SFT Judgment 4A_598/2023, of 2 September 2024, motion against the CAS Award CAS 2021/O/7669
A Colombian football Club signed an exclusive representation agreement with an Agency in Brasil for the transfer of a football Player, and signed a contract providing for the payment of a sum depending on the transfer fee of the player.
The Agency subsequently filed a request for arbitration with the CAS requesting the payment of the agreed amount. The Sole Arbitrator considered that it was not necessary to hold a hearing but ordered a new round of submissions and requested the Agency to provide documents showing the role played in the negotiations. The Agency provided its written statements of the Player, while the Club contested the admissibility of such written statement. The Sole Arbitrator upheld the claim and ordered the Club to pay the agreed amount plus interest, considering that the agency had indeed assisted the Club in the negotiations.
The SFT confirmed the wide powers of the CAS Panel in the administration of the evidence based on Art. R44.1 of the CAS Code
In its challenge before the SFT, the Club alleged a violation of its right to be heard, holding that the CAS had not offered the possibility to cross-examine the player and omitted to decide on the requested nullity of the witness statement that was provided late (cf. also 4A_600/2023). However, the SFT swiftly dismissed this argument as the challenged award confirmed that such evidence was validly submitted under Art. R44.1 of the CAS Code.
