TAS 2023 A 10215 & 10216 Club América c. Cecilio Andrés Domínguez Ruiz & FIFA ES
CAS · Football (FIFA / CAS) · Switzerland · 3 Dec 2024
Why it matters
This case clarifies that FIFA's two-year limitation period for contractual disputes applies to claims for a statutory transfer bonus under national labor law, even if the bonus is considered a non-waivable labor right. The CAS panel held that the triggering event for the limitation period is the transfer itself, not the payment of the transfer fee. It also confirmed that a party not aggrieved by a decision lacks standing to appeal.
Summary
The case involves two consolidated appeals against a FIFA Dispute Resolution Chamber (DRC) decision of 26 October 2023. The player, Cecilio Andrés Domínguez Ruiz, had claimed a transfer bonus of USD 1,995,000 (35% of the transfer fee) from Club América under Article 296 of the Mexican Federal Labor Law (LFT). The DRC declared the claim inadmissible as time-barred under Article 23.3 of the FIFA Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players (RSTP), which sets a two-year limitation period. The player appealed (TAS 2023/A/10215), arguing that the DRC had acted ultra petita by raising prescription on its own, and that the limitation period should run from the date of payment of the transfer fee, not the transfer itself. Club América also appealed (TAS 2023/A/10216), seeking a declaration that the player had no right to the bonus. The CAS panel consolidated the appeals. It rejected the player's arguments, holding that the DRC could raise prescription ex officio under Article 10 of the FIFA Procedural Rules, and that the two-year period started from the transfer date (17 January 2019), making the claim (filed 1 September 2023) time-barred. The panel also dismissed the club's appeal for lack of standing, as the club was not aggrieved by the DRC decision (which dismissed the claim against it). The panel confirmed the DRC decision and ordered each party to bear its own costs and share the arbitration costs equally.
The detail
Parties: TAS 2023 A 10215 & 10216 Club América c. Cecilio Andrés Domínguez Ruiz & FIFA ES
Outcome: Both appeals dismissed; FIFA DRC decision confirmed that the player's claim was time-barred.
Applicable law: FIFA Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players (RSTP), Swiss Civil Code, Mexican Federal Labor Law (LFT)
Issues in play: The collision was between Mexican labor law (LFT Article 296, granting a transfer bonus) and FIFA's two-year limitation period under RSTP Article 23.3. The player argued the bonus was a labor right that could not be waived, while FIFA and the club argued the claim was prescribed.
Read the full decision at Court of Arbitration for Sport (football, via FIFA) ↗
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