FIFA force Cardiff City to pay the entire transfer fee of Emiliano Sala to FC Nantes, confirmed in a club statement on Friday.
The Bluebirds state have been instructed by FIFA to pay second and third instalments of Emiliano Sala’s transfer fee – despite Nantes officials being investigated by French prosecutors specialising in organised crime and financial crime.
FIFA ordered Cardiff club to make the last two payments totalling €11million to Nantes to make up the full €17million.
BREAKING: Cardiff have been ordered to pay the entire transfer of Emiliano Sala to FC Nantes!
FIFA ordered the Welsh club to make the last two payments totalling €11m to Nantes to make up the full €17m
[@lequipe] pic.twitter.com/p7FMF7lU5Z
— Footy Accumulators (@FootyAccums) June 30, 2023
CLUB STATEMENT:
Today, FIFA ordered Cardiff City FC to pay the 2nd and 3rd instalments of the transfer fee for Emiliano Sala to FC Nantes as expected.
Yesterday the CEO of FC Nantes, Franck Kita, was placed into police custody alongside Bakari Sanogo and Joaquim Batica by the JIRS, French prosecutors specialised in organised crime and financial crime. A judicial investigation was opened in June 2022 on the counts of “illegal exercise of sports agent activity, forgery and use of forgery, misuse of corporate assets, laundering of aggravated tax evasion and organised money laundering”. The Club’s negligence claim in France against FC Nantes exhibits direct exchanges showing Mr Kita was informing Mr Sanogo of the proposed transfer fee for Emiliano Sala. It is not clear why.
In the circumstances, the Club considers that it would have been fairer if the requirement to pay FC Nantes had been deferred until the conclusion of the French police investigations and the club’s claim against FC Nantes in the French courts.
The lawyers of FC Nantes have confirmed to L’Equipe: “The club is thus confirmed in its rights. He hopes that after four years of procedure, Cardiff City will finally respect its financial commitments and stop its procedural harassment. FC Nantes is eager to definitively close the legal aspect of this tragic accident”, specify Masters Jérôme Marsaudon and Louis-Marie Absil.
Seven days ago, Cardiff said they were pleased to be allowed to pay fees for players in the January 2024 window after having the length of their EFL transfer embargo reduced.
Cardiff were placed under an embargo by the EFL because they defaulted on payment of the transfer fee for Emiliano Sala.
The embargo was set to run until summer 2024, however has now been cut by one window after the club challenged the EFL over the embargo, having seen a FIFA embargo lifted after paying the first instalment of the Sala transfer fee to Nantes.
The case was looked at again by an independent disciplinary commission which found that although Cardiff were late with a transfer payment and should therefore be sanctioned, there were exceptional circumstances which should be considered.
Cardiff chairman Mehmet Dalman told Radio Wales Sport: “It hasn’t been that difficult (to not pay fees) because we’ve been a football club in transition for the last 12 months.
“So it’s been difficult to have a proper process in place in recruitment and strategy, so we’ve had plenty of time this time round… we’re going through a thorough database and watch this space.
“The next few days is going to be quite exciting and Erol (new Cardiff manager Bulut) has his targets, we have our targets, we wouldn’t do anything that both parties disagree with, we’ve been through that. I think we’ve got some talented players that could join us.”
The English Football League had already partially lifted the embargo, which enabled the club to sign free agents and loanees back in January.
They will now be allowed sign players on a free transfer or loan signings for the summer window, but have been cleared to function normally in the transfer market come the mid-season window in 2023-24, although having to pay the full fee for Sala will be a big blow to any hopes of signing players later in the new season.
“The three-window fee restriction, previously in place, has been reduced to a two-window fee restriction,” a Bluebirds statement said on the embargo.
“Cardiff City Football Club has already served one window fee restriction in January 2023. It will therefore be eligible to pay fees once again for transfers during the January 2024 transfer window.
“The club’s summer 2023 player recruitment plan has already been prepared for some time with this potential ruling in mind.
“Cardiff City Football Club are extremely pleased with this decision, which recognises the exceptional set of circumstances the club finds itself in.”
The three-window embargo was initially imposed by Fifa, world football’s governing body, because of Cardiff’s refusal to pay the first tranche of the £15m transfer fee they had agreed with Nantes for Sala.
Cardiff previously lost their appeal against that ruling by FIFA. A three-man panel at the Court of Arbitration for Sport [CAS] heard the appeal in Lausanne in 2022, after the club claimed they weren’t liable for any of the fee because Sala wasn’t officially their player at the time of his death at the age of 28. A Swiss Federal Court is still considering an appeal against the CAS verdict.
EFL rules state that a club who default on a payment for a transfer fee would not be able to make a payment for a player registration until the end of the following season, however Cardiff have paid the first instalment of the Sala fee, plus interest and are now being forced to pay the rest.
This is what fans are saying as FIFA force Cardiff to pay the entire transfer fee of Emiliano Sala to Nantes…
@hayden_jonesss: So if we don’t pay it, even though Nantes are being investigated for fraud, we are probably going to get an even longer transfer embargo.
@Jinks_24:
CEO of Nantes arrested for being a wrong un…
Football Twitter reckon Cardiff should pay though because it’s “classy 👏🏻”
@Callumw_15: Netflix are missing out on a goldmine with Cardiff
@ScottishBbird27: This will never end
@sg_miner21: So, despite the fact that Nantes have been found guilty of illegal activity, we still have to pay the rest of the fee? I’m confused.
@M_Davies_CCFC: The new Netflix season of Cardiff City is off to a wild start
@MarkLewisCarter: Interesting. Nantes chairman arrested, Cardiff to pay the other 2 instalments & then, I assume, claim that back via damages following the Nantes / Agents corruption. From what I can tell, Cardiff expected this outcome but would have preferred it investigated BEFORE having to pay.
@chris2803: Fuck you FIFA !! We got a bit of good news this week with the embargo and now they lay this on us. Despite the Nantes chairman etc are in police custody for Money Laundering!!
@news_ninian: As much as I don’t want us paying this debt off due to how messed up it is I don’t want another embargo potentially put in place on us. Sooner it’s behind us the better
@buncey07: Never a quiet day is there .. and I was hoping for a signing or 2 before close of business for the week 😳
@CCFCMando: Nantes are so dodgy that their hierarchy have been arrested for dodgy financial dealings, including playing a part in us never getting a player we agreed a fee for. Why on Earth should we give them a penny?
@matthewjamesali: Well well well.. No doubt City could’ve handled this whole thing A LOT better but those in power at Nantes have sat there and let us take all the flack whilst their colleagues were involved in money laundering and other illegal activities 😂. Take ‘em to the cleaners City 👍🏼
— Joshua Crook (@joshuacrook01) June 30, 2023
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