The case centers on a dispute between Tuti Sport Club and the Sudan Football Association (SFA) regarding player eligibility and subsequent relegation decisions. In 2003, Tuti won a match against Abasia Club, but Abasia contested the eligibility of a Tuti player, claiming he had not completed a suspension. The Committee Organizing the Competition of the Khartoum Local Football Association (KLFA) ruled against Tuti, forfeiting their win and deducting points, which led to their relegation to the second division. Tuti appealed through the KLFA’s Executive Committee and later the SFA’s Appeal Committee, but both upheld the ruling. Tuti then escalated the matter to the Federal Commission for the Registration of Youth and Sports Associations, a governmental body, which ruled in Tuti’s favor in 2004. However, the SFA refused to comply, arguing the Federal Commission lacked jurisdiction over technical football matters. Tuti’s refusal to play in the second division led to further relegation and eventual suspension by the KLFA in 2004. In 2006, the Federal Commission ordered the dissolution of the SFA’s Executive Committee for non-compliance, but the Sudanese Minister of Justice intervened, advising the SFA to appeal to the Federal Youth and Sports Arbitration Committee. When this appeal was rejected, the SFA took the case to the Administrative Court of Appeal, which stayed the execution of the Federal Commission’s decision.
Tuti then appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), seeking the withdrawal of the SFA’s appeal to the ordinary court, reinstatement to the first division, and compensation. The CAS panel addressed the preliminary issue of jurisdiction, concluding that the SFA’s appeal to the Administrative Court of Appeal did not constitute a "decision" under Article R47 of the CAS Code or Article 61 of the FIFA Statutes, as it was a procedural step rather than a substantive ruling. The panel emphasized that for the CAS to have jurisdiction, there must be a formal decision by the association, which was absent in this case. The panel also referenced the Cole case, which established that FIFA’s statutes and circulars do not mandate a right of appeal to the CAS unless explicitly included in the regulations of the relevant national federation or league. Since the SFA had declined voluntary arbitration by the CAS and no such provision existed in its regulations, the CAS ruled it lacked jurisdiction. The appeal was declared inadmissible, and the arbitration procedure was terminated. The case highlights the importance of clear jurisdictional boundaries between sports arbitration and ordinary courts, as well as the necessity for explicit provisions in governing statutes or agreements to enable CAS arbitration.