CAS 2023 A 9578
CAS · Football (FIFA / CAS) · Switzerland · 21 Dec 2023
Why it matters
This case clarifies the standard for 'just cause' termination by a minor player, emphasizing that a club's failure to provide promised first-team training and development opportunities can constitute a breach. It also highlights the importance of oral agreements in football contracts and the limits of sporting sanctions for inducement.
Summary
Jaka Cuber Potočnik, a Slovenian minor, signed a professional contract with NK Olimpija Ljubljana in June 2021. The contract included promises of first-team training and individual coaching. After eight months without these opportunities, the player's mother terminated the contract on 30 January 2022. The next day, the player signed with 1. FC Köln. Olimpija claimed breach of contract and sought compensation. The FIFA DRC found the player breached without just cause, ordering EUR 51,750 compensation (average of old and new contract values), a 4-month playing ban, and a two-registration-period transfer ban on Köln. All parties appealed to CAS. The CAS panel examined whether the player had just cause. It considered oral agreements made during contract negotiations, which under Swiss and Slovenian law can supplement written contracts. The panel found that Olimpija failed to provide the promised first-team integration and training, constituting a breach of contract. However, the panel held that the player's termination was premature; he should have given Olimpija more time to remedy. Thus, the player did not have just cause. The compensation amount was upheld. The sporting sanctions were reviewed: the player's 4-month ban was confirmed as mandatory under the protected period. For Köln, the panel found insufficient evidence of inducement and reduced the transfer ban to one registration period. The decision underscores that clubs must honor both written and oral commitments to young players, and that sporting sanctions for inducement require clear proof.
The detail
Parties: & 9579 & 9580
Case number: CAS 2023 A 9578
Outcome: CAS upheld the FIFA DRC decision that the player breached his contract without just cause, but reduced the sporting sanctions: the player's 4-month ban was confirmed, but the transfer ban on 1. FC Köln was reduced from two registration periods to one.
Quantum: EUR 51,750
Applicable law: FIFA Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players (RSTP), Swiss law, Slovenian law
Issues in play: The case involved the interpretation of 'just cause' for contract termination under FIFA RSTP Article 17, and the application of the protected period for sporting sanctions. It also addressed whether oral agreements could supplement a written contract under Swiss and Slovenian law.
Read the full decision at Court of Arbitration for Sport (football, via FIFA) ↗
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