UPDATE 2-Soccer-Second-tier Spanish side Reus banned for three years

Spanish second division club Reus have been banned from professional soccer for three years after not paying players for several months, La Liga said on Monday.

The Spanish league's "social discipline judge" also ordered the club to pay a 250,000 euro ($285,200) fine, its statement added. The club, currently 20th in Spain's 22-team second tier, said it would appeal in Spain's court for sport (TAD), as well as trying to obtain a suspension of the penalty.

Reus's future opponents this season will be given three points, while players are free to join any side that wishes to sign them, a spokeswoman for La Liga told Reuters. "Before now, no team has faced such an extreme penalty, being left without players and expelled from the competition in mid-season," the Catalan club said in a statement.

"(The club is trying) to appeal the decision made by La Liga's judge and trying to obtain the precautionary suspension of the penalty before the TAD." ($1 = 0.8766 euros) (Reporting by Rik Sharma Editing by Andrew Heavens and Andrew Cawthorne)