Solidarity Contribution
Texto da decisão
Decision of the
Dispute Resolution Chamber
passed in Zurich, Switzerland, on 17 December 2015,
in the following composition:
Thomas Grimm (Switzerland), Deputy Chairman
Mario Gallavotti (Italy), member
Joaquim Evangelista (Portugal), member
on the claim presented by the club,
Club A, country B,
as Claimant
against the club,
Club C, country D
as Respondent
regarding a solidarity contribution dispute related to the
the international transfer of the Player E
I.
Facts of the case
1.
According to the official player passport issued by the Football Federation of country
B, the player from country F, Player E (hereinafter: the player) born on 31 December
1987, was registered with the club from country B, Club A (hereinafter: Club A), as
from 12 May 2001 until 16 July 2003.
2.
The relevant sporting seasons in country B during the period of time the player was
registered with Club A started on 1 December and ended on 30 November.
3.
The Football Association of country D informed Football Federation of country B
that the player was registered with its affiliated club, Club C, on 17 January 2013.
4.
According to the information contained on the Transfer Matching System (TMS), in
January 2013 the club from country G, Club H (hereinafter: Club H), concluded a
transfer agreement with the club from country D, Club C (hereinafter: Club C), for
the transfer on loan of the player, from 14 January 2013 until 30 June 2014.
5.
Club H and Club C agreed the following terms:
“2. Loan fee
2.1 In consideration of the said transfer, Club C shall pay to Club H the sum of EUR
630,000 (six hundred and thirty thousand euro) such sum payable on written
confirmation of the Player’s registration with Club C.
2.2 The parties agree that a further loan payment of EUR 100,000 is payable for the
2013/2014 playing season provided always that Club C remains in the Premier
League of country D.“
6.
In this framework, on 7 August 2013 Football Federation of country B received a
claim for solidarity contribution from Club A relating to the player’s loan from Club
H to Club C. In particular, Club A claimed 13.7% of 5% of the agreed compensation
corresponding to EUR 4,284, plus 5% interest p.a. as from the relevant due date.
7.
In spite of having been invited by Football Federation of country B to provide its
position regarding Club A’s claim, Club C did not provide any response or make any
statements during the course of the investigation.
II.
Considerations of the Dispute Resolution Chamber
1.
First, the Dispute Resolution Chamber (hereinafter: the Chamber or DRC) analysed
whether it was competent to deal with the case at hand. In this respect, the DRC
took note that the present matter was submitted to Football Federation of country
B on 7 August 2013. Consequently, the Chamber concluded that the 2012 edition of
the Rules Governing the Procedures of the Players’ Status Committee and the
Distribution of the Solidarity Contribution in connection with the Player E
(Club A, country B / Club C, country D)
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Dispute Resolution Chamber is applicable to the matter at hand (cf. art. 21 par. 2
and par. 3 of the Procedural Rules).
2.
Subsequently, the DRC referred to art. 3 par. 2 of the Procedural Rules and
confirmed that in accordance with art. 24 par. 1 and 2 in conjunction with art. 22 lit.
d) of the Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players (edition 2015), it is
competent to decide on the present matter, which concerns a dispute relating to
the solidarity mechanism between clubs belonging to different associations.
3.
Furthermore, the Chamber 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 members of the Chamber referred, on the one hand, to art. 26 par.
1 and 2 of the Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players (edition 2015) and,
on the other hand, to the fact that the present claim was lodged on 7 August 2013
and that the player was registered with the Respondent on 17 January 2013. In view
of the aforementioned, the DRC concluded that the 2012 edition of the Regulations
on the Status and Transfer of Players (hereinafter: the Regulations) is applicable to
the matter at hand as to the substance.
4.
The competence of the DRC and the applicable regulations having been established,
the Chamber entered into the substance of the matter. In doing so, the DRC started
by acknowledging the aforementioned facts of the case as well as the documents
contained in the file.
5.
In this respect, the members of the Chamber noted that the Claimant claimed the
payment of the amount of EUR 4,284 as solidarity contribution from the
Respondent, corresponding to 13.7% of the 5% of the total loan compensation.
6.
In addition to the above, the DRC took into account that according to the
information contained in the TMS, Club H and the Respondent agreed upon loan
compensation of EUR 630,000, payable “on written confirmation of the Player’s
registration with Club C”.
7.
Subsequently, the Chamber observed that the Respondent, for its part, in spite of
having been invited to do so, failed to present its response to the claim of the
Claimant within the relevant time-limit. In fact, the reply of the Respondent was
only received after the investigation-phase had already been concluded. As a result,
the members of the Chamber decided not to take into account the reply of the
Respondent and established that, in accordance with art. 9 par. 3 of the Procedural
Rules, the Chamber shall take a decision upon the basis of the documents on file
that were provided prior to the closure of the investigation-phase, in casu, upon the
statements and documents presented by the Claimant and the information
contained in TMS.
Distribution of the Solidarity Contribution in connection with the Player E
(Club A, country B / Club C, country D)
3/6
8.
Having established the above, the Dispute Resolution Chamber referred to art. 21 in
combination with art. 1 of Annex 5 of the Regulations which stipulate that, 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 be distributed by the new club as a
solidarity contribution to the club(s) involved in the training and education of the
player between the seasons of his 12th and 23rd birthday.
9.
In this respect, the Chamber recalled that the Football Association of country D had
confirmed that the player, born on 31 December 1987, was registered with the
Claimant between 12 May 2001 and 16 July 2003.
10.
On account of the above and in accordance with art. 1 of Annex 5 of the
Regulations, the Chamber considered that the Claimant is, thus, entitled to receive
solidarity contribution for the period running from 12 May 2001 until 16 July 2003,
i.e. for 8 months of the season of the player’s 14th birthday, for the entirety of the
season of the player’s 15th birthday and 7 months for the season of the player’s 16th
birthday.
11.
In view of all of the above, the DRC decided to accept the claim of the Claimant and
held that the Respondent is liable to pay the amount of EUR 4,284 to the Claimant
as solidarity contribution in relation to the loan of the player from Club H to the
Respondent. In addition, taking into account the Claimant’s request and the DRC’s
jurisprudence in this regard, the Chamber decided that the Respondent must pay
the Claimant interest of 5% p.a. on the amount of compensation as of the date on
which the claim was lodged, i.e. 7 August 2013, until the date of effective payment.
12.
In continuation, the deciding authority referred to art. 25 par. 2 of the Regulations
in combination with art. 18 par. 1 of the Procedural Rules, according to which
proceedings before the Dispute Resolution Chamber relating to disputes regarding
the solidarity mechanism, costs in the maximum amount of CHF 25,000 are levied.
The costs are to be borne in consideration of a parties’ degree of success in the
proceedings.
13.
In this respect, the Chamber reiterated that the claim of the Claimant is accepted
and it established that the Respondent has to bear the costs of the current
proceedings in front of Football Federation of country B.
14.
According to Annex A of the Procedural Rules, the costs of the proceedings are to
be levied on the basis of the amount in dispute.
Distribution of the Solidarity Contribution in connection with the Player E
(Club A, country B / Club C, country D)
4/6
15.
The amount in dispute to be taken into consideration in the present proceedings
amounts to EUR 4,284 relating to the claim of the Claimant. The Chamber therefore
concluded that the maximum amount of costs of the proceedings corresponds to
CHF 5,000 (cf. table in Annex A).
16.
Considering that the case at hand could have followed a simple procedure, that the
case was adjudicated on by the Chamber, that the present case did not show
particular factual or legal difficulty and that the Respondent only replied to the
Claimant’s claim after the closure of the investigation phase of the present dispute,
the Chamber determined the final amount of costs of the current proceedings to
the amount of CHF 5,000.
17.
In view of all of the above, the Chamber concluded that the amount of CHF 5,000
has to be paid by the Respondent to cover the costs of the present proceedings.
III.
Decision of the Dispute Resolution Chamber
1.
The claim of the Claimant, Club A, is accepted.
2.
The Respondent, Club C, has to pay to the Claimant within 30 days of the date of
notification of this decision, the amount of EUR 4,284 plus 5% interest p.a. as from 7
August 2013 until the date of effective payment.
3.
In the event that the aforementioned sum and interest are not paid within the stated
time limit, the present matter shall be submitted, upon request, to Football
Federation of country B’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 within 30 days of notification of the present decision, to Football
Federation of country B to the following bank account with reference to case no.
xxxxxxxxxx:
UBS Zurich
Account number 366.677.01U (Football Federation of country B Players’
Status)
Clearing number 230
IBAN: CH27 0023 0230 3666 7701U
SWIFT: UBSWCHZH80A
Distribution of the Solidarity Contribution in connection with the Player E
(Club A, country B / Club C, country D)
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5. The Claimant is directed to inform the Respondent immediately and directly of the
account number to which the remittances are to be made and to notify the Dispute
Resolution Chamber of every payment received.
*****
Note relating to the motivated decision (legal remedy):
According to art. 67 par. 1 of the Football Federation of country B 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
Avenue de Beaumont 2
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 Dispute Resolution Chamber:
Markus Kattner
Acting Secretary General
Enclosed: CAS directives
Distribution of the Solidarity Contribution in connection with the Player E
(Club A, country B / Club C, country D)
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