CAS rejects appeal by Arsenal's Cole in tapping up affair

Arsenal defender Ashley Cole's appeal against his Premier League punishment in the Chelsea 'tapping up' affair has been rejected, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) said yesterday.

CAS ruled that the appeal filed by the England left-back "was not admissible, considering that the CAS had no jurisdiction to rule on the dispute between Mr Cole and the Football Association Premier League (FAPL)," the Lausanne-based body said on its website.

Cole, fined 100,000 pounds ($179,000) by the Premier League for breaching rules on approaches to players, took his case to CAS after losing an initial appeal in August, although his fine was cut to 75,000 pounds.

Chelsea coach Jose Mourinho also lost his appeal in August but similarly had a 200,000 pounds fine reduced to 75,000. As a club, Chelsea had accepted a fine of 300,000 pounds and had not appealed the original sanctions.

The fines were originally handed out in June, following a meeting by those involved in a London hotel in January 2005.