Ribery loses CL ban appeal

Nyon - UEFA has refused Bayern Munich winger Franck Ribery permission to play in the Champions League final against Inter Milan.

UEFA rejected Ribery's appeal on Wednesday and insisted he serve a three-match ban imposed after he was sent off in the first leg of Bayern's semi-final victory over Lyon.

Ribery did not speak with reporters as he left UEFA headquarters following the near three-hour hearing.

Bayern chairperson Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said the club would appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport in a final attempt to clear Ribery for the May 22 match in Madrid.

"The decision was very tough. We will fight on," said Rummenigge.

Rummenigge said Bayern hoped that CAS, sport's highest court, would hear its appeal next week in Lausanne, Switzerland.

Ribery hoped to be reprieved Wednesday with a one-match suspension - the standard for a red card - which he already served by missing the return match in France.

UEFA's disciplinary body had ordered the three-match sanction last week after judging Ribery guilty of serious foul play when he stepped on the ankle of Lyon forward Lisandro Lopez.

The France international made his case to UEFA's appeals panel alongside Rummenigge and a club lawyer.

They argued that Ribery's foul on Lopez was not malicious as he tried to recover the ball after losing possession.

Despite Ribery's dismissal in the 37th minute, Bayern won 1-0 in Munich. It got a 3-0 win in Lyon to progress 4-0 on aggregate.

If CAS upholds UEFA's ruling, the three-match ban would also force Ribery to miss the first European club competition match for which he is eligible next season.