The End of the Transfer as We Know It?
Next week's EU Court of Justice ruling on the Lassandra Diarra case could change the transfer market more profoundly than the Bosman Ruling.
In a potential landmark case, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) could reshape the football transfer system after its first advocate general concluded that FIFA's transfer rules could be contrary to competition rules and the free movement of persons. The case, known as the "Lassana Diarra case", involves former French international Lassana Diarra and his former club, Lokomotiv Moscow.
The dispute began in 2014 when Lokomotiv terminated Diarra's contract before its expiry date and demanded €20 million in compensation, based on FIFA regulations. The club argued that Diarra had refused to execute his contract after contesting an "unjustified" salary reduction. This demand for compensation deterred other clubs, including Charleroi in Belgium, from recruiting Diarra, who eventually joined Olympique de Marseille a year later.
Diarra is now seeking €6 million in compensation for being prevented from playing in 2014 under FIFA transfer rules. The Belgian courts, whose jurisdiction FIFA contested, referred a question to the CJEU in 2022, asking whether the regulation of the status and transfer of players is compatible with EU competition and free movement law.
The opinion given by Polish prosecutor Maciej Szpuna supports Diarra's position. He argues that FIFA's provisions discourage clubs from hiring players for fear of financial risk and that sporting sanctions faced by clubs hiring the player may prevent a player from exercising his profession in another Member State.
If the CJEU follows this opinion, it could profoundly change the transfer system, allowing players to terminate their contracts without fear of legal repercussions. This could lead to a more liberalized transfer market, similar to the impact of the Bosman ruling in 1995, which ended quotas for foreign players in clubs.
A ruling is expected October 4th. According to one of Diarra’s lawyers, Martin Hissel:
"In my opinion, this goes further than the Bosman ruling. The Bosman ruling had put an end to transfer compensation in the case of a free player. Here, it is the possibility for players to leave their clubs during their contract that is made possible. This will affect a much wider segment of players. The player under contract, as in all economic sectors, can leave his company. In the world of football, it is quite the opposite. We give them a power that in our eyes is legitimately theirs. If we were in a normal legal system, they would have this right and there would be no need to seek it before the Court of Justice."
Thoughts?
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