U.S. Soccer won another battle in federal court when the Southern District of New York "dismissed the case brought by the Relevent Sports Group," according to Paul Kennedy of SOCCER AMERICA. Relevent sued U.S. Soccer, arguing that the federation "violated federal antitrust law by conspiring with FIFA to prevent clubs from playing international matches in the United States if they have not been sanctioned by U.S. Soccer." The court granted U.S. Soccer's motion that "any tort claim Relevent had against U.S. Soccer should go to arbitration." It also "dismissed Relevent's antitrust claim." Relevent has organized the Int'l Champions Cup and various friendlies, but the issue "came to a head when it signed an agreement with LaLiga, which was pushing to play in official league matches in the United States." When sanctioning was "not forthcoming from U.S. Soccer for an Ecuadoran league match -- Barcelona SC vs. Guayaquil City FC -- at Miami's Hard Rock Stadium, Relevent sued in New York state court to compel the federation to sanction the game" (SOCCERAMERICA.com, 7/22).
