As can be inferred from the title, in this case, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) had to deal with multiple complex issues arising in a dispute between the Player’s former club (Zamalek Sporting Club), the Player (Mahmoud Abdelmonem Abdelhamid Soltane) and the Player’s subsequent clubs (CD Aves and Al Ahly Sporting Club). The Player terminated his contract with Zamalek unilaterally and moved to Aves. After approximately 18 weeks, he signed with Al Ahly (Zamalek’s domestic rival). Zamalek claimed that the Player terminated the contract without justification and that his move to Avesand then on to Al Ahly was a bridge transfer. The Panel upheld the claim for breach of contract but rejected the bridge transfer claim. It ultimately awarded USD 2 million as compensation for damages to Zamalek.
Factual Background
On 26 July 2015, Zamalek and the Player entered into an employment contract (Old Contract) valid for four seasons until the end of the 2018-2019 season.
In July 2016, Zamalek lent the Player’s registration to the Saudi club, Al-Ittihad, for one season against a loan fee of EUR 1.2 million. The Player claimed that, shortly before his move to Saudi Arabia, he signed a blank employment contract due to blackmail exercised by Zamalek.
In June 2017, the Player’s loan with Al-Ittihad was...
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