The case involves a dispute between Czech football club FK Bohemians Praha and FIFA, the international governing body of football, which was adjudicated by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). The conflict originated from a 2013 decision by FIFA's Players' Status Committee, which ordered the club to pay €15,000 to Belgian club CS Visé within 30 days. The club claimed it had requested the grounds for this decision via fax on April 20, 2013, within the ten-day deadline, but FIFA asserted it never received a valid request, as the fax pages were blank due to a technical error. The club argued that the defective transmission should not invalidate their request, while FIFA maintained that the request was only made in August 2013, well past the deadline.
In 2014, FIFA's Disciplinary Committee imposed a fine of CHF 2,000 on the club for non-compliance, with additional penalties threatened if the payment was not made. The club appealed to CAS, contending that FIFA failed to acknowledge the fax transmission issue and did not fulfill its duty to notify the sender of the incomplete communication. The CAS panel examined the evidence, including fax transmission reports confirming delivery to FIFA on the due date, and concluded that the club had indeed met the deadline. The panel emphasized FIFA's obligation to ensure a reliable notification system and to act in good faith, particularly when technical failures could prejudice a party's rights. It ruled that FIFA should have notified the club of the defective transmission rather than assuming no request was made.
The CAS panel ultimately annulled the Disciplinary Committee's decision, ruling that the club's request for the grounds of the original decision was timely and valid. The panel highlighted the lack of specific FIFA guidelines on fax transmissions and the need for clear communication protocols to prevent similar disputes. The case underscored the importance of procedural fairness and the responsibilities of governing bodies in administrative proceedings. The final decision dismissed all other relief requests, concluding the matter with the club's appeal upheld and FIFA's decision set aside. The outcome reinforced the principle that technical errors should not unfairly disadvantage parties in legal and disciplinary proceedings.