Labour Disputes
Texto da decisão
REF 20-00799
Decision of the
Dispute Resolution Chamber
passed on 28 January 2021
regarding an employment-related dispute concerning the player Renan Rodrigues da Silva
COMPOSITION:
Clifford J. Hendel (USA & France), Deputy Chairman
Stéphane Burchkalter (France), member
Todd Durbin (USA), member
CLAIMANT:
Renan Rodrigues da Silva, Brazil
Represented by Mr Koray Akalp
RESPONDENT:
Giresunspor Kulübü Derneği, Turkey
Represented by Mr Atahan Sevimli
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I.
Facts
1. The parties entered into an employment contract (hereinafter: the contract) with an
expiration date at the end of the 2019/2020 football season in Turkey.
2. According to Clause 6.1 of the contract, for the 2019/2020 season the Respondent agreed
to pay the Claimant the following:
For 2019/2020 Football Season:
210.000,00-EURO (Two Hundred Ten Euros) The aforementioned amount is NET and to
be paid to the Player by the Club on the below mentioned dates:
-10.000,00-EUR as advance payment
-20.000,00-EUR on the 31th of August, 2019,
-20.000,00-EUR on the 30th of September, 2019,
-20.000,00-EUR on the 31th of October, 2019,
-20.000,00-EUR on the 30th of November, 2019,
-20.000,00-EUR on the 31th of December, 2019,
-20.000,00-EUR on the 31h of January, 2020,
-20.000,00-EUR on the 28th of February, 2020,
- 20.000,00-EUR on the 31th of March, 2020,
-20.000,00-EUR on the 30th of April, 2020,
-20.000,00-EUR on the 31th of May, 2020,
► In the case of The Player takes part in 20 (twenty) official league matches in 2019-2020
football season, The Club will pay to the Player the amount of 20.000,00 -EUR NET as
bonus, within 30 days from the date of the 20th match.
► The Club shall provide an appropriate car (the discretion of choosing the car is belong
to the Club) for the use of the Player during the term of this Contract, provided that the
Player has a driving license which is valid in Turkey. The costs of maintenance of the car
shall be paid by the Player.
► The Club shall provide a furnished flat for use of the Player during the term of this
Contract.
► The Club shall provide 1 round trip ticket (Turkey-Brazil-Turkey) for The Player and his
family for each season.”
3. The contract further stipulated the following: “6.3. The Club shall pay success bonuses
to the Player, which will be set by the Club on its own discretion. The Player is entitled
to get bonus that shall not be less than other players in the team.”
4. On 22 May 2020, the parties concluded a Protocol.
5. According to the Protocol, the Parties agreed to enter into an employment contract for
the 2020/2021 season (subject to conditions stipulated in the Protocol) in case the
Respondent promotes to the TFF Super League (the highest division in Turkish football)
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at the end of the 2019/2020 season and in case the Claimant continues to play for the
Respondent until the end of 2019/2020 season.
6. Furthermore, according to the Protocol, the Respondent agreed to pay EUR 5,000 to the
Claimant on the date of signing of the Protocol, and agreed to provide a bank cheque
of EUR 25,000 dated 15 July 2020 which would also be signed and guaranteed by the
Respondent’s president, Mr. Sacit Ali Eren. The payment of EUR 5,000 and the delivery
of the bank cheque would be made as a partial payment of the outstanding
remuneration due to the Player for the 2019/2020 season.
7. On 16 December 2019, the Claimant sent a notice to the Respondent, requesting the
payment of the total overdue amount of EUR 80,000, which reflected 4 months of
salaries of August, September, October and November 2019.
8. On 7 January 2020, the Claimant sent another notice to the Respondent, requesting the
payment of the total overdue amount of EUR 70,000, which reflected the Claimant’s half
salary of September 2019 and full salaries of October, November and December 20193.
9. Finally, on 12 May 2020, the Claimant sent a notice to the Respondent requesting the
payment of his overdue remuneration totalling EUR 170,000 and provided the
Respondent a 10 day deadline to pay these amounts.
10. According to the Claimant, he has taken part in 20 official matches for the Respondent,
the 20th match having taken place on 7 March 2020.
11. On 2 June 2020, the Claimant lodged a claim before FIFA for outstanding remuneration
and requested the payment of the following amounts:
- Net 20.000 EUR along with its interest of %5 p.a. starting from 1 December 2019
- Net 20.000 EUR along with its interest of %5 p.a. starting from 1 January 2020
- Net 20.000 EUR along with its interest of %5 p.a. starting from 1 February 2020
- Net 20.000 EUR along with its interest of %5 p.a. starting from 1 March 2020
- Net 20.000 EUR along with its interest of %5 p.a. starting from 1 April 2020
- Net 20.000 EUR along with its interest of %5 p.a. starting from 1 April 2020
- Net 20.000 EUR along with its interest of %5 p.a. starting from 1 May 2020
- Net 20.000 EUR along with its interest of %5 p.a. starting from 1 June 2020
- Net 20.000 EUR as overdue bonus along with its interest of % 5 p.a. starting from 7 April 2020
12. In its reply to the claim, the Respondent explained that it paid the player, the total
amount of EUR 120,162, detailed as follows:
► EUR 30.000.-on 19.08.2019,
► EUR 1.350.-on 17.10.2019,
► TRY 9.000.-(EUR 1.428.-in exchange rate on the date of payment) on 20.11.2019,
► TRY 4.500.-(EUR 710-in exchange rate on the date of payment) on 28.11.2019,
► EUR 10.000.-on 04.12.2019,
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► TRY 13.500.-(EUR 2.117.-in exchange rate on the date of payment) on 06.12.2019,
► TRY 18.000.-(EUR 2.792-in exchange rate on the date of payment) on 13.12.2019,
► EUR 30.000.-on 26.12.2019,
► TRY 13.500.-(EUR 2.065.-in exchange rate on the date of payment) on 20.01.2020,
► TRY 13.500.-(EUR 2.066.-in exchange rate on the date of payment) on 29.01.2020,
► TRY 9.000.-(EUR 1.364.-in exchange rate on the date of payment) on 04.02.2020,
► TRY 13.500.-(EUR 1.988-in exchange rate on the date of payment) on 04.03.2020,
► TRY 13.500.-(EUR 1.945.-in exchange rate on the date of payment) on 10.03.2020,
► EUR 5.000.-on 22.05.2020,
► TRY 4.500.-(EUR 586-in exchange rate on the date of payment) on 19.06.2020,
► TRY 9.000.-(EUR 1.165-in exchange rate on the date of payment) on 23.06.2020,
► EUR 25.000.-on 25.06.2020
► TRY 4.500.-(EUR 586-in exchange rate on the date of payment) on 26.06.2020,
13. In this respect, the club expressed that “because of economic and political crisis in Turkey,
the Club has difficulty in financial position. The crisis was caused by the Turkish
economy's excessive current account deficit and foreign-currency debt, in combination
and it is characterized by the Turkish lira (TRY) plunging in value, high inflation, rising
borrowing costs, and correspondingly rising loan defaults.”
14. The Claimant was subsequently invited to provide his replica.
15. In this respect, the Claimant provided his replica and he amended his claim and expressed
the following:
“the total entitlement of the Claimant throughout the Employment Contract (i.e.
355.000 EUR net) a total of 160.000 EUR remains unpaid by the Respondent. This amount
involves the Claimant’s;
- November 2019 salary of 20.000 EUR with the due date of 30 November 2019- December 2019 salary of 20.000 EUR with the due date of 31 December 2019
- January 2020 salary of 20.000 EUR with the due date of 31 January 2020
- February 2020 salary of 20.000 EUR with the due date of 28 February 2020
- March 2020 salary of 20.000 EUR with the due date of 31 March 2020
- April 2020 salary of 20.000 EUR with the due date of 30 April 2020
- May 2020 salary of 20.000 EUR with the due date of 31 May 2020
- Individual bonus (20 match appearance) of 20.000 EUR with the due date of 6
April 2020.”
16. Furthermore, the Claimant requested the payment of flights ticket expenses of in the
amount of EUR 2.265 EUR and medical expense of 9.720 TRY. The player attached in this
respect a receipt dated 25 August 2020 for the amount of BRL 13,816.08 for the journey
Istabnul-Sao Paulo, as well as a receipt from doctor dated 17 July 2020 for the amount
of TRY 9,720.
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REF 20-00799
17. As to the payment in TRY, the Claimant noted that “the payments in Turkish Liras must
be clarified in the eyes of FIFA DRC, which is unfortunately a common tactic by several
clubs while attempting to reduce their obligations towards players.”
18. In particular, the Claimant argued that the payments in TRY are team bonus payments,
in accordance with art. 6.3 of the contract.
19. For instance, the Claimant explained that the following payments corresponds to
bonuses:
- The payment of 9.000 TRY on 20 November 2019 was made as bonus for Osmanlıspor match;
- The payment of 4.500 TRY on 28 November 2019 was made as bonus for Adanaspor match;
- The Payment of 13.500,-TRY on 6 December 2019 was made as bonus for Adana Demirspor
match;
- The payment of 18.000,-TRY on 13 December 2019 was made as bonus for Bursaspor match;
20. In view of the above, the Claimant considered that he “clearly demonstrated that these
payments in Turkish Liras (which are all coefficients of 4.500,-TRY) submitted by the
Respondent are all team bonuses which are paid by the Respondent to all its members
and should not be taken into consideration by the FIFA DRC when assessing the total
remuneration due to the Claimant by the Respondent under the Employment Contract.”
21. In its reply to the amended claim, the club explained that, in order to be provided with
an air ticket, the player shall talk with “the Club’s Team Principal and ask for the
arrangements”. However, according to the club, the player bought the tickets without
informing it. As a result, the club considered that the player abused his rights.
22. The club further considered that the player is not in a position to claim medical expenses,
as he did not follow the club’s instructions in this respect.
II. Considerations of the Dispute Resolution Chamber
1. First of all, the Dispute Resolution Chamber (hereinafter also referred to
as Chamber or DRC) analysed whether it was competent to deal with the case at hand.
Taking into account the wording of art. 21 of the June 2020 edition of the Rules
Governing the Procedures of the Players’ Status Committee and the Dispute Resolution
Chamber (hereinafter: the Procedural Rules), the aforementioned edition of the
Procedural Rules is applicable to the matter at hand.
2. Subsequently, the Dispute Resolution Chamber referred to art. 3 par. 1 of the Procedural
Rules and emphasised that, in accordance with art. 24 par. 1 in combination with art.
22 lit. b) of the Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players, the Dispute Resolution
Chamber is competent to deal with matters which concern employment-related disputes
with an international dimension between players and clubs.
3. In continuation, the Dispute Resolution Chamber analysed which edition of the
Regulations of the Status and Transfer of Players should be applicable to the present
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matter. In this respect, the Dispute Resolution Chamber confirmed that in accordance
with art. 26 par. 1 and 2 of the Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players, and
considering that date when the claim was lodged, the June 2020 edition of the
aforementioned regulations (hereinafter: the Regulations) is applicable to the matter at
hand.
4. With the above having been established, the Dispute Resolution Chamber entered into
the substance of the matter. In doing so, it started to acknowledge the facts of the case
as well as the documents contained in the file. However, the Dispute Resolution Chamber
emphasized that in the following considerations it will refer only to facts, arguments and
documentary evidence which it considered pertinent for the assessment of the matter at
hand.
5. In this respect, the Chamber noted that, the parties concluded an employment contract
with the economic conditions quoted in point 2. I above.
6. Subsequently, the Chamber noted that the Claimant lodged a claim before FIFA; by means
of which he initially requested the amounts quoted in point I. 11 above. The Chamber
noted that, during the course of the investigation, that the Claimant amended his claim
and ultimately requested the following amounts:
- November 2019 salary of 20.000 EUR with the due date of 30 November 2019- December 2019 salary of 20.000 EUR with the due date of 31 December 2019
- January 2020 salary of 20.000 EUR with the due date of 31 January 2020
- February 2020 salary of 20.000 EUR with the due date of 28 February 2020
- March 2020 salary of 20.000 EUR with the due date of 31 March 2020
- April 2020 salary of 20.000 EUR with the due date of 30 April 2020
- May 2020 salary of 20.000 EUR with the due date of 31 May 2020
- Individual bonus (20 match appearance) of 20.000 EUR with the due date of 6 April 2020.
7. On the other hand, the Chamber took note of the Respondent’s position, according to
which it paid the player the total amount of EUR 120,162, as detailed in point I. 13 above.
8. As a result, the Chamber understood that the Respondent partially admitted a debt
towards the Claimant. Yet, considering the documentation provided by the Respondent
(cf. point I. 13 above), the Chamber therefore understood that the matter at stake
fundamentally consists in determining, on the basis of the contract as well as the evidence
gathered during the course of the investigation, the exact quantum of debt due by the
Respondent towards the Claimant.
9. Within this context, the Chamber reminded the parties of the contents of art. 12 par. 3
of the Procedural Rules, according to which “any party claiming a right on the basis of an
alleged fact shall carry the burden of proof”, as well as to art 12 par. 7, according to
which “evidence shall be considered with free discretion, taking into account the conduct
of the parties during the proceedings, especially a failure to comply with a personal
summons, a refusal to answer questions and the withholding of requested evidence.”
10. In this respect, the Chamber first noted that, following the contract, the player was
entitled to a total amount of EUR 210,000 (plus a bonus of EUR 20,000, leading to a total
of EUR 230,000), of which it claimed having paid EUR 120,162. The Chamber also noted
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that, following the Respondent’s documentation, the amount paid to the player were
performed in an irregular manner and not exactly following the payment schedule that
was agreed in the contract.
11. In other words, the Chamber observed that, according to the Club, at least EUR 109,838
are outstanding.
12. In view of the above, the Chamber considered the total amount due as per the contract
(EUR 230,000, incl. a bonus, as specified in clause 6.1 of the contract), and, after carefully
observing the documentation on file, accepted that the Respondent sufficiently proved
that it paid the total amount of EUR 101,350. For the sake of clarity, the Chamber noted
that it could only admit as acceptable evidence in this matter, documents proving a
transfer in EUR (as agreed in the contract), but not any other document providing
payments in Turkish lira (TRY), or other documents such as promissory notes, which do
not sufficiently establish that the Claimant received the contractually agreed amounts.
13. In particular, the Chamber considered that the Respondent sufficiently proved the
payment of the following amounts:
► EUR 30.000.-on 19.08.2019,
► EUR 1.350.-on 17.10.2019,
► EUR 10.000.-on 04.12.2019,
► EUR 30.000.-on 26.12.2019,
► EUR 5.000.-on 22.05.2020,
► EUR 25.000.-on 25.06.2020
Total: EUR 101,350
14. As a result, the Chamber determined that the outstanding amount arising from the
contract amounts to EUR 128,650 (i.e. 230,000-101,350).
15. Moreover, and for the sake of completeness, the Dispute Resolution Chamber considered
that, in line with its well-established jurisprudence, a club’s financial difficulties cannot be
considered a valid justification for non-compliance with its essential contractual
obligations deriving from the signature of a binding agreement. Consequently,
the Dispute Resolution Chamber decided that this argumentation of the
Respondent could be followed on this point.
16. Consequently, in strict application of the principle of pacta sunt servanda, the Dispute
Resolution Chamber established that the Respondent has to pay to the Claimant, the
total outstanding amount of EUR 128,650, as agreed in the contract.
17. In addition, taking into account the request of the Claimant as well as the longstanding
jurisprudence in this regard, the Dispute Resolution Chamber decided to award 5%
interest p.a. over said amount as from the date of the claim, i.e. 2 June 2020.
18. In addition, the Chamber turned its attention to the Claimant’s request to be reimbursed
with the amount of BRL 13,816.08, corresponding to a receipt dated 25 August 2020 for
an air ticket for the journey Istanbul-Sao Paulo.
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19. In this respect, the Chamber noted that said request was based on clause 6.1 of the
contract, and that the player sufficiently supported it with evidence. As a result, the
Chamber decided to accept this part of the Claimant’s request, and therefore established
that the Respondent shall pay to the Claimant the amount of BRL 13,816.08 as air tickets.
20. On the other hand, the Chamber also observed that the Claimant requested a
reimbursement for medical expenses. However, after duly reviewing the contract at
stake, the Chamber observed that the reimbursement of said expenses was not provided
and thus, rejected the Claimant’s request in this regards.
21. Furthermore, taking into account the previous considerations, the Dispute Resolution
Chamber referred to par. 1 and 2 of art. 24bis 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 Dispute Resolution Chamber pointed out 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 and for the maximum duration of three entire and consecutive
registration periods.
23. Therefore, bearing in mind the above, the Dispute Resolution Chamber decided that, in
the event that the Respondent does not pay the amounts due to the Claimant within 45
days as from the moment in which the Claimant, following the notification of the present
decision, communicates the relevant bank details to the Respondent, a ban from
registering any new players, either nationally or internationally, for the maximum
duration of three entire and consecutive registration periods shall become effective on
the Respondent in accordance with art. 24bis par. 2 and 4 of the Regulations.
24. Finally, the Dispute Resolution Chamber 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. 24bis par. 3 of the Regulations.
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III. Decision of the Dispute Resolution Chamber
1.
The claim of the Claimant, Renan Rodrigues da Silva, is partially accepted.
2.
The Respondent, Giresunspor Kulübü Derneği, has to pay to the Claimant, the following
amount:
- EUR 128,650 as outstanding remuneration plus 5% interest p.a. as from the due
dates until the date of effective payment;
- BRL 13,816.08 as reimbursement for air tickets;
3.
Any further claims of the Claimant are rejected.
4.
The Claimant is directed to immediately and directly inform the Respondent of the
relevant bank account to which the Respondent must pay the due amount.
5.
The Respondent shall provide evidence of payment of the due amount in accordance with
this decision to [email protected], duly translated, if applicable, into one of the official
FIFA languages (English, French, German, Spanish).
6.
In the event that the amount due, plus interest as established above is not paid by the
Respondent within 45 days, as from the notification by the Claimant of the relevant
bank details to the Respondent, the following consequences shall arise:
1. The Respondent shall be banned from registering any new players, either nationally
or internationally, up until the due amount is paid and for the maximum duration
of three entire and consecutive registration periods. The aforementioned ban
mentioned will be lifted immediately and prior to its complete serving, once the
due amount is paid.
(cf. art. 24bis of the Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players).
2. In the event that the payable amount as per in this decision is still not paid by the
end of the ban of three entire and consecutive registration periods, the present
matter shall be submitted, upon request, to the FIFA Disciplinary Committee.
7.
This decision is rendered without costs.
For the Dispute Resolution Chamber:
Emilio García Silvero
Chief Legal & Compliance Officer
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NOTE RELATED TO THE APPEAL PROCEDURE:
According to article 58 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 20 of the Procedural Rules).
CONTACT INFORMATION:
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FIFA-Strasse 20 P.O. Box 8044 Zurich Switzerland
www.fifa.com | legal.fifa.com | [email protected] | T: +41 (0)43 222 7777
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