Former French international Lassana Diarra is claiming €65 million gross from the International Football Federation and the Belgian Federation as "compensation for damages caused by FIFA's transfer rules, which the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) deemed contrary to European law, his lawyer Martin Hissel announced on Monday.

"Following a ruling by the CJEU, in the absence of an amicable solution, it is normal to return to the national courts so that they can implement the CJEU ruling. This is what we are doing today, on the basis of a very clear ruling by the CJEU which has settled all the essential legal points. The Belgian courts should deliver their decisions within 12 to 15 months," explained Mr. Hissel in a press release.

The Court of Justice of the European Union, referred to by Lassana Diarra, ruled on October 4, 2024, that FIFA rules governing transfers between clubs were "contrary" to European Union law and "likely to hinder the free movement" of professional footballers, thus disrupting the transfer system.

At the request of the Belgian courts, the high court based in Luxembourg examined the case of Diarra, who had contested the conditions of his departure from Lokomotiv Moscow ten years ago.

Diarra left the Moscow club due to a drastic salary cut, but the club deemed the termination to be unfair and demanded €20 million from him, reduced to €10.5 million.

As a result, the Belgian club Charleroi ultimately decided not to recruit the Frenchman for fear of having to pay part of these penalties, in accordance with the FIFA regulations examined by the CJEU.

"I waited a few months before relaunching the national procedure in Belgium, thinking that, particularly following the efforts in this direction of FIFPRO Europe (the players' union in Europe, editor's note), FIFA and the Belgian Federation would at least have the decency to contact me to propose an amicable settlement of the dispute (this was also the tone of the messages I received from FIFA). This was not the case. It is their right, but it reflects a persistent culture of contempt for the rule of law and for the players, despite the very clear message sent by the CJEU. To my great regret, we will therefore once again have to explain ourselves before the judges, because I have no other choice," Lassana Diarra said.