Solidarity Contribution
Texto da decisão
Decis ion of the
S ingle Judge of the s ub-com m ittee of the
Dis pute Res olution Cham ber (DRC)
passed on 14 August 2018,
by Takuy a Yam azaki (Japan),
Single Judge of the sub-committee of the DRC,
on the claim presented by the club,
Club A , from country A
as Claimant
against the club,
Club B, from country B
as Respondent
regarding solidarity contribution in connection with the transfer
of the player X
I.
Facts of the cas e
1.
According to the player passport issued by the Football Association of country
A, the player, Player X (hereinafter: the player), born on 14 May 1997, was
registered with Club A, from country A (hereinafter: the Claimant), as from 1
August 2008 until 31 July 2014.
2.
The football seasons in in country A during the period of time the player was
registered with the Claimant started in August and ended in July.
3.
According to the information contained in the Transfer Matching System (TMS),
on 17 February 2016, the Club C, from country A (hereinafter: Club C) and the
Club B, from country B (hereinafter: the Respondent), signed an agreement over
the transfer of the player to the Respondent for a transfer compensation of USD
150,000.
4.
According to the TMS, the player was registered with the Respondent on 18
March 2016.
5.
On 30 October 2017, the Claimant lodged a claim in front of FIFA against the
Respondent claiming its proportion of the solidarity contribution in connection
with the transfer of the player concerned from Club C to the Respondent. In
particular, the Claimant requested 40% of 5% of the transfer compensation.
6.
In spite of having been invited by FIFA to provide its position regarding the
claim, the Respondent did not respond to the claim or make any statements at
all during the course of the investigation
II.
Cons iderations of the S ingle Judge of the s ub-com m ittee of the DRC
1.
First of all, the Single Judge of the sub-committee of the DRC (hereinafter also
referred to as: Single Judge) analysed whether he was competent to deal with
the matter at stake. In this respect, the Single Judge took note that the present
matter was submitted to FIFA on 30 October 2017. Consequently, the Single
Judge concluded that the 2017 edition of the Rules Governing the Procedures of
the Players’ Status Committee and the Dispute Resolution Chamber (hereinafter:
Procedural Rules) is applicable to the matter at hand (cf. art. 21 of the
Procedural Rules).
2.
Subsequently, the Single Judge referred to art. 3 of the Procedural Rules, which
states that the Dispute Resolution Chamber shall examine its jurisdiction in light
Solidarity contribution for the player X
(Club A, from country A / Club B, from country B)
2
of arts 22 to 24 of the Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players (edition
2018). In accordance with art. 3 of Annexe 6 in conjunction with art. 24 par. 3
and art. 22 lit. d) of the Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players, the
Single Judge is competent to decide on the present dispute relating to solidarity
mechanism between clubs belonging to different associations handled through
TMS.
3.
Furthermore, the Single Judge analysed which edition of the Regulations on the
Status and Transfer of Players should be applicable as to the substance of the
matter. In this respect, the Single Judge confirmed that in accordance with art.
26 par. 1 and par. 2 of said Regulations (edition 2018) and considering that the
player was registered with the Respondent on 18 March 2016, the 2015 edition
of the Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players (hereinafter:
Regulations) is applicable to the matter at hand as to the substance.
4.
The competence of the Single Judge and the applicable regulations having been
established, the Single Judge entered into the substance of the matter. In this
respect, the Single Judge started by acknowledging all the above-mentioned
facts as well as the arguments and the documentation submitted by the parties.
However, the Single Judge emphasised that in the following considerations he
will refer only to the facts, arguments and documentary evidence, which he
considered pertinent for the assessment of the matter at hand. In particular, the
Single Judge recalled that in accordance with art. 6 par. 3 of Annexe 3 of the
Regulations, FIFA may use, within the scope of proceedings pertaining to the
application of the Regulations, any documentation or evidence generated or
contained in the Transfer Matching System (TMS).
5.
The Single Judge started by acknowledging that the Claimant is requesting the
payment of 40% of 5% of the transfer compensation from the Respondent as
solidarity contribution in connection with the international transfer of the
professional player Player X, from Club C.
6.
Moreover, the Single Judge duly noted that according to the relevant transfer
agreement dated 17 February 2016, the player was transferred from Club C to
the Respondent for the amount of USD 150,000.
7.
In continuation, the Single Judge emphasised that, as established in art. 21 in
combination with Annexe 5 of the Regulations, if a professional moves during
the course of a contract, 5% of any compensation, not including training
compensation paid to his former club, shall be deducted from the total amount
of this compensation and to be distributed by the new club as solidarity
contribution to the club(s) involved in the training and education of the player
Solidarity contribution for the player X
(Club A, from country A / Club B, from country B)
3
in proportion to the number of years the player has been registered with the
relevant clubs between the sporting seasons of his 12th and 23rd birthday.
8.
In continuation, the Single Judge took note that the Respondent, for its part,
failed to present its response to the claim of the Claimant, despite having been
invited to do so. In this way, so the Single Judge deemed, the Respondent
renounced its right to defence and, thus, accepted the allegations of the
Claimant.
9.
Moreover, and as a consequence of the aforementioned consideration, the
Single Judge established that in accordance with art. 9 par. 3 of the Procedural
Rules he shall take a decision upon the basis of the documents already on file.
10.
Having said that, the Single Judge recalled that according to the player passport
issued by the Football Association of country A, the Claimant was involved in
the training and education of the player.
11.
On account of the above, the Single Judge decided that in accordance with art.
21 in combination with Annexe 5 of the Regulations, the Respondent must pay
the relevant proportion of the solidarity contribution to the Claimant.
12.
Having established the above, the Single Judge referred to art. 1 of Annexe 5 of
the Regulations, which provides the figures for the distribution of the solidarity
contribution, according to the period of time during which the player was
registered with the relevant club.
13.
In this respect, the Single Judge recalled that according to the player passport
issued by the Football Association of country A the Player X, born on 14 May
1997, was registered with the Claimant as from 1 August 2008 until 31 July
2014.
14.
On account of the above and in accordance with art. 1 of Annexe 5 of the
Regulations, the Single Judge considered that the Claimant is, thus, entitled to
receive solidarity contribution for the period as from 1 August 2008 until 31 July
2014, i.e. for the entire seasons of the player’s 12th, 13th, 14th, 15th, 16th and 17th
birthday. In terms of the percentage of the 5% solidarity contribution, the
Single Judge calculated that, on a pro rata basis, this corresponds to 40% of 5%
as claimed by the Claimant.
15.
Therefore, the Single Judge concluded that the Claimant is entitled to receive
USD 3,000 as solidarity contribution in relation to the transfer of the player
from Club C to the Respondent.
Solidarity contribution for the player X
(Club A, from country A / Club B, from country B)
4
16.
On account of the above, in accordance with art. 21 in combination with
Annexe 5 of the Regulations, the Single Judge decided that the Respondent is
liable to pay to the Claimant the amount of USD 3,000 as solidarity contribution
for the player, Player X.
17.
Lastly, the Single Judge referred to art. 25 par. 2 of the Regulations in
combination with art. 18 par. 1 of the Procedural Rules, according to which, in
proceedings before the DRC relating to disputes regarding training
compensation and the solidarity mechanism, costs in the maximum amount of
CHF 25,000 are levied. It is further stipulated that the costs are to be borne in
consideration of the parties’ degree of success in the proceedings and, in
accordance with Annexe A of the Procedural Rules, the costs of the proceedings
are to be levied on the basis of the amount in dispute.
18.
In respect of the above, the Single Judge held that the amount to be taken into
consideration in the present proceedings is USD 3,000, related to the claim of
the Claimant. Consequently, the Single Judge concluded that the maximum
amount of costs of the proceedings corresponds to CHF 5,000 (cf. table in
Annexe A of the Procedural Rules).
19.
As a result, considering the degree of success, the Single Judge determined the
final costs of the current proceedings to the amount of CHF 5,000, which shall
be paid by the Respondent to FIFA.
III.
Decis ion of the S ingle Judge of the s ub-com m ittee of the DRC
1.
The claim of the Claimant, Club A, is accepted.
2.
The Respondent, Club B, has to pay the amount of USD 3,000 to the Claimant
w ithin 30 day s as from the date of notification of this decision.
3.
In the event that the aforementioned sum is not paid by the Respondent within
the stated time limit, interest at the rate of 5% p.a. will fall due as of expiry of
the aforementioned time limit and the present matter shall be submitted, upon
request, to FIFA’s Disciplinary Committee for consideration and a formal
decision.
4.
The final costs of the proceedings in the amount of CHF 5,000 are to be paid by
the Respondent, w ithin 30 day s as from the date of notification of the present
decision, to FIFA to the following bank account with reference to case no.:
UBS Zurich
Solidarity contribution for the player X
(Club A, from country A / Club B, from country B)
5
Account number 366.677.01U (FIFA Players’ Status)
Clearing number 230
IBAN: CH 27 0023 0230 3666 7701U
SWIFT: UBSWCHZH80A
5. The Claimant is directed to inform the Respondent immediately and directly of
the account number to which the remittance under point 2. above is to be made
and to notify the Single Judge of the sub-committee of the DRC of every payment
received.
*****
Note relating to the m otiv ated decis ion (legal remedy):
According to art. 58 par. 1 of the FIFA Statutes, this decision may be appealed against
before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). The statement of appeal must be
sent to the CAS directly within 21 days of receipt of notification of this decision and
shall contain all the elements in accordance with point 2 of the directives issued by
the CAS, a copy of which we enclose hereto. Within another 10 days following the
expiry of the time limit for filing the statement of appeal, the appellant shall file a
brief stating the facts and legal arguments giving rise to the appeal with the CAS (cf.
point 4 of the directives).
The full address and contact numbers of the CAS are the following:
Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS)
Avenue de Beaumont 2
CH-1012 Lausanne
Switzerland
Tel: +41 21 613 50 00
Fax: +41 21 613 50 01
e-mail: [email protected]
www.tas-cas.org
For the Single Judge of the sub-committee of the DRC:
Omar Ongaro
Football Regulatory Director
Encl.: CAS directives
Solidarity contribution for the player X
(Club A, from country A / Club B, from country B)
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