Labour Disputes
Texto da decisão
REF. FPSD-17558
Decision of the
Dispute Resolution Chamber
passed on 27 February 2025
regarding an employment-related dispute concerning the player
Melanie Mikoy
COMPOSITION:
Frans DE WEGER (The Netherlands), Chairperson
Andre DOS SANTOS MEGALE (Brazil), Member
Stefano SARTORI (Italy), Member
CLAIMANT:
Melanie Mikoy, USA
Represented by Jorge Luis Goncalves dos Santos
RESPONDENT:
Ünye Gücü Futbol Kulübü, Türkiye
pg. 2
REF. FPSD-17558
I. Facts of the case
1.
On an unspecified date, the American player Melanie Mikoy (hereinafter: the Claimant or
the Player) and the Turkish club Ünye Gücü Futbol Kulübü (hereinafter: the Respondent or
the Club) concluded an employment contract (hereinafter: the Contract) valid as from 25
August 2024 until 30 May 2025.
2.
In accordance with the Contract, the Respondent undertook to pay the Claimant a monthly
salary amounting to USD 1,500.
3.
The Respondent also undertook to provide the Claimant with a house and two economy
class flight tickets to her country.
4.
In addition, on an unspecified date, the Claimant and the Respondent concluded a
document separate from the Contract (hereinafter: the Specific Agreement), which
stipulated the following provisions:
“[…] In return for a 1-year contract, the following provisions will be fulfilled by our club for our
footballer Melanie Mikoy.
1- [sic] 1- The basic needs of [the Player] such as food, drink and accommodation will be
met by our club at the club facilities. Access to the gymnasium will be made within the
programme of club training sessions.
2- [sic] 2- [The Player] will be paid the promised salary of 1500 USD per month starting
immediately when he [sic] joins the team and his [sic] other salaries will be paid on the
10th of each month.
3- [sic] 3- [The Player]'s arrival and return flight tickets from his [sic] country will be bought
by our club.
4- [sic] 4- Match premiums are determined by our club according to the characteristics and
difficulty of the competitions.
[The Player] shall be bound by and act in accordance with the provisions of the Club's Internal
Disciplinary Regulations. […]”
5.
On 18 October 2024, the Claimant and the Respondent concluded an agreement to
terminate their employment relationship (hereinafter: the Termination Agreement).
6.
The Termination Agreement read as follows (quoted verbatim):
“[…] On 19.09.2024, we have parted ways with the Turkcell [sic] Women's Super
League club Ünye Kadin Spor Kulübü, with which I reached an agreement, by mutual
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REF. FPSD-17558
agreement. During the period from the beginning of my agreement until 18.10.2024,
Ünye Women's Sports Club, where my license registration is located, paid 585 USD to
my representative in Turkey Lucas Ozcan Kose, 250 USD for residence permit
procedures, 1,500 USD for my 1-month salary, 400 USD for the competition premium,
and 1,500 USD as a mutual termination compensation. In addition, the Ünye Women's
Sports Club purchased my travel tickets from the USA to Turkey and from Turkey to
the USA by plane.
I hereby accept, declare and undertake that I have no rights and receivables from
Ünye Women's Sports Club with respect to the club payments, the amounts of which
are written above by me personally, and that I irrevocably waive any receivables,
compensation and/or other claims under any name whatsoever.
As Ünye Kadin Spor Club Official, our agreement with our footballer Melanie Nicole
MIKOY, the details of which are explained above, was terminated by mutual
agreement on 18.10.2024 by fulfilling all our obligations by the club. […]”
7.
On 27 November 2024, the Claimant put the Respondent in default and requested payment
within 15 days of USD 2,650 as outstanding amount in accordance with the Termination
Agreement.
pg. 4
REF. FPSD-17558
II. Proceedings before FIFA
8.
On 19 December 2024, the Claimant filed the claim at hand before FIFA. A summary of the
parties’ position is detailed below.
a. Position of the Claimant
9.
According to the Claimant, she was supposed to receive pursuant to the Termination
Agreement USD 250 as residence permit procedures, USD 1,500 as salary, USD 400 as
competition premium and USD 1,000 as mutual termination compensation. However, the
Claimant noted that the Club failed to pay the mentioned amounts.
10. In addition, the Player argued that the Club forced her to sign the Termination Agreement
before receiving the corresponding amount.
11. The requests for relief of the Claimant were the following:
“a) That the RESPONDENT be formally summoned and present their defense.
b) That the RESPONDENT be condemned to pay the amount of USD 2650,00 (two
thousand, six hundred and fifty dollars) that are overdue to the CLAIMANT with
interests and currency correction.
c) That Transfer Ban be applied to the RESPONDENT in case of non-payment.”
b. Position of the Respondent
12. Despite being invited to do so, the Respondent failed to reply to the claim.
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REF. FPSD-17558
III. Considerations of the Dispute Resolution Chamber
a. Competence and applicable legal framework
13. First of all, the Dispute Resolution Chamber (hereinafter: the Chamber or the DRC) analysed
whether it was competent to deal with the case at hand. In this respect, it took note that
the present matter was presented to FIFA on 19 December 2024 and submitted for decision
on 27 February 2025. Taking into account the wording of art. 34 of the January 2025 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.
14. Furthermore, the Chamber 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
Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players (January 2025 edition), the Dispute
Resolution Chamber is competent to deal with the matter at stake, which concerns an
employment-related dispute with an international dimension between an American player
and a Turkish club.
15. Subsequently, the Chamber analysed which regulations should be applicable as to the
substance of the matter. In this respect, it confirmed that, in accordance with art. 29 of the
Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players, the January 2025 edition of said
regulations (hereinafter: the Regulations) is applicable to the matter at hand as to the
substance.
b. Burden of proof
16. The Chamber 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 Chamber stressed
the wording of art. 13 par. 4 of the Procedural Rules, pursuant to which it 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
17. Having established the competence and the applicable regulations, the Chamber entered
into the merits of the dispute. In this respect, the Chamber started by acknowledging all
the above-mentioned facts as well as the arguments and the documentation on file.
However, the Chamber emphasised that in the following considerations it will refer only to
the facts, arguments and documentary evidence, which it considered pertinent for
assessing the matter at hand.
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REF. FPSD-17558
i. Main legal discussion and considerations
18. The Chamber then moved to the substance of the matter, and took note of the fact that
the Claimant disputes the payment of certain financial obligations by the Respondent as
per the Termination Agreement, namely USD 2,650.
19. The Club, on the other hand, did not respond to the claim, entailing that the Chamber’s
decision must be made on the basis of the documentation on file, that is, the
argumentation and evidence filed by the Claimant in line with art. 14 par. 1 and art. 2 par.
1 of the Procedural Rules.
20. In this context, the Chamber acknowledged that its 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.
21. In this regard, the Chamber 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 Termination
Agreement concluded between the parties. Nonetheless, the Chamber observed that,
regardless of the wording of the Termination Agreement, the Respondent failed to reply to
the claim and therefore did not provide any evidence to prove the payment of the amount
claimed as outstanding by the Claimant.
22. As a consequence, taking into consideration the Claimant’s request and in accordance with
the general legal principle of pacta sunt servanda, the Chamber decided that the
Respondent is liable to pay to the Claimant USD 2,650 as outstanding remuneration under
the Termination Agreement.
23. In addition, taking into consideration the Claimant’s request as well as the constant practice
of the Football Tribunal in this regard, the Chamber decided to award the Claimant interest
at the rate of 5% p.a. on the outstanding remuneration as from 18 October 2024 until the
date of effective payment.
ii. Compliance with monetary decisions
24. Finally, taking into account the applicable Regulations, the Chamber 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.
25. In this regard, the DRC 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
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REF. FPSD-17558
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.
26. Therefore, bearing in mind the above, the DRC 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.
27. 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.
28. The DRC 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
29. The Chamber 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 Chamber decided that no procedural costs were to be
imposed on the parties.
30. Likewise, and for the sake of completeness, the Chamber recalled the contents of art. 25
par. 8 of the Procedural Rules and decided that no procedural compensation shall be
awarded in these proceedings.
31. Lastly, the DRC concluded its deliberations by rejecting any other requests for relief made
by any of the parties.
pg. 8
REF. FPSD-17558
IV. Decision of the Dispute Resolution Chamber
1.
The claim of the Claimant, Melanie Mikoy, is accepted.
2.
The Respondent, Ünye Gücü Futbol Kulübü, must pay to the Claimant the following amount:
- USD 2,650 as outstanding remuneration plus 5% interest p.a. as from 18 October 2024
until the date of effective payment.
3.
Any further claims of the Claimant are rejected.
4.
Full payment (including all applicable interest) shall be made to the bank account indicated
in the enclosed Bank Account Registration Form.
5.
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.
6.
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.
7.
This decision is rendered without costs.
For the Football Tribunal:
Emilio García Silvero
Chief Legal & Compliance Officer
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REF. FPSD-17558
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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