Professional football players get free reign? ⚽

The European Court of Justice issued a very interesting ruling on Oct. 4, 2024, especially for the soccer world. The bottom line is that FIFA's current transfer system violates European rules on competition and free movement of persons.

Reason
The ball in this case started rolling in 2014 when (the now ex-footballer) Lassana Diarra broke his contract with Russia's Lokomotiv Moscow. The club did not let up and imposed a multi-million dollar fine on Diarra for breach of contract. Appealing to FIFA did not have the desired outcome for Diarra as he was ordered to pay compensation to Lokomotiv of 10 million.

That Diarra, as during his soccer career, was a biter was evident when he went to court in Belgium and demanded damages of 6 million from FIFA. In essence, Diarra took the position that like “normal” employees, he should be able to unilaterally terminate his employment contract.

Ruling

The European Court followed Diarra to some extent in stating that the current FIFA rules: 'constitute an obstacle to the free movement of professional footballers who wish to develop their activity by working for a new club'.

Possible consequences

In theory, this ruling means that footballers may already and/or in the future be able to unilaterally terminate their contracts and thus change clubs more easily. Thus, the transfer system should be changed. This would mean that depositing huge transfer fees is a thing of the past, while this is an important source of income for Dutch clubs. Whether it will go that far is unknown. Indeed, FIFA states “the legality of the key principles of the transfer system have been reaffirmed in this ruling. So the system is not being completely dismantled by the European Court. 

The case between Diarra and FIFA will continue in the Belgian court where it appears Diarra will be vindicated. If necessary, FIFA could still appeal to the Belgian Court of Appeal. You can read the summary of the case via this link. 

In short, knowledge of labor law is also relevant for the soccer fan.  If you have any questions, please contact Tessa Sipkema, Elke Hofman-Bijvank, Dennis Oud or Tim van Riel.