The Lassana Diarra case continues to change things. In a letter consulted by AFP on Monday, UEFA, the European national leagues and player representatives asked the European Commission to host discussions on the “reform of the transfer system in Football”.
Dated December 6, this letter also signed by the European Club Association (ECA) and the players’ union FIFPro intends to follow the announcement on December 23 of a new “temporary framework” for transfers by Fifa, in reaction to a recent decision of the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) and the approach of the winter transfer window which opens this Wednesday.
FIFA invited to take part in discussions
“UEFA and the European football authorities can collectively discuss and propose their solutions on the status and transfer of professional players but also other issues such as safety and health, of major importance in our sector and the principles of the European Union,” write the signatories.
They propose to carry out these exchanges within the framework of the EU Professional Football Sectoral Social Dialogue Committee (EU SSDC). Their aim would be in particular to “strengthen financial stability through solid regulatory frameworks which promote the mobility and rights of players”, indicate UEFA and its partners. Fifa would be invited to the Committee as an advisor.
The aftermath of the Diarra ruling
Fifa has adjusted its regulations on player transfers after a decision by the CJEU which examined in October, at the request of the Belgian justice system, the case of Lassana Diarra, a French international who challenged the conditions of his transfer ten years ago. departure from Lokomotiv Moscow.
Due to a drastic reduction in his salary, Diarra left the Russian club, but the latter deemed the break unfair and demanded 20 million euros from him, reduced to 10.5 million euros. Consequence: the Belgian club Charleroi had given up recruiting the Frenchman for fear of having to assume part of these penalties, in accordance with the FIFA regulations studied by the CJEU.
This regulation is “likely to hinder the freedom of movement of professional footballers”, ruled the Court, considering that it “imposed on these players and on the clubs wishing to engage them significant legal risks, unpredictable financial risks and potentially very high as well as major sporting risks”.
In response, Fifa’s new “temporary framework” focused on “the rules governing compensation for breach of contract” or even “procedures before the football court”.
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