Former French international Lassana Diarra is seeking €65 million in damages from FIFA and the Royal Belgian Football Association (RBFA), according to Dupont Hassel, the legal firm representing the former footballer.
"Diarra is claiming €65m gross (€35m net) in compensation from FIFA and the Belgian Football Association" for damage suffered to his career, Dupont Hissel said in a statement. It said a verdict was expected within 12 to 15 months.
The lawsuit, filed in Belgium, follows a ruling handed down in October 2024 by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) that some aspects of football's transfer rules did not comply with the EU's labour and competition laws.
Diarra had unilaterally terminated his contract with Russian club Lokomotiv Moscow in February 2015 in order to sign freely with Sporting Charleroi. However, the Charleroi club ultimately withdrew its offer, fearing that, under FIFA rules, it would be forced to pay up to €20 million in compensation to Lokomotiv.
The midfielder subsequently engaged in a decade-long challenge to FIFA, which culminated in October last in the CJEU ruling.
"FIFA has changed its regulations, but in a way that does not meet the strict requirements set out in the ruling," Diarra commented. "I waited a few months before restarting the proceedings in Belgium, thinking that FIFA and the Belgian Union would have the decency to contact me to propose an amicable settlement."
"This was not the case. That is their right, but it illustrates a persistent culture of contempt for the rule of law and for players," he argued.
