Quantifying Compensation Post-Diarra - To What Extent is Positive Interest Compatible with Article 45 TFEU on the Free Movement of Workers? If not, What Alternatives Might Exist? - By Hadeel ALSHARQAWI

Abstract

Professional Football’s Transfer System is shaped by two key milestones arising from European Union Law (EU Law): the 2001 agreement between FIFA, UEFA and the European Commission (EC), and the 2024 Diarra ruling of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU). They clarified that compensation for a player’s unilateral termination of contract without just cause must respect the free movement of workers under Article 45 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU or Treaty) and, where a restriction exists, it must be proportionate and predictable. In response to Diarra, FIFA amended its Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players (RSTP), including the codification of the positive interest principle, previously developed by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), most notably in Matuzalem.

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