CAS Case Digest · Verified against the full award text

CAS 2023/A/10014 — Morten Beck Guldsmed v. The Football Association of Iceland & The Football Department of FH

"Guldsmed" · CAS dismissed a Danish player's appeal as time-barred because his detour to the ISI Court of Appeal did not revive the 21-day deadline.

What happened in Guldsmed

Morten Beck Guldsmed, a Danish professional footballer, was registered with Icelandic club FH under a Standard KSI Contract from 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2021, earning a net monthly salary of €4,800. A dispute arose over whether the contract was an employment contract (making the club liable for taxes and pension contributions) or a contractor arrangement. KSI's Transfer Committee ruled in August 2022 that it was an employment contract. The KSI Disciplinary and Ruling Committee then fined FH ISK 150,000 and threatened a transfer ban if the club did not settle. The KSI Court of Appeal confirmed those sanctions on 15 June 2023 but lifted the transfer ban on 28 July 2023 after the club submitted letters to the Tax Office and pension fund. The player appealed that lifting to the ISI Court of Appeal on 4 August 2023, which dismissed the case on 29 August 2023 for lack of jurisdiction. The player then filed at CAS on 18 September 2023. CAS found it had jurisdiction under Article 40.3 of the KSI Statutes and that the 28 July 2023 communication was a 'decision' under Article R47 of the CAS Code, but declared the appeal inadmissible because it was filed more than 21 days after 28 July 2023. The ISI CA appeal was not an ordinary remedy capable of suspending or reviving the CAS deadline.

Procedural history of CAS 2023/A/10014

On 10 August 2022, KSI's Transfer Committee ruled the Player Contract was an employment contract. On 30 March 2023, the KSI Disciplinary and Ruling Committee fined FH ISK 150,000 and imposed a conditional transfer ban. On 15 June 2023, the KSI Court of Appeal confirmed those sanctions. On 28 July 2023, the KSI Court of Appeal lifted the transfer ban after the club submitted letters to the Tax Office and pension fund (the 'Decision'). On 4 August 2023, the player appealed to the ISI Court of Appeal, which dismissed the case on 29 August 2023 for lack of jurisdiction. On 18 September 2023, the player filed a Statement of Appeal at CAS against the KSI and FH. The proceedings were bifurcated by agreement of all parties to address jurisdiction and admissibility first, decided on written submissions alone.

Key holdings in CAS 2023/A/10014

• The KSI CA's 28 July 2023 communication lifting the transfer ban constitutes a 'decision' within the meaning of Article R47 of the CAS Code because its content, not its form, affected the legal state of the player.
• CAS has jurisdiction over the dispute pursuant to Article 40.3 of the KSI Statutes, which provides that results of disputes and/or complaints within KSI may be appealed to CAS after exhaustion of Icelandic sports remedies.
• The obligation to exhaust internal remedies under Article R47 of the CAS Code encompasses only ordinary remedies foreseen by the applicable regulations, not extraordinary remedies such as an appeal to the ISI Court of Appeal on Olympic Charter grounds.
• The player's appeal to the ISI Court of Appeal was not a mandatory ordinary remedy and therefore did not suspend or revive the 21-day time limit under Article R49 of the CAS Code.
• Because the Statement of Appeal was filed on 18 September 2023, more than 21 days after the Decision of 28 July 2023, the appeal is inadmissible.

How the CAS panel reasoned

The Sole Arbitrator first separated the question of whether the 28 July 2023 communication was a 'decision' from the question of jurisdiction, treating the former as an admissibility issue rather than a jurisdictional one. He found the communication qualified as a decision because it amended the KSI CA's earlier ruling of 17 July 2023 and affected the player's legal position by removing the only enforcement mechanism for the club's obligations. On jurisdiction, he accepted Article 40.3 of the KSI Statutes as a sufficient arbitration clause. On timeliness, the Arbitrator applied the principle that Article R47 of the CAS Code requires exhaustion of ordinary remedies only. He found the player's invocation of the Olympic Charter before the ISI CA — relying on general principles such as the 'Fundamental Principles of Olympism' and IOC mission articles never raised in prior KSI proceedings — was 'completely baseless' and could not transform that appeal into a mandatory step. Citing CAS 2013/A/3272, CAS 2003/A/443, CAS 2002/A/409, CAS 2011/A/2670, and CAS 2021/A/8034, he concluded the player could have filed simultaneously at CAS and ISI CA but was not entitled to wait for the ISI CA ruling before starting the CAS clock. The 21-day period ran from 28 July 2023 and was not revived by the ISI CA decision of 29 August 2023.

Why Guldsmed matters in CAS jurisprudence

This award reinforces the strict CAS jurisprudence that the 21-day appeal deadline under Article R49 runs from the date of the immediately appealable decision and is not suspended by a party's pursuit of a remedy that does not qualify as an ordinary internal remedy under the applicable regulations. It also confirms that a federation communication lifting a previously imposed sanction can constitute an appealable 'decision' under Article R47 of the CAS Code where it affects the legal position of a third-party claimant, even if addressed to the sanctioned club.

Cases cited in this award

CAS 2008/A/1633 CAS 2015/A/4162 CAS 2019/A/6436 CAS 2019/A/6677 CAS 2013/A/3272 CAS 2003/A/443

Frequently asked questions about Guldsmed

Why was Guldsmed's CAS appeal dismissed if CAS found it had jurisdiction?

CAS confirmed jurisdiction under Article 40.3 of the KSI Statutes but declared the appeal inadmissible on timeliness grounds. The player filed his Statement of Appeal on 18 September 2023, more than 21 days after the Decision of 28 July 2023, which is the deadline set by Article R49 of the CAS Code. The Sole Arbitrator held that the ISI Court of Appeal ruling of 29 August 2023 did not revive that deadline.

Did the player's appeal to the ISI Court of Appeal stop the CAS deadline from running in the Guldsmed case?

No. The Sole Arbitrator held that Article R47 of the CAS Code requires exhaustion of ordinary remedies only. The appeal to the ISI Court of Appeal, which was based on general Olympic Charter principles never raised in prior KSI proceedings, was characterised as 'completely baseless' and not a mandatory ordinary remedy. The player could have filed simultaneously at CAS and ISI CA but was not entitled to wait for the ISI CA's response before filing at CAS.

Was the KSI Court of Appeal's letter of 28 July 2023 lifting the transfer ban considered a 'decision' under the CAS Code?

Yes. The Sole Arbitrator found that the relevant criterion is the content of a communication, not its form. Because the 28 July 2023 communication amended the KSI CA's earlier ruling of 17 July 2023 and removed the transfer ban that had been the only enforcement mechanism for the club's obligations, it affected the player's legal position and therefore qualified as a decision within the meaning of Article R47 of the CAS Code.

How much did FH allegedly owe Guldsmed and what were the underlying contract terms?

The player maintained that FH owed him ISK 23,234,425, consisting of pension payments, insurance payments, tax payments, and interest for late payment. The underlying Standard KSI Contract, signed on 23 December 2019 and valid from 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2021, entitled the player to a net monthly salary of €4,800 plus conditional bonuses and employment benefits.

Topics: Transfers, agents, TPO & sell-on clauses at CAS

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