The Paris Administrative Court has rejected appeals by Olympique Lyonnais, Amiens and Toulouse over the decision of the French football league (LFP) to end its season early because of the coronavirus-induced suspension, the governing body said on Friday.

"The LFP was pleased to learn that the appeals lodged by Olympique Lyonnais, Amiens SC and Toulouse FC were rejected by the summary judge of the Paris Administrative Court," the LFP said in a statement.

"In three orders issued on Friday afternoon, the court ruled that the general decisions taken by the League's board of directors on 30 April could only be challenged before the State Council, which is competent to hear regulatory decisions taken by national authorities such as the LFP," it continued.

The LFP, which runs the top two divisions in French football, decided late last month to call an end to the season with 10 of the 38 scheduled rounds of games unplayed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The decision, while confirmed Paris Saint-Germain as champions, also meant that the bottom two, Amiens and Toulouse, were condemned to relegation to Ligue 2.

Lyon, who have reached this season's Champions League's last 16, were left seventh in the standings and outside the European qualification places.

On May 8, President of Lyon Jean-Michel Aulas revealed that two legal actions are on the way against LFP over its decision of ending the 2019-20 Ligue season in advance. According to Aulas, money is not the major concern for Olympique Lyonnais. What really triggered the club's decision of turning to the law was the LFP's decision over which teams could attend European competitions next season.

On May 10, Lyon said the decision could see the division slip further behind Europe's top leagues and called for it to be reversed.

"There is still time, until May 25, to back off and avoid a huge rout for the French championship," the seven-time champions said in a lengthy statement.

"How can we fight with our foreign competitors who, in the vast majority, chose to wait cautiously to restart their championship?," continued the statement.

Two days later, the relegated Amiens decided to launch legal proceedings in a bid to overturn what they consider to be their "unjust" relegation from Ligue 1.

"We find that this decision goes against sporting fairness. The decision is a punishment from the league. It is unjust," the club's president, Bernard Joannin, said during a press conference on May 12.

Amiens were four points away from what would have been safety when action was suspended. Having just won their promotion in the top-flight in 2017, the club believed a proposal to temporarily increase the number of clubs in Ligue 1 from 20 to 22 should have been considered, thereby saving them and Toulouse from the drop.

According to Union of European Football Associations, Ligue 1's revenue in 2018 was barely half the Bundesliga's €3.2 billion. The latter resumed their season last weekend which has been going relatively well so far with the assurance of rigorous planning and draconian hygiene measures.

(With input from agencies)

(Cover image: A Ligue 1 match between Lille and Reims at Stade Pierre Mauroy in Lille, France, December 9, 2018. /VCG)