CAS 2018A5782 Sports Management LDA v Baniyas Football Sports Club Company
CAS · Football (FIFA / CAS) · Switzerland · 28 Feb 2019
Why it matters
This award clarifies that CAS jurisdiction in football disputes requires an express right of appeal in the national association's statutes, not merely in the statutes of FIFA or AFC. It reinforces the principle of exhaustion of internal remedies and the consensual nature of CAS arbitration, preventing parties from bypassing established national appeal mechanisms.
Summary
DNN Sports Management LDA, a Portuguese football intermediary, claimed it was owed USD 462,500 plus 15% of future transfer value from Baniyas Football Sports Club Company under an employment offer for a player. DNN brought its claim before the UAE FA's Players' Status Committee (PSC), which rejected it on 20 May 2018 for lack of evidence of payment to the player's former club. Instead of appealing to the UAE FA Arbitration Tribunal as provided by UAE FA regulations, DNN appealed directly to CAS. The Respondent challenged CAS jurisdiction. The Sole Arbitrator found that under Article R47 of the CAS Code, CAS jurisdiction requires either a specific arbitration agreement or that the statutes of the body whose decision is appealed provide for an appeal to CAS, and that the appellant must have exhausted all internal remedies. The UAE FA Statutes and Regulations explicitly provide for appeals from the PSC to the UAE FA Arbitration Tribunal, whose decisions are final and not appealable. Neither the AFC nor FIFA Statutes create a direct right of appeal to CAS from a national association's decision. Since DNN did not appeal to the UAE FA Arbitration Tribunal, it failed to exhaust available remedies. CAS therefore lacked jurisdiction and dismissed the appeal.
The detail
Parties: CAS 2018A5782 Sports Management LDA v Baniyas Football Sports Club Company
Outcome: CAS declined jurisdiction; appeal dismissed.
Applicable law: CAS Code of Sports-related Arbitration (Articles R27, R47); UAE FA Statutes and Regulations; AFC Statutes; FIFA Statutes
Issues in play: The case concerned whether CAS had jurisdiction to hear an appeal from a decision of the UAE FA Players' Status Committee, given the UAE FA's internal appeal structure and the absence of an express right to appeal to CAS in its statutes.
Read the full decision at Court of Arbitration for Sport (football, via FIFA) ↗
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