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International Arbitration Forum

Ismaily Sporting Club v. Egyptian Football Association (EFA)

Case summary

At a glance

Parties
Ismaily Sporting Club (Egypt) v. Egyptian Football Association (EFA)
Case no.
CAS 2021/A/7996
Forum and rules
Court of Arbitration for Sport, appeal arbitration procedure (CAS Code, Article R47 et seq.); Swiss PILA Chapter 12
Treaty
Arbitration clause relied on: Articles 45(3) and 46 of the EFA Statutes
Tribunal
András Gurovits (Sole Arbitrator)
Sector
Football; disciplinary sanctions
Outcome
CAS held that it had no jurisdiction to hear the appeal (award of 16 February 2023).
Amount
Underlying debts: USD 750,000 and USD 500,000 owed to Nogoom FC under an earlier CAS award. The sanction appealed was a three-point deduction.

The dispute

Ismaily Sporting Club is an Egyptian professional football club. An earlier CAS award of 21 February 2020 (CAS 2019/A/6187 & 6189) ordered it to pay Nogoom El Mostakabal FC USD 750,000 relating to a player transfer and USD 500,000 as compensation for breach of contract. On 22 February 2021 the EFA Disciplinary Committee gave the club 30 days to pay and announced that a three-point deduction would follow if it did not. On 4 May 2021 the EFA Appeal Committee upheld that decision. The club appealed directly to CAS, arguing that the sanction was disproportionate and that CAS had jurisdiction under Articles 45(3) and 46 of the EFA Statutes and Articles 57–58 of the FIFA Statutes. The EFA objected to jurisdiction from the outset. It argued that its Statutes require an appeal first to the Sports Settlement and Arbitration Center of the Egyptian Olympic Committee, then to FIFA, and only after that to CAS.

Key holdings

  1. The appeal was admissible. The club filed its Statement of Appeal on 23 May 2021, within the 21-day limit of Article R49 of the CAS Code, and filed its Appeal Brief within the extended time limit. ¶¶ 53–57
  2. Validity was assessed under Swiss law (PILA Articles 176 and 178). The parties had no bilateral arbitration agreement. An arbitration clause in an association's statutes can, in principle, give CAS jurisdiction (PILA Article 178(4), in force since 1 January 2021). ¶¶ 59–64
  3. The earlier CAS case did not create jurisdiction here. In that case the EFA had accepted jurisdiction by not objecting and by signing the Order of Procedure. In this case it objected from the outset and did not sign the Order of Procedure. Accepting jurisdiction once does not mean accepting it in future cases. ¶¶ 66–72
  4. At the hearing the club accepted the EFA's translation of Article 45(3) of the EFA Statutes. Under that text, an appeal to CAS is possible only after an appeal to the Egyptian Sports Settlement and Arbitration Center (and then FIFA). A direct appeal to CAS was therefore not available. ¶¶ 73–75
  5. Article 46 of the EFA Statutes deals with appeals against FIFA decisions, not EFA decisions, and does not apply. With no applicable arbitration agreement or clause, CAS has no jurisdiction, and the merits were not examined. ¶¶ 76–78; operative part

Procedural history

  1. 21 February 2020Initial CAS Award (CAS 2019/A/6187 & CAS 2019/A/6189) orders Ismaily to pay Nogoom FC USD 750,000 and USD 500,000.
  2. 22 February 2021EFA Disciplinary Committee sets a 30-day deadline to pay, with a three-point deduction if payment is not made.
  3. 4 May 2021EFA Appeal Committee dismisses Ismaily's appeal.
  4. 23 May 2021Ismaily files its Statement of Appeal with CAS. The EFA objects to jurisdiction on 30 May 2021.
  5. 27 July 2021Appointment of András Gurovits as Sole Arbitrator confirmed.
  6. 27 September 2021Order on Request for Provisional Measures dismisses Ismaily's request for a stay.
  7. 17 November 2021Hearing held by video-conference.
  8. 16 February 2023Award: CAS has no jurisdiction.

Tribunal, counsel and experts

Decided by
For the claimant
Nasr Eldin Azzam
For the respondent
Mohamed Eltobgy

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Keywords

Summary generated with AI from the published documents — refer to the award for the authoritative text.

Case ID
CAS 2021/A/7996
Claimant
Ismaily Sporting Club
Respondent
Egyptian Football Association (EFA)
Documents

Procedure: Appeal
Sport: Football
Matter: Disciplinary (except doping)
Outcome: Jurisdiction denied
Panel: Andras Gurovits
Source: Court of Arbitration for Sport case database.