Rangers have won an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Switzerland over the termination of Mexican midfielder Carlos Pena's contract.

The £2.2m creator, signed from Chivas in the summer of 2017 by Pedro Caixinha, was dismissed by the Ibrox club in 2019 after multiple examples of dishonesty over his abuse of alcohol.

The player has since admitted to the addiction issues that have plagued his career following an explosive spell at Leon in his homeland that made him the most admired prospect in North American football. 

The club are understood to be sympathetic to the myriad issues thrown up by addiction, but Pena displayed a stubborn refusal to open up over his situation.

After his dismissal, Pena complained to FIFA that Rangers had breached their contract with him, a position FIFA's three-person panel accepted two to one. FIFA are understood to have come to this judgement on a technical basis because they felt Rangers should not rely on conduct while the player was out on loan at Cruz Azul in his homeland.

Pena was then awarded what sources describe as a "significant seven-figure sum" as compensation for the final two years of his lucrative deal.

Shocked, Rangers moved quickly to contest the decision via CAS by engaging Stephen Samson of top sports law firm Squire Patton Boggs. They have been left waiting 18 months for a final decision and that has now arrived with FIFA's judgement being overturned. This is final and means no payment will be made to the player.

Had CAS upheld the original decision, Rangers would have been forced to pay up the remainder of the player's contract in a lump sum within 28 days.