he’d be allowed to train and play with his club until a final verdict is reached, likely in several months. Suarez is reportedly negotiating a move from Liverpool to Barcelona. FIFA said his transfer could proceed despite the sanction from football activity.

The terms of the decision taken by the FIFA appeal committee were communicated to the player and the Uruguayan FA today.

Delia Fischer