FIFA Player Transfer Rules Broke Law, Says Top EU Court
- Ruling concerns curbs on transfer of France’s Lassana Diarra
- EU court says limits are unfair restriction on player movement
Lassana Diarra
Photographer: Thananuwat Srirasant/Getty ImagesFIFA transfer rules that thwarted a football player who fell out with his Russian club and tried to re-sign for a Belgian team are illegal, the European Union’s top court ruled in a decision that threatens to upend part of the sport’s regulations.
Ex-French international Lassana Diarra claimed that a deal with Sporting du Pays de Charleroi fell through because of the rules, suing FIFA and the Belgian football association before a local court for damages and loss of earnings of €6 million ($6.6 million).