In response to a lawsuit from eight Russian teams and one Ukrainian team questioning a transfer policy that permitted international players to suspend their contracts, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has ruled in favour of FIFA.
Two panels had determined that FIFA’s actions “were not substantially disproportionate and remained within the domain of discretion provided to FIFA by Swiss law,” according to the Lausanne-based CAS, which announced its decision on Friday.
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In the lawsuit, FIFA’s decision from June 2022 to prolong a rule permitting foreign players and coaching staff at Russian and Ukrainian clubs to unilaterally suspend their contracts until June 30, 2023 was at issue.
The emergency procedures were were put in place by FIFA in March 2022 in reaction to the unrest in Ukraine. The action was purportedly taken to give international players a means to leave Russian and Ukrainian teams amid the unpredictability brought on by the war without worrying about financial implications.
Russian football officials, on the other hand, denounced the actions as “discriminatory” and in violation of “the rules of contractual stability.” Zenit St. Petersburg, Dynamo Moscow, CSKA Moscow, Lokomotiv Moscow, Rubin Kazan, Sochi, Krasnodar, and Rostov are the eight Russian teams that filed a formal appeal with the CAS.
Shakhtar Donetsk, a Ukrainian team, also filed a complaint with FIFA, claiming that the rule was unjust and cost it millions in possible player transfer costs.
A thorough justification for the decision was being drafted, according to CAS, and would be delivered to the parties “shortly.”
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