An Egyptian Club Intends to Sue FIFA... Why?


On Saturday, the Egyptian Ismaily Sporting Club announced its intention to take all necessary actions against the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) over the club's registration suspension.  



In a statement through its media center on Saturday, Ismaily revealed that it had received a response to its inquiry regarding the reimposition of the registration ban on January 8, despite the ban being lifted at the beginning of the year.  


The club explained that it had sent a letter to FIFA on January 9, asking why the registration suspension had been reimposed until the required payments were made. The letter also indicated the club's readiness to pay any financial dues to lift the suspension. FIFA's response to Ismaily's letter, received on the same day, stated that the lifting of the registration ban had occurred automatically and involuntarily through the Transfer Matching System (TMS).  


The statement continued: "On January 13, Ismaily contacted FIFA again regarding the registration of players who had been added to the system. We had signed contracts with several players and paid them contract advances based on the lifting of the registration suspension on January 1. Since the mistake in lifting the ban originated from FIFA, it is their responsibility to rectify the issue and prevent the club from clashing with these players."  


FIFA's response to the club stated: "We cannot register these players because the club was already aware of the two registration suspension periods: the first from August 9, 2024, to October 19, 2024, and the second from January 1, 2025, to February 8, 2025. The club is solely responsible for signing contracts with players during these periods, as it was aware of the suspension beforehand."  


Ismaily concluded its statement by saying: "Based on all the above, the club's board of directors has decided to pursue all legal actions against FIFA to protect the club's rights following the error committed by FIFA."