Sports law

Sports law is an interdisciplinary subject and consists in particular of association law, labour law, aliens law and administrative law.

• Are you a football club and would like to employ a foreign player?
• As a non-amateur player, were you excluded from training or demoted to the second team?
• Does your employer owe you wages or victory bonuses?
• Does your employer deny you a transfer to another club?
• Have you transferred a player and the agency fee or transfer fee has not been paid?
• Are you entitled to a training or solidarity allowance as a training association?

We advise both players and clubs on labor, sports and immigration law issues. Especially in football we have a large network throughout Switzerland. We look forward to hearing from you!

Sports law disputes are often not subject to state jurisdiction, but rather jurisdiction is determined by the statutes of the relevant sports association.

The judicial administration of the Swiss Football Association (SFA) is primarily carried out by the association's internal Control and Disciplinary Committee and by the Appeals Court. For international disputes, the judicial bodies of FIFA and UEFA are responsible. The party seeking redress is obliged to fully recognise decisions of a FIFA or UEFA body of last instance (subject to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne).

The Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne (CAS / CAS) shall have exclusive jurisdiction over civil disputes in association matters between the Swiss Football Association (SFA), a club, a player or an official, to the exclusion of the ordinary state courts. The proceedings shall be governed by the Rules of Arbitration of the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

The proceedings are initiated by filing a request for arbitration. Depending on the arbitration clause and the complexity of the dispute, the arbitral tribunal shall be composed of one or three arbitrators. The arbitrators may be chosen by the parties from a list published by the Court. The language of the arbitration shall in principle be English or French.

After the Request for Arbitration has been filed and the arbitral tribunal has been constituted, the Respondent shall be given the opportunity to respond in writing to the Request for Arbitration. Depending on the complexity of the matter, a single or double exchange of written submissions will take place. The arbitral tribunal may also suspend the proceedings at any time in favour of mediation. If no agreement can be reached, the arbitrators render a judgment (if necessary, after conducting a main hearing). Under certain circumstances, this may be appealed to the Court of Appeal of the Court of Arbitration for Sport.