CAS Case Digest · Verified against the full award text

CAS 2006/A/1206 — Milan Zivadinovic v. Iraqi Football Association

"Zivadinovic v. IFA" · CAS dismissed appeal for lack of jurisdiction because IFA had no standing to be sued in FIFA disciplinary proceedings against Zivadinovic.

What happened in Zivadinovic v. IFA

Milan Zivadinovic, a Serbian professional football coach, had been ordered by the FIFA Players' Status Committee on 13 April 2004 to pay USD 125,000 to the Iraqi Football Association (IFA). That decision was upheld by CAS on 4 July 2005 (CAS 2004/A/625). Having failed to pay, Zivadinovic was sanctioned by the FIFA Disciplinary Committee on 30 November 2006 under Article 68 FDC with a fine of CHF 15,000 and a 30-day grace period to pay, failing which a ban from all football-related activity could be imposed. Zivadinovic appealed to CAS, naming IFA as respondent and seeking revocation of the DC Decision or reduction of the fine to the smallest possible amount. IFA filed no answer. FIFA renounced its right to intervene but noted the prior CAS award was final and binding. The CAS Panel dismissed the appeal on jurisdictional grounds, holding that IFA was not a party to the FIFA disciplinary proceedings, was not directly affected by the DC Decision, and therefore lacked standing to be sued (légitimation passive). The case matters because it clarifies that a FIFA disciplinary enforcement proceeding is a matter between FIFA and the non-compliant party alone, and the original creditor-beneficiary cannot be named as respondent in a CAS appeal against such a decision.

Procedural history of CAS 2006/A/1206

On 13 April 2004, the Single Judge of the FIFA Players' Status Committee ordered Zivadinovic to pay USD 125,000 to IFA. On 4 July 2005, CAS dismissed Zivadinovic's appeal (CAS 2004/A/625), making that decision final and binding. On 7 July 2006, the FIFA Disciplinary Committee secretariat opened disciplinary proceedings against Zivadinovic for non-compliance. After protracted correspondence regarding bank details and Zivadinovic's claimed financial difficulties, the FIFA Disciplinary Committee issued its decision on 30 November 2006, finding Zivadinovic guilty under Article 68 FDC, imposing a fine of CHF 15,000 and costs of CHF 2,000, and granting a 30-day grace period. The DC Decision was notified to Zivadinovic on 5 December 2006. On 27 December 2006, Zivadinovic filed a statement of appeal with CAS, supplemented on 4 January 2007, naming IFA as respondent and seeking revocation or reduction of the fine to the smallest amount. IFA did not file an answer.

Key holdings in CAS 2006/A/1206

• CAS has no jurisdiction to hear an appeal brought against a party that was not a party to the underlying FIFA disciplinary proceedings and has no standing to be sued (légitimation passive).
• IFA, as the creditor-beneficiary of the original PSC Decision, was not a party to the FIFA Disciplinary Committee proceedings directed solely at sanctioning Zivadinovic for non-compliance, and therefore cannot be named as respondent in a CAS appeal against the DC Decision.
• Under Swiss law, applicable pursuant to Article R58 of the Code, a defending party has standing to be sued only if it is personally obliged by the disputed right at stake.
• The FIFA disciplinary enforcement proceedings under Article 68 FDC protect primarily FIFA's institutional interest in compliance with its bodies' decisions, not the private rights of the creditor.
• Where IFA incurred no costs or expenses by not filing an answer, each party shall bear its own costs in proceedings that are otherwise free of charge as an international disciplinary case.

How the CAS panel reasoned

The Panel first identified the applicable jurisdictional framework under Article R47 of the CAS Code and Articles 60–61 of the FIFA Statutes (version of 1 August 2006). It then applied Swiss law on standing (légitimation passive), requiring that a respondent be personally obliged by the disputed right. The Panel analysed the nature of the DC proceedings and found that they were directed exclusively against Zivadinovic, concerned only his failure to comply with the PSC and CAS decisions, and were designed to protect FIFA's institutional interest in enforcement rather than IFA's private rights. IFA had no power to sanction Zivadinovic and was not bound by the DC Decision. The Panel rejected the implicit premise of Zivadinovic's appeal that IFA was a proper respondent, noting that IFA's rights were simply not the object of the DC proceedings. Because IFA lacked standing to be sued, CAS lacked jurisdiction over the appeal as framed. The Panel declined to hold a hearing pursuant to Article R57 of the Code and decided on the written record alone. No substantive analysis of the fine's quantum or the procedural complaints was undertaken, as the jurisdictional defect was dispositive.

Why Zivadinovic v. IFA matters in CAS jurisprudence

This award establishes that FIFA disciplinary enforcement proceedings under Article 68 FDC are bilateral matters between FIFA and the non-compliant party, and the original creditor has no standing to be sued in a CAS appeal against such a decision. It clarifies the boundary between private payment disputes (where the creditor is a proper party) and FIFA's institutional enforcement mechanism (where only FIFA's interest in compliance is at stake), preventing creditors from being dragged into CAS proceedings as respondents in disciplinary appeals they cannot meaningfully defend or be bound by.

Cases cited in this award

CAS 2004/A/625 Milan Zivadinovic v/ Iraqi Football Association

Frequently asked questions about Zivadinovic v. IFA

Why did CAS dismiss the Zivadinovic v IFA appeal without deciding on the fine?

The Panel dismissed the appeal solely on jurisdictional grounds because Zivadinovic had named IFA as respondent, but IFA was not a party to the FIFA Disciplinary Committee proceedings and had no standing to be sued under Swiss law. Since IFA's rights were not the object of the DC Decision, CAS had no jurisdiction over the appeal as framed and never reached the merits of the CHF 15,000 fine.

Can a creditor association be named as respondent in a CAS appeal against a FIFA disciplinary non-payment decision?

According to CAS 2006/A/1206, no. The Panel held that FIFA disciplinary proceedings under Article 68 FDC are directed exclusively at the non-compliant debtor and protect FIFA's institutional interest in enforcement, not the creditor's private rights. IFA, as the original creditor, had no standing to be sued (légitimation passive) and could not be identified as a respondent in the CAS appeal.

What was the underlying debt in the Zivadinovic case and had any of it been paid?

The underlying debt was USD 125,000 ordered by the FIFA Players' Status Committee on 13 April 2004 and confirmed by CAS on 4 July 2005 in CAS 2004/A/625. In his appeal brief, Zivadinovic claimed to have paid USD 60,000 of that amount, but the FIFA Disciplinary Committee found his financial difficulties were not a justification for non-payment and imposed a fine of CHF 15,000.

What fine did the FIFA Disciplinary Committee impose on Zivadinovic for non-compliance and what further sanction was threatened?

The FIFA Disciplinary Committee imposed a fine of CHF 15,000 and costs of CHF 2,000 in its decision of 30 November 2006. It also granted a 30-day grace period, warning that if payment was not made and the creditor demanded it in writing, Zivadinovic would be banned from all football-related activity until the full amount was paid, pursuant to Articles 12 let. f and 68 par. 4 FDC.

Topics: Doping, ethics & governance at CAS

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