Marta Vieira da Silva, Comitê Olímpico do Brasil (COB), Confederação Brasileira de Futebol (CBF) v. Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA)

At a glance

Parties

Marta Vieira da Silva, Comitê Olímpico do Brasil (COB) and Confederação Brasileira de Futebol (CBF) v. Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA); IOC as Interested Party

Case no.

CAS OG 24/014

Forum and rules

CAS ad hoc Division (Olympic Games Paris 2024); CAS Arbitration Rules for the Olympic Games; seat Lausanne

Treaty

Olympic Charter Rule 61.2; arbitration clause in the Paris 2024 entry form

Tribunal

Laila El Shentenawi (Sole Arbitrator)

Sector

Football; Olympic eligibility; disciplinary sanctions

Outcome

Jurisdiction upheld, but the application was dismissed (operative part 6 August 2024; reasoned award 16 August 2024).

Amount

No monetary claim. No order as to costs; the ad hoc Division's services are free and each party bears its own costs.

The dispute

Brazilian player Marta Vieira da Silva was sent off at minute 45+6 of the Brazil v. Spain match of the Women's Olympic Football Tournament on 31 July 2024. The referee reported the incident as serious foul play: a high tackle showing studs. On 2 August 2024 the FIFA Disciplinary Committee applied Article 14.1(e) of the FIFA Disciplinary Code and suspended her for two matches, one of which was the automatic suspension. It declared its decision final and not open to appeal to CAS. The Player, COB and CBF applied to the CAS ad hoc Division to reduce the suspension to one match, so that she could play against Spain on 6 August 2024. They argued that the incident was "unsporting behaviour" under Article 14.1(b), not serious foul play. FIFA objected to jurisdiction under Article 50.3(b) of the FIFA Statutes, which excludes CAS appeals against suspensions of up to four matches. On the merits, FIFA defended the decision.

Key holdings

1. CAS has jurisdiction. Rule 61.2 of the Olympic Charter and the entry form give broad jurisdiction over disputes arising in connection with the Olympic Games. International Federations cannot limit that jurisdiction through their own regulations. ¶¶ 52–55
2. The scope of review is still governed by FIFA's regulations. Article 50.3(b) of the FIFA Statutes excludes appeals against suspensions of up to four matches. Challenging the choice of Article 14.1(e) is in substance a challenge to the two-match suspension, so the appeal must be dismissed. ¶¶ 54, 61
3. Article 14 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code regulates field of play matters. Whether the incident counts as "unsporting behaviour" or "serious foul play", the question remains a field of play decision. The Disciplinary Committee relied on the referee's classification and imposed the minimum sanction. ¶¶ 62–63
4. A field of play decision can be overturned only on direct evidence that clears a high hurdle, showing bad faith, bias, corruption or arbitrariness. The Applicants did not argue any of these grounds, so there was no basis to apply Article 14.1(b) instead of Article 14.1(e). ¶¶ 64–65
5. No order as to costs. Under Article 22 of the CAS Ad hoc Rules, the Division's services are free and each party bears its own costs. FIFA's request that the Applicants pay the costs was refused. ¶¶ 66–68

Procedural history

1. 31 July 2024Brazil v. Spain match: the Player is sent off for serious foul play.
2. 2 August 2024The FIFA Disciplinary Committee (case FDD-19032) suspends the Player for two matches. The grounds are notified on 4 August 2024.
3. 5 August 2024The Applicants file their Application with the CAS ad hoc Division. The Sole Arbitrator is appointed the same day.
4. 6 August 2024Hearing by videoconference. The operative part of the award, dismissing the application, is notified at 15h48.
5. 16 August 2024Reasoned award issued.

Tribunal, counsel and experts

Decided by

• Laila El Shentenawi Sole arbitrator, CAS ad hoc Division — appointed by the institution

For the claimant

Bichara Abidão Neto · Victor Eleuterio · Felipe Pestana · André Mattos · Regina Sampaio · Luciano Hostins · João Paulo Di Carlo

For the respondent

Miguel Liétard Fernández-Palacios · Cristina Pérez González

For other participants

Antonio Rigozzi

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Keywords

• Marta
• Olympic Games Paris 2024
• CAS ad hoc Division
• women's football
• field of play doctrine
• serious foul play
• unsporting behaviour
• FIFA Disciplinary Code Article 14
• FIFA Statutes Article 50.3(b)
• match suspension
• Olympic Charter Rule 61
• jurisdiction
• scope of review
• red card
• eligibility

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