What Do We Determine in the Initial Assessment?
In sports arbitration, the first question is which body has jurisdiction. That a dispute relates to sport does not by itself create the jurisdiction of the TFF, FIFA, BAT or CAS. The route of application is determined by reviewing together the subject of the claim, the status of the parties, the contract and the relevant federation regulation.
National sports justice, courts and arbitration
In a sports dispute, the competent body is determined by the capacity of the parties and the legal nature of the claim. The distinction among federation committees, mandatory sports arbitration, voluntary arbitration, labor courts, and the judicial and administrative courts must be made before applying.
The main routes followed:
- Application mechanisms within clubs and federations
- TFF Dispute Resolution Committee
- TFF Professional and Amateur Football Disciplinary Committees
- TFF Arbitration Committee
- Disciplinary and appeal committees of the relevant sports federations
- Sports arbitration mechanisms within the Ministry of Youth and Sports
- Mediation, labor courts, commercial courts and other judicial bodies
- Administrative courts in administrative acts and public law disputes
- Applications to the Constitutional Court or the European Court of Human Rights, depending on the nature of the dispute
FIFA, UEFA, FIBA, international federations and CAS
In international sports disputes, the applicable regulation, the language of proceedings, the time limit, the seat of arbitration, the evidence and the enforcement of the decision are planned together.
Scope of services:
- The Players’ Status, Dispute Resolution and Agents chambers of the FIFA Football Tribunal
- FIFA disciplinary, transfer ban and decision enforcement processes
- UEFA disciplinary, club licensing and organization disputes
- The Basketball Arbitral Tribunal and FIBA-related disputes
- Judicial and disciplinary bodies of other international sports federations
- Ordinary arbitration and appeal arbitration at the Court of Arbitration for Sport
- CAS Ad Hoc and Anti-Doping Division processes
- Requests for urgent measures, stay of execution and expedited proceedings
- Selection of arbitrators, the procedural calendar, and witness and expert evidence
- Recognition, enforcement and execution of arbitral awards
The Difference Among the TFF, FIFA, BAT and CAS
The TFF Dispute Resolution Committee takes as its basis the parties’ acceptance of its jurisdiction in contract disputes, and its special area of jurisdiction in sporting penalties and training compensation. The jurisdiction of the FIFA Football Tribunal also depends on the conditions in its own regulations. In basketball, a written arbitration agreement is in principle required for the BAT.
For an appeal to CAS, it is checked that the statute, regulation or agreement conferring jurisdiction exists and that the prior routes of application provided for have been exhausted. Ordinary arbitration, appeal arbitration, Ad Hoc and anti-doping procedures are separate processes. Where representation is needed before a court in a foreign country, the work of the local authorized lawyer and the legal coordination by the firm are determined separately.
Time Limits, Notification and Stay of Enforcement
Article 7 of the TFF Arbitration Instruction ties the application to seven days following the written notification or an announcement of that nature. Fee and receipt procedures must also be completed on time. Under CAS R49, unless there is a special time limit, 21 days from the date the decision is made is the rule; the same period is not assumed for another sports body.
Article 17 of the TFF Arbitration Instruction treats an email in its own proceedings as served at the end of the fifth day from sending, and a fax as served on the day it is sent. This provision is not automatically carried over to the first decision notification of another committee. Under UETS, the end of the fifth day following arrival is the basis. For KEP, ordinary email and federation portals, the transaction’s own rules should be reviewed.
An application does not stop the enforcement of a decision in every case. Requests under Article 20 of the TFF instruction and the interim protection provisions of CAS are separately justified. Even if the decision is won, steps for payment, registration, a license or international enforcement are planned separately.
Our Approach in This Area
We review the jurisdictional condition and the notification record at the outset. We plan the language of the application, the time limit, the fee and the advance on expenses; we prepare the request for evidence and for an interim measure. We separately assess how the decision will be applied to payments or sporting records.
As Güneş & Güneş Law Firm, from our Antalya office we plan files across Türkiye according to the conditions of jurisdiction and representation. Acceptance of the matter, fees and separate expenses, and the method of keeping you informed are determined in advance. For matters with a foreign element, communication is available in Turkish, English, German and Russian; the need for local representation in a foreign country is assessed separately.
Information Needed at the First Meeting
Prepare the sport, your capacity as a party, the contract and, if there is one, all pages of the decision. Mention the notification record and the date of the upcoming competition, transfer or defense in your first contact. File-specific documents, secure sharing and the method of representation are clarified at the meeting.