AS RELEGATION SAGA DRAGS FOR TOO LONG ... CALL FOR ‘WESLIANS’ TO APPROACH CAS

MBABANE – Manzini Wanderers have reportedly been advised to approach the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) regarding their ongoing relegation dispute, which has persisted for eight months.

This information comes from an impeccable source close to the maroon and white club. It is understood that certain football authorities have suggested that the club seek CAS’s intervention to resolve the matter, which is currently pending in court. The ‘Weslians’ escalated the issue to the High Court, after both the Eswatini Football Association (EFA) Disciplinary Committee and the Appeals Board dismissed their protest concerning Denver Sundowns. Wanderers had lodged a protest against defender Jimoh Moses, claiming he lacked a valid work permit during their crucial relegation match, which took place at Somhlolo National Stadium on May 19, 2024, and ended in a 4-2 victory for Sundowns.

Challenges

According to the source, the club faces challenges in approaching CAS due to the absence of a specific clause in the EFA Constitution that outlines the procedure for local teams to take this route when confronted with such issues. “There are no guidelines from the EFA Constitution on how to reach CAS, which is why we ended up resorting to the courts,” the source explained. The source further noted that one of their officials raised the possibility of involving CAS with Dr David Fani, who represented FIFA during the EFA Statutes Workshop held last month at the Happy Valley Hotel. “Fani assured the EFA that they would send officials to educate local football authorities on the regulations for approaching CAS,” the source added.

Refrained

A legal representative for the Mlamuli ‘Mlaba’ Mkambule-captained side confirmed that they had been advised to pursue the CAS route, but refrained from doing so due to the lack of established channels within the EFA Constitution. “There is a process known as domestication that the EFA should have implemented, rather than merely referencing CAS and the Arbitration Tribunal. They need to clearly outline how to engage with these bodies,” he stated. He emphasised that they cannot allow the local football governing body to direct them to CAS without clear rules and regulations.

“We seek something that is documented,” the legal representative concluded. In response to the situation, EFA President Peter ‘Samora’ Simelane stated that discussions had taken place with the Premier League of Eswatini (PLE) regarding the Wanderers’ case. “We referred the matter back to the PLE as there was missing information,” Simelane remarked. When pressed for details about the missing information, the president declined to elaborate, stating that it was a matter between the involved parties. Article 69 (1) of the EFA Statutes specifies that an appeal against final and binding FIFA decisions shall be heard by CAS in Lausanne, Switzerland. However, CAS will not entertain appeals concerning violations of the Laws of the Game, suspensions of up to four matches or three months, or decisions made by an independent and duly constituted Arbitration Tribunal of an Association or Confederation.

Significantly

Reports indicate that pursuing a case through CAS is significantly more economical than going through ordinary courts, with costs sometimes amounting to less than E20 000 and responses typically provided within 72 hours, assuming all necessary documentation has been submitted. Meanwhile, Wanderers had previously secured a favourable ruling in court, but the parties affected by the decision, including Pirates and Sundowns, have since appealed. This appeal is expected to be heard between late January and early February 2025.

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