Labour Disputes
Texto da decisão
Decis ion of the
Dis pute Res olution Cham ber
passed in Zurich, Switzerland, on 21 February 2020,
in the following composition:
Clifford J. Hendel (US A & France), Deputy Chairman
Pav el Piv ov arov (Rus s ia), member
Tom is lav Kas alo (Croatia), member
on the claim presented by the player,
Cris tian Ionut S apunaru, Romania,
represented by AFAN Romania
as Claimant
against the club,
Kay s eris por Kulübü, Turkey
as Respondent
regarding an employment-related dispute between the parties
I.
Facts of the cas e
1.
On 4 July 2017, the Romanian player, Cristian Ionut Sapunaru, (hereinafter: the
Claimant), and the Turkish club, Kayserispor Kulübü, (hereinafter: the
Respondent) concluded an employment contract valid during the football season
2017/2018 and 2018/2019 (hereinafter: the contract).
2.
According to the contract, the Claimant was entitled to receive a total amount of
EUR 910,000 payable as follows:
“For 2017/2018 Football Season: 440.000,00-Euro (Four Hundred Forty
Thousand Euros)
- 140.000,00-Euro (One Hundred Forty Thousand Euros) of the
aforementioned amount is to be paid to the Player by the Club as an
advance payment until 04.07.2017.
- 300.000,00-Euro (Three Hundred Thousand Euros) of the
aforementioned amount is to be paid to the Player by the Club as the
monthly salary in 10 (ten) equal instalments between the period August
2017 – May 2018. The monthly salaries are to be paid the last day of the
relevant months. The Player accepts not to request any expenses with
regard to – including but not limited with – the agency fee, flight tickets,
etc besides abovementioned payments. All of the aforesaid expenses are
included in abovementioned payments.
For 2018/2019 Football Season: 450.000,00-Euro (Four Hundred Fifty
Thousand Euros)
- 150.000,00-Euro (One Hundred Fifty Thousand Euros) of the
aforementioned amount is to be paid to the Player by the Club as an
advance payment until 30.07.2018.
- 300.000,00-Euro (Three Hundred Thousand Euros) of the
aforementioned amount is to be paid to the Player by the Club as the
monthly salary in 10 (ten) equal instalments between the period August
2018 – May 2019. The monthly salaries are to be paid the last day of the
relevant months. The Player accepts not to request any expenses with
regard to – including but not limited with – the agency fee, flight tickets,
etc besides abovementioned payments. All of the aforesaid expenses are
included in abovementioned payments.
3.
Moreover, in accordance art. 6.3 of the contract,”The Player shall be paid in the
amount of 10.000,00-Euro (Ten Thousand Euros) in relation with the 2017/2018
and 2018/2019 football season will be paid for each season for the expenses with
Player Cristian Ionut Sapunaru, Romania / Kayserispor Kulübü, Turkey
Page 2 of 10
regard to – including but not limited with – residence, car, flight tickets besides
abovementioned payments”.
4.
On 23 June 2019, the Claimant lodged a claim against the Respondent in front of
FIFA for outstanding remuneration, claiming that the Respondent failed to pay
to the Claimant a total amount of EUR 85,000, corresponding to the following:
- 5.000 Euros, partial salary related to the month of March 2019;
- 30.000 Euros, salary related to the month of April 2019;
- 30.000 Euros, salary related to the month of May 2019;
- 10.000 Euros, residence, car, flight tickets for the football season
2017/2018;
- 10.000 Euros, residence, car, flight tickets for the football season
2018/2019;
5.
In its reply to the claim, the Respondent argued that the Claimant did not take all
the payments into consideration, in particular, the following:
Player Cristian Ionut Sapunaru, Romania / Kayserispor Kulübü, Turkey
Page 3 of 10
6.
The Respondent deemed that during the Claimant’s stay with the Respondent, he
was entitled to a total amount of EUR 910,000, but the Respondent actually paid
the total amount of EUR 926,619.51 and therefore all the due amounts were paid
and the Claimant’s claim shall be dismissed.
7.
In his replica, the Claimant did not contest having received the abovementioned
amounts, however, he deemed that the amounts paid in Turkish Lira were paid
to the Claimant based on his participation and performance match bonuses.
8.
The Claimant compared these payments to the payments received by a former
colleague (Mr Tiago Jorge Oliveira Lopez) and argued that “it is easy to identify
the identify of the values and dates of the payments made in TRY as match
bonuses”. In order to explain the correlation of the bonuses and matches, the
Claimant provided the following table:
Player Cristian Ionut Sapunaru, Romania / Kayserispor Kulübü, Turkey
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9.
Furthermore, the Claimant deemed that due to the fact that the Respondent paid
“a total value bigger than the contract value” is proof that these amounts were
match bonuses. The Claimant however amended his claim as he acknowledged
that the Respondent paid a total amount of EUR 835,000 in regards to the
contract and therefore the outstanding amount is EUR 75,000.
10.
Finally, the Respondent argued that the payments made to another player are
not relevant. In particular, the Respondent claimed that if a player wants a bonus,
this would need to be stipulated in the employment agreement, but in this case,
no such “bonus article” was included.
II.
Cons iderations of the Dis pute Res olution Cham ber
1.
First of all, the Dispute Resolution Chamber (hereinafter: Chamber or DRC)
analysed whether it was competent to deal with the matter at stake. In this
respect, the DRC took note that the present matter was submitted to FIFA on 23
June 2019 and decided on 21 February 2020. Taking into account the wording of
art. 21 of the 2019 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 Chamber referred to art. 3 par. 1 of the Procedural Rules and
confirmed that, in accordance with art. 24 par. 1 and 2 in combination with art.
22 lit. b) of the Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players, the DRC is
competent to deal with the matter at stake, which concerns an employment–
related dispute with an international dimension between an Romanian player
and a Turkish club.
Player Cristian Ionut Sapunaru, Romania / Kayserispor Kulübü, Turkey
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3.
Furthermore, the DRC 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 DRC confirmed that, in accordance with art. 26 par. 1 and par. 2
of the said Regulations and considering that the present claim was lodged in front
of FIFA on 23 June 2019, the June 2019 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 this respect,
the DRC started by acknowledging all the above-mentioned facts as well as the
arguments and the documentation submitted by the parties. However, the DRC
emphasised that in the following considerations it will refer only to the facts,
arguments and documentary evidence, which it considered pertinent for the
assessment of the matter at hand.
5.
In this respect, the Chamber acknowledged that, on 4 July 2017, the Claimant and
the Respondent concluded an employment contract valid during the season
2017/2018 and 2018/2019, pursuant to which the Respondent undertook to pay
to the Claimant a total amount of EUR 910,000.
6.
Having recalled the above, the DRC observed that, the Claimant, in his claim,
requested outstanding remuneration in the amount of EUR 85,000.
7.
The DRC further noted that the Respondent deemed that the Claimant was
entitled to a total amount of EUR 910,000, but the Respondent actually paid the
total amount of EUR 926,619.51 and therefore all the due amounts were paid and
the Claimant’s claim shall be dismissed.
8.
In this regard, the Chamber noted that the Claimant, in his replica, did not contest
having received the abovementioned amounts, however, he deemed that due to
the fact that the club paid “a total value bigger than the contract value” is a proof
that these amounts were match bonuses. Moreover, the Claimant amended his
claim as he acknowledged that the club paid a total amount of EUR 835,000 in
regards to the contract and therefore the outstanding amount due is equal to
EUR 75,000.
9.
The DRC further noted that the Respondent, in its duplica, stated that if a player
wants to claim bonuses, these would need to be stipulated in the employment
agreement, but in this case, no such “bonus article” was included.
Player Cristian Ionut Sapunaru, Romania / Kayserispor Kulübü, Turkey
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11.
In this context, the DRC turned its attention to the parties’ conflicting positions
regarding the amounts allegedly paid by the Respondent to the Claimant and
their nature, the DRC carefully studied the documentary evidence submitted by
the parties. At this point, the Chamber also deemed it important to remind the
parties of the general legal principle of burden of proof, as reflected in 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”. In this particular case,
the Chamber deemed that the Respondent bore the burden of proving that it
indeed paid all the Claimant’s salaries in accordance with the contract.
10.
In this respect, the DRC observed that the Respondent while claiming to have paid
the Claimant more than he was actually due as per the employment contract,
provided as evidence several receipts in Turkish Lyra, ranging approximately from
EUR 2,000 to EUR 6,000 and paid in random dates. The Chamber also noted that
the Claimant acknowledges having received some of these amounts – reducing
his claim to EUR 75,000 – but claims they relate to bonuses.
11.
In this context, the Chamber first deemed that since the contract establishes the
payment of a monthly salary equal to EUR 30,000, these random payments in
Turkish Lyra were rather unlikely to refer to salaries. The Chamber further noted
that the Respondent allegedly paid more than it would be contractually obliged
to, which is also an indication that these extraordinary amounts refer to bonuses,
even though the latter are not specified in the contract. Furthermore, the
Chamber also noted that the player provided evidence which indicated that these
random payments in Turkish Lyra most likely refer to match bonuses, when
comparing them to payments made to another player in a similar manner.
12.
Bearing in mind the previous considerations, the DRC concurred that the
Respondent was not able to discharge its burden of proving the payment of the
player’s remuneration and must fulfil its obligations as per employment contract
up until the date of it termination in accordance with the general legal principle
of “pacta sunt servanda”.
13.
In this respect, the Chamber highlighted that the Claimant’s claimed amount of
EUR 75,000 remained outstanding, and must therefore be paid by the
Respondent.
14.
Consequently, on account of all of the above-mentioned considerations and the
specificities of the case at hand, the DRC decided to accept the Claimant’s claim
and that the Respondent must pay the amount of EUR 75,000 to the Claimant, as
outstanding remuneration.
Player Cristian Ionut Sapunaru, Romania / Kayserispor Kulübü, Turkey
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15.
The DRC concluded its deliberations in the present matter by accepting the claim
of the Claimant.
16.
Furthermore, taking into account the consideration under number II./3. above,
the DRC 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.
17.
In this regard, the 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.
18.
Therefore, bearing in mind the above, the DRC decided that, in the event that the
Respondent does not pay the amount 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.
19.
Finally, the DRC recalled that the above-mentioned ban will be lifted immediately
and prior to its complete serving upon payment of the due amount, in accordance
with art. 24bis par. 3 of the Regulations.
III.
Decis ion of the Dis pute Res olution Cham ber
1.
The claim of the Claimant, Cristian Ionut Sapunaru, is accepted.
2.
The Respondent, Kayserispor Kulübü, has to pay to the Claimant, within 45 days
as from the date of notification of this decision the amount of EUR 75,000.
3.
The Claimant is directed to inform the Respondent, immediately and directly,
preferably to the e-mail address as indicated on the cover letter of the present
decision, of the relevant bank account to which the Respondent must pay the
amount mentioned under point 2. above.
Player Cristian Ionut Sapunaru, Romania / Kayserispor Kulübü, Turkey
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4.
The Respondent shall provide evidence of payment of the due amount in
accordance with points 2. above to FIFA to the e-mail address [email protected],
duly translated, if need be, into one of the official FIFA languages (English,
French, German, Spanish).
5.
In the event that the amount due in accordance with point 2. above is not paid
by the Respondent w ithin 45 day s as from the notification by the Claimant of
the relevant bank details to the Respondent, the Respondent shall be banned
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 (cf. art. 24bis of the Regulations on the Status
and Transfer of Players).
6.
The ban mentioned in point 5. above will be lifted immediately and prior to its
complete serving, once the due amounts are paid.
7.
In the event that the amount due in accordance with point 2. above 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 FIFA’s Disciplinary
Committee for consideration and a formal decision.
*****
Note related to the publication:
The FIFA administration may publish decisions issued by the Players’ Status Committee
or the Dispute Resolution Chamber. Where such decisions contain confidential
information, 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 Rules Governing the Procedures of the Players’ Status Committee
and the Dispute Resolution Chamber).
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). 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.
Within another 10 days following the expiry of the time limit for filing the statement
Player Cristian Ionut Sapunaru, Romania / Kayserispor Kulübü, Turkey
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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:
Emilio García Silvero
Chief Legal & Compliance Officer
Player Cristian Ionut Sapunaru, Romania / Kayserispor Kulübü, Turkey
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