Feyenoord appeal to CAS

Feyenoord will appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne over their UEFA Cup exclusion, the Dutch club said yesterday.

The Rotterdam-based club said in a statement they believe they cannot be held responsible for the crowd disturbances before and during their group-stage match against Nancy in France on Nov. 30 for which they were banned.

"We want to have the verdict of the (UEFA) Appeals Board tested in juridical terms as we have the feeling that justice has not been done," the club's financial director Onno Jacobs said.

Feyenoord qualified for the first knockout round but the UEFA ban handed their English opponents Tottenham Hotspur a bye into the last 16 of the competition.

"Pending our appeal we will continue our preparations for the matches against Spurs and we will urge the Court of Arbitration for Sport to make a quick decision," Feyenoord said.