THE DIARRA CASE AND FIFA
This case is a legal battle between the former Arsenal and Chelsea football player, Lassana Diarra, and FIFA, the World Governing Body of Association Football, and its final outcome could change the landscape of association football.
The Background
In 2013, Diarra signed a 4-year contract with Lokomotiv Moscow, but left the Club, before the contract had ended, due to a pay cut.
The Club terminated his contract and claimed that he breached the FIFA Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players (RSTP) by leaving the Club without just cause. The player counterclaimed for unpaid wages and compensation.
FIFA Dispute Resolution Chamber (DRC)
In 2015, the DRC upheld the club’s claims and ordered the player to pay €10.5 million in damages and suspended him from professional football for 15 months.
The DRC ruling was upheld by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
Charleroi FC
Subsequently, the player agreed a deal to join Charleroi FC, but the Club required assurances from him that the Club would not be liable to pay any compensation to Lokomotiv Moscow, and also FIFA refused to issue the necessary ITC (International Transfer Licence) for a newly signed player. Accordingly, the deal with Charleroi FC fell through.
The Legal Challenge
The player then sought justice in the Belgian Courts, claiming that the FIFA RSTP restricted his freedom of movement and breached EU competition law and claimed damages of €6 million on the ground that FIFA RSTP prevented him from joining a new club.
The case eventually came before the Court of Appeal of Mons, who referred the case to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) for a preliminary ruling on whether the FIFA RSTP are compatible with the EU free movement of workers rules and EU competition law.
The ECJ Ruling
The ECJ has now ruled in favour of the player, finding that the FIFA RSTP “impede the free movement of professional footballers” (Case C-650/22).
Next Steps
The case has now been referred back to the Belgian Courts, to interpret and apply the ECJ preliminary ruling and the final outcome could take several years.
FIFA has stated that it will determine what changes need to be made to its transfer rules.
It will be interesting to see what the final outcome of this important and long-running case will be, in due course.
For further information and advice on international football transfers, email Dr Lucien Valloni at ‘valloni@valloni.ch’.