Labour Disputes
Texto da decisão
REF. FPSD-15880
Decision of the
Dispute Resolution Chamber
passed on 5 November 2024
regarding an employment-related dispute concerning the player
Aias Aosman
BY:
Michele COLUCCI (Italy)
CLAIMANT:
Aias Aosman, Germany
Represented by Akin Sarimustafa
RESPONDENT:
Siltas Yapi Pendikspor Futbol A.Ş., Türkiye
Represented by Ercan Sevdimbaş
pg. 2
REF. FPSD-15880
I. Facts of the case
1.
On 13 January 2023, the German player Aias Aosman (hereinafter, the Claimant or the
Player) and the Turkish club Siltas Yapi Pendikspor Futbol A.Ş. (hereinafter, the Respondent
or the Club) concluded an employment contract valid as from 13 January 2023 until 31 May
2024.
2.
On 22 December 2023, the Player lodged a claim before the Football Tribunal against the
Club for outstanding remuneration and breach of contract, with case reference FPSD13155.
3.
On 24 February 2024, the Player and the Club concluded the so-called “Settlement Protocol
and Waiver” (hereinafter, the Protocol) in accordance with which:
“3. The Parties recognise that the FIFA substituted Ref. Nr. No. FPSD-13155, the parties have
agreed that the Player has a total receivable of 125.000 EURO arising from the case filed by the
Player. The Club accepts, declares and undertakes that it will pay 125.000 EURO to the Player
on the due dates stated below.
- 25.000 EURO on 01.03.2024,
- 25.000 EURO on 01.04.2024,
- 25.000 EURO on 01.05.2024,
- 25.000 EURO on 01.06.2024,
- 25.000 EURO on 01.07.2024.
4. All payments under this contract are net payments and will not be reduced by any tax or other
amounts. For the sake of clarity, the club will be always obliged to pay stoppage tax and the
player shall always receive net the indicated amounts. For the avoidance of the doubt, the Club
shall only be responsible of the stoppage tax, social contributions and other levies accrued in
accordance with the Turkish Tax legislation and the Club shall not be responsible for any other
obligations due to the (sic) -including but not limited- additional tax duties, social contributions
and/or levies related to the other countries legislations.
5. As a result of the foregoing, the Parties agree that the Ref. Nr. No. FPSD-13155 filed with FIFA,
the Player declares that the Player will waive the case due to the settlement of the dispute, and
the Club agrees to accept the said waiver declaration, and the Club agrees to accept the waiver
of the case filed with FIFA under Ref. Nr. FPSD-13155, and the parties accept, declare and
undertake that they have released each other except for the above-mentioned amount. In this
context, with the signature of this Protocol, the Player agrees, declares and undertakes to notify
the Ref. Nr. FPSD-13155 filed before FIFA and that he does not claim any legal costs, attorney
fees and that he will not apply to CAS.
(…)
pg. 3
REF. FPSD-15880
7. The disputes arising from the present Contract may be referred by either party to FIFA,
headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland, as the competent party for solving any queries arising
from this Agreement and Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) as the appeal body”.
4.
On 16 April 2024, the abovementioned proceeding was closed after the Parties informed
about the conclusion of the Protocol, pursuant to which they settled the dispute in the
terms provided therein.
II. Proceedings before FIFA
5.
On 2 September 2024, the Claimant filed the claim at hand before FIFA. A summary of the
Parties’ position is detailed below.
a. Position of the Claimant
6.
According to the Player, the Club only paid the first two instalments of the Protocol on 1
April and on 20 May 2024, respectively, and thus claimed being entitled to EUR 75,000 net,
corresponding to the third, fourth and fifth instalments of the Protocol.
7.
The Player requested the following relief:
“7.1. The Claimant firstly would like to request you to make a decision that the Respondent has
to pay the overdue and unpaid amount of the Protocol, the amount of 75.000 Euro (seventy five
thousand Euros) net with its 5% p.a. interest as from the due dates it was shown in the
paragraph 3.3. above until the date of effective payment.
7.2. In consideration of the fact that the Respondent caused the Claimant to file the case herein,
we would like to request your honorable chamber to make a decision that the judicial costs and
the attorneyship fees that the Claimant is faced with shall be paid by the Respondent”.
b. Position of the Respondent
8.
In its reply, the Respondent sustained having consistently fulfilled its obligations, and that
the Claimant’s allegations “are only based on wrong, false, groundless claims and seriously far
from legal reality”.
pg. 4
REF. FPSD-15880
III. Considerations of the Dispute Resolution Chamber
a. Competence and applicable legal framework
9.
First of all, the Single Judge of the Dispute Resolution Chamber (hereinafter, the Single Judge)
analysed whether he was competent to deal with the case at hand. In this respect, he took
note that the present matter was presented to FIFA on 2 September 2024 and submitted
for decision on 5 November 2024. Taking into account the wording of art. 34 of the March
2023 edition of the Procedural Rules Governing the Football Tribunal (hereinafter, the
Procedural Rules), the aforementioned edition of the Procedural Rules is applicable to the
matter at hand.
10. Furthermore, the Single Judge referred to art. 2 par. 1 of the Procedural Rules and observed
that in accordance with art. 23 par. 1 in combination with art. 22 par. 1 lit. b) of the October
2024 edition of the Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players (hereinafter, the
Regulations), he is competent to deal with the matter at stake, which concerns an
employment-related dispute with an international dimension between a German player
and a Turkish club.
11. Subsequently, the Single Judge analysed which regulations should be applicable as to the
substance of the matter. In this respect, he confirmed that, in accordance with art. 26 par.
1 and 2 of the Regulations (October 2024 edition), and considering that the present claim
was lodged on 2 September 2024, the June 2024 edition of the Regulations is applicable to
the matter at hand as to the substance.
b. Burden of proof
12. The Single Judge recalled the basic principle of burden of proof, as stipulated in art. 13
par. 5 of the Procedural Rules, according to which a party claiming a right on the basis of
an alleged fact shall carry the respective burden of proof. Likewise, the Single Judge
stressed the wording of art. 13 par. 4 of the Procedural Rules, pursuant to which he may
consider evidence not filed by the parties, including without limitation the evidence
generated by or within the Transfer Matching System (TMS).
c. Merits of the dispute
13. Having established the competence and the applicable regulations, the Single Judge
entered into the merits of the dispute. In this respect, the Single Judge started by
acknowledging all the above-mentioned facts as well as the arguments and the
documentation on file. 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 assessing the matter at hand.
pg. 5
REF. FPSD-15880
i. Main legal discussion and considerations
14. The Single Judge then moved to the substance of the matter, and took note of the fact that
the parties strongly disputed the payment of certain financial obligations by the
Respondent under the Protocol, namely, the third, fourth and fifth instalments agreed
therein.
15. In this context, the Single Judge acknowledged that his task was to determine, based on
the evidence presented by the parties, whether the claimed amounts had in fact remained
unpaid by the Respondent and, if so, whether the latter had a valid justification for not
having complied with its financial obligations.
16. The Single Judge first noted that in the case at hand the Respondent bore the burden of
proving that it indeed complied with the financial terms of the Protocol concluded between
the parties.
17. With the above in mind, the Single Judge turned its attention to the evidence submitted by
the Respondent, and noted that it consisted of two proofs of payment, each for USD 25,000.
The first payment, which was made on 1 April 2024, was described as “first instalment based
on settlement protocol and water (sic)” and, the second, made on 20 May 2024, as “second
instalment pursuant to the settlement protocol”.
18. The Single Judge therefore determined that the Respondent only submitted evidence of
the payment of the first two instalments of the Protocol, which the Player acknowledged
having received in his claim, without providing evidence of the payment of the amounts
claimed, i.e., USD 75,000, corresponding to the third, fourth and fifth instalments of the
Protocol, each amounting to USD 25,000.
19. In view of the foregoing and bearing in mind the basic legal principle of pact sunt servanda,
which in essence means that agreements must be respected by the parties in good faith,
the Respondent is held liable to pay the Claimant the outstanding amounts deriving from
the contract concluded between the parties, namely USD 75,000 as defined ut supra.
20. In addition, taking into consideration the Claimant’s request as well as the constant practice
of the Dispute Resolution Chamber in this regard, the Single Judge decided to award the
Claimant interest at the rate of 5% per annum on the outstanding amounts as from the
days following each due date until the date of effective payment as follows:
- 5% interest p.a. over the amount of USD 25,000 as from 2 May 2024 until the date of
effective payment;
- 5% interest p.a. over the amount of USD 25,000 as from 2 June 2024 until the date of
effective payment; and
- 5% interest p.a. over the amount of USD 25,000 as from 2 July 2024 until the date of
effective payment.
pg. 6
REF. FPSD-15880
ii. Compliance with monetary decisions
21. Finally, taking into account the applicable Regulations, the Single Judge referred to art. 24
par. 1 and 2 of the Regulations, which stipulate that, with its decision, the pertinent FIFA
deciding body shall also rule on the consequences deriving from the failure of the
concerned party to pay the relevant amounts of outstanding remuneration and/or
compensation in due time.
22. In this regard, the Single Judge highlighted that, against clubs, the consequence of the
failure to pay the relevant amounts in due time shall consist of a ban from registering any
new players, either nationally or internationally, up until the due amounts are paid. The
overall maximum duration of the registration ban shall be of up to three entire and
consecutive registration periods.
23. Therefore, bearing in mind the above, the Single Judge decided that the Respondent must
pay the full amount due (including all applicable interest) to the Claimant within 45 days of
notification of the decision, failing which, at the request of the Claimant, a ban from
registering any new players, either nationally or internationally, for the maximum duration
of three entire and consecutive registration periods shall become immediately effective on
the Respondent in accordance with art. 24 par. 2, 4, and 7 of the Regulations.
24. The Respondent shall make full payment (including all applicable interest) to the bank
account provided by the Claimant in the Bank Account Registration Form, which is attached
to the present decision.
25. The Single Judge recalled that the above-mentioned ban will be lifted immediately and prior
to its complete serving upon payment of the due amounts, in accordance with art. 24 par.
8 of the Regulations.
d. Costs
26. The Single Judge referred to art. 25 par. 1 of the Procedural Rules, according to which
“Procedures are free of charge where at least one of the parties is a player, coach, football agent,
or match agent”. Accordingly, the Single Judge decided that no procedural costs were to be
imposed on the parties.
27. Likewise, and for the sake of completeness, the Single Judge recalled the contents of art.
25 par. 8 of the Procedural Rules and decided that no procedural compensation shall be
awarded in these proceedings.
28. Lastly, the Single Judge concluded its deliberations by rejecting any other requests for relief
made by any of the parties.
pg. 7
REF. FPSD-15880
IV. Decision of the Dispute Resolution Chamber
1.
The claim of the Claimant, Aias Aosman, is accepted.
2.
The Respondent, Siltas Yapi Pendikspor Futbol A.Ş., must pay to the Claimant the following
amount(s):
EUR 75,000 net as outstanding amount plus 5% interest per annum as follows:
- 5% interest p.a. over the amount of EUR 25,000 net as from 2 May 2024 until the date of
effective payment;
- 5% interest p.a. over the amount of EUR 25,000 net as from 2 June 2024 until the date of
effective payment; and
- 5% interest p.a. over the amount of EUR 25,000 net as from 2 July 2024 until the date of
effective payment;
3.
Full payment (including all applicable interest) shall be made to the bank account indicated
in the enclosed Bank Account Registration Form.
4.
Pursuant to art. 24 of the Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players, if full payment
(including all applicable interest) is not made within 45 days of notification of this decision,
the following consequences shall apply:
1. The Respondent shall be banned from registering any new players, either nationally or
internationally, up until the due amount is paid. The maximum duration of the ban shall
be of up to three entire and consecutive registration periods.
2. The present matter shall be submitted, upon request, to the FIFA Disciplinary Committee
in the event that full payment (including all applicable interest) is still not made by the
end of the three entire and consecutive registration periods.
5.
The consequences shall only be enforced at the request of the Claimant in accordance
with art. 24 par. 7 and 8 and art. 25 of the Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players.
6.
This decision is rendered without costs.
For the Football Tribunal:
Emilio García Silvero
Chief Legal & Compliance Officer
pg. 8
REF. FPSD-15880
NOTE RELATED TO THE APPEAL PROCEDURE
According to article 57 par. 1 of the FIFA Statutes, this decision may be appealed against before
the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) within 21 days of receipt of the notification of this
decision.
NOTE RELATED TO THE PUBLICATION
FIFA may publish this decision. For reasons of confidentiality, FIFA may decide, at the request
of a party within five days of the notification of the motivated decision, to publish an
anonymised or a redacted version (cf. article 17 of the Procedural Rules Governing the Football
Tribunal).
CONTACT INFORMATION
Fédération Internationale de Football Association – Legal & Compliance Division
396 Alhambra Circle, 6th floor, Coral Gables, Miami, Florida, USA 33134
legal.fifa.com | [email protected] | T: +41 (0)43 222 7777
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