Lassana Diarra Asks 65 Million Euros From FIFA, Belgian FA As 'Compensation For Damage Caused'
Ex-France player Lassana Diarra seeks €65M from FIFA and Belgian FA over transfer rules deemed against EU law by CJEU. His lawyer expects a decision in 12-15 months.
Former France international Lassana Diarra is seeking 65 million euros ($76 million) from FIFA and the Belgian football association as part of a long-standing legal dispute, announced his lawyer on Monday.
Diarra's challenge to FIFA led the world football's governing body to revise its transfer rules following a landmark legal ruling last year, but he has yet to reach a settlement.
His lawyer, Martin Hissel, stated the claim seeks 'compensation for damage caused by FIFA rules" on transfers, which the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) deemed contrary to European law last October.
'Following a ruling by the CJEU, in the absence of an amicable solution, it is natural to return to the national courts so that they can implement the CJEU ruling," Hissel said in a statement.
'That is what we are doing today, on the basis of a very clear ruling by the CJEU, which has settled all the essential legal points. The Belgian courts should deliver their decisions within 12 to 15 months."
The CJEU found in October that FIFA rules hinder the free movement of players by 'imposing considerable legal risks, unforeseeable and potentially very high financial risks, as well as major sporting risks on those players and clubs wishing to employ them," thereby disrupting the transfer system.
At the Belgian courts' request, the Luxembourg-based CJEU examined Diarra's case, who contested the conditions of his departure from Russian club Lokomotiv Moscow ten years ago.
In August 2014, Lokomotiv Moscow terminated Diarra's contract, citing contractual breaches by the player. The Russian club also sought 20 million euros compensation from him.
Diarra refused and demanded Lokomotiv pay him compensation, but the now 40-year-old was eventually ordered by FIFA to pay his former club 10 million euros, a fine upheld by the Court of Arbitration for Sport. Diarra also received a backdated 15-month suspension.
As a result, Belgian club Charleroi ultimately decided not to sign the midfielder, fearing the obligation to pay part of these penalties, in line with FIFA regulations examined by the CJEU.
Following the CJEU ruling, FIFA announced last December it had adopted an 'interim regulatory framework" regarding player transfers.
'I waited a few months before restarting the national proceedings in Belgium, thinking that, particularly following the efforts of FIFPRO Europe (the European players' union), FIFA and the Belgian football association would at least have the decency to contact me to propose an amicable settlement of the dispute (this was, in fact, the tone of the messages I received from FIFA)," said Diarra in a statement.
'This was not the case. It is their right, but it reflects a persistent culture of contempt for the rule of law and for players, despite the very clear message sent by the CJEU.
'To my great regret, we will therefore once again have to go before the judges, as I have no other choice."
Capped 34 times by France, Diarra also played for Chelsea, Arsenal, Portsmouth, and Real Madrid before ending his career at Paris Saint-Germain in 2019.
Click here to add News18 as your preferred news source on Google. News18 Sports brings you the latest updates, live commentary, and highlights from cricket, football, tennis, badmintion, wwe and more. Catch breaking news, live scores, and in-depth coverage. Also Download the News18 App to stay updated!
tags :
FIFA football Lassana Diarra
view comments
Location :
Paris, France
First Published:
Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Loading comments...
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
&w=3840&q=100)
First Post
24 minutes ago
- First Post
Ex-Pakistan pacer urges Babar, Rizwan to follow Kohli's example after Asia Cup snub: 'Consider retiring…'
Batting stars Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan were overlooked by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for next month's Asia Cup in the UAE, with fellow seniors such as Shaheen Afridi and Fakhar Zaman getting included, and former pacer Tanveer Ahmed offered the duo a radical solution. Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam have been overlooked for the upcoming Asia Cup despite being Pakistan's leading run-scorers in the T20I format. PTI Pakistan batting stars Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan have been advised to follow Virat Kohli's footsteps and announce their retirement after getting overlooked by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for the upcoming Asia Cup in the UAE. The only difference is that while Kohli remains active in One-Day Internationals, ex-Pakistan pacer Tanveer Ahmed has advised Babar and Rizwan to retire from international cricket altogether in order to preserve their 'respect', his comment causing quite the stir on social media. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Unlike Babar and Rizwan, senior pacer Shaheen Afridi has been included along with senior pacers Haris Rauf and Hasan Ali as well as veteran opener Fakhar Zaman in the 17-man squad led by Salman Agha. 'Meri Babar Azam aur Rizwan say request hai ager ap log yeh samajhtey hain ap logon ke izzat nahi ha tou retirement ley lo international cricket say humarey samne virat kohli ke examples hain. @babarazam258, @iMRizwanPak izzat apney hath main ha (My request to Babar Azam and Rizwan is that if you feel your respect is not intact, then consider retiring from international cricket. We have examples of Virat Kohli in front of us. Babar and Rizwan, respect is in your hands),' Tanveer tweeted. How Babar and Rizwan fell out of favour in the shortest format Babar and Rizwan had starred in Pakistan's historic victory over India in Dubai, where the arch-rivals will square off on 14 September, in the 2021 T20 World Cup. It was the first time Pakistan had ever defeat India in a World Cup match – either ODI or T20. The duo had also played a key role in guiding the Men in Green to the T20 World Cup final the very next year, with Pakistan falling short in the final hurdle against England at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Their T20 stocks, however, nosedived after Pakistan's dismal campaign in last year's T20 World Cup in the United States and the Caribbean, where they crashed out in the first round following defeats against co-hosts USA as well as India. Kohli had retired from T20Is along with Rohit Sharma after the two superstars propelled India to victory in last year's T20 World Cup. The two would also announce their retirement from the Test format within a week of one another in May, nearly half-a-year after a their underwhelming run in the five-match Test series against Australia Down Under. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD While Rohit's retirement was largely along expected lines, it's was Kohli's Test retirement that took the cricketing world by surprise, leading to an outpouring of tributes.
India.com
24 minutes ago
- India.com
Trump will be unhappy with this 200 number as India makes things easier for China, takes this big step to...
New Delhi: US President Donald Trump has invited trouble without any effort. His move to put pressure on India seems to be backfiring. The whole game has suddenly changed with India and China coming closer in the tariff war. Now India has done something that can hurt Trump a lot. The government is making it easier for China to invest money in India. This is a big sign of improvement in the relations between the two countries. All this is happening at a time when Trump has imposed an additional tariff of 25% on India. This will increase the tariff on Indian goods in America to 50% from August 27. Trump has imposed this tariff due to buying Russian oil. What is the government doing to settle the Chinese FDI? The government is preparing to quickly settle the FDI (Foreign Direct Investment) proposals coming from Chinese companies. For this, the government has given instructions to simplify the approval process. According to sources, the Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) headed by the Home Secretary will now work on these proposals expeditiously. A meeting of the IMC was also held last week. A senior official said, 'We have clear instructions. Reduce the time taken to process applications.' According to sources, proposals from non-critical sectors like renewable energy, manufacturing and electronics are still being considered. Dixon Technologies' FDI proposal is also under review. It includes two Chinese partners. 200 FDI proposals are awaiting approval Under Press Note 3, about 200 FDI proposals from China are pending. According to this rule, approval has to be taken from the government before investing in countries sharing a land border with India. The government can dispose of them quickly after getting approval from the IMC and the Cabinet Secretariat. Many Chinese companies have been waiting for their proposals to be approved for a long time. However, officials have also made it clear that this move should not be seen as India's soft stance towards China. A source said, 'India's engagement with Chinese FDI should not be seen through the prism of its relations with the US.'
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
24 minutes ago
- Business Standard
Wall Street slips ahead of Jackson Hole summit, US retailers' earnings
Wall Street's main indexes were down on Monday, as investors awaited a raft of corporate earnings reports from major retailers for more signs about the state of the economy and the Federal Reserve's annual symposium in Jackson Hole. Investors will closely monitor reports from Walmart, Home Depot and Target, among others expected this week, to determine how trade uncertainty and inflation expectations have affected US consumers. "Today is a day more of listlessness in the markets, where we're just waiting to see what happens from the big retailers and then the main event on Friday with (Fed Chair Jerome) Powell," said Brian Jacobsen, chief economist at Annex Wealth Management. Data on Friday showed that while retail sales were increasing broadly as anticipated, consumer sentiment overall had taken a hit from mounting inflation fears. On Monday, the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index fell to the lowest reading since December 2022. Wall Street's main indexes rallied over the past two weeks, with the blue-chip Dow hitting an intraday record high on Friday, aided by interest rate cut expectations and a better-than-expected earnings season despite an uncertain trade environment. On the geopolitical front, US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy met to discuss the future of the war in Ukraine, days after Trump's summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin which yielded no concrete outcome. Trump said he would call Putin and that it was possible the three leaders could hold a meeting. At 1:56 p.m. EDT, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 47.13 points, or 0.11 per cent, to 44,898.43, the S&P 500 lost 6.42 points, or 0.10 per cent, to 6,443.38 and the Nasdaq Composite lost 30.45 points, or 0.14 per cent, to 21,592.52. Seven of the 11 S&P 500 sectors edged lower, with communication services in the lead with a 0.9 per cent fall, weighed by Facebook parent Meta's 2.45 per cent slide. Investors continue to price in a 25-basis-point cut from the Federal Reserve next month, although they have lowered their expectations for another rate cut this year, according to data compiled by LSEG. Recent data has also suggested that while US tariffs have not filtered in to headline consumer prices yet, weakness in the jobs market could nudge the central bank to take a more dovish stance. Markets hope that the Fed's Jackson Hole, Wyoming, conference between August 21 and 23, where Powell is expected to speak, could offer more clarity on the economic outlook and the central bank's policy framework. Intel shares fell 3.16 per cent after a Bloomberg report said the Trump administration is in talks to take a 10 per cent stake in the chipmaker. Dayforce jumped 27 per cent after a report said private equity firm Thoma Bravo was in talks to acquire the human resources management software firm. Solar stocks such as SunRun rose 9 per cent and First Solar gained 9.54 per cent after the US Treasury Department unveiled new federal tax subsidy rules for solar and wind projects. Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.09-to-1 ratio on the NYSE. There were 133 new highs and 28 new lows on the NYSE. The S&P 500 posted nine new 52-week highs and two new lows, while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 73 new highs and 62 new lows.
