The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) issued an award on 29 January 2021 in the dispute between Al-Arabi Sporting Club and professional football coach Juan Ignacio Martínez. The case centered on the termination of Martínez's employment contract and related claims. The dispute originated from a contract signed on 10 June 2019, under which Martínez was to receive $300,000 for the 2019/2020 season, with $30,000 paid upfront and the remainder as monthly salaries. The club later attempted to terminate the contract by offering a $54,000 settlement, which Martínez rejected. Tensions escalated when the club accused Martínez of failing to train the first team and reassigned him to oversee the U13 team, a move Martínez and his staff protested as a contract violation. The club withheld Martínez's September salary and initiated disciplinary proceedings for alleged insubordination and missed training sessions. On 13 October 2019, Martínez terminated the contract, citing just cause due to the club's failure to address his grievances. The club accepted the termination but deemed it a breach, holding Martínez liable for damages.
The case was first brought before the FIFA Players’ Status Committee, which partially accepted Martínez's claim for unpaid salary and compensation, ordering the club to pay $27,000 for unpaid September salary and $216,000 as compensation for breach of contract, both with 5% annual interest. The club appealed to CAS, arguing that Martínez's termination was unjustified and that he failed to mitigate damages by seeking new employment. The CAS panel, composed of Jacques Radoux, Jan Räker, and Manfred Nan, rejected the club's arguments, finding that Martínez had just cause to terminate the contract due to the club's severe breaches, including demoting him without justification, suspending his salary unlawfully, and failing to reinstate him despite warnings. The panel emphasized that under Swiss law, which subsidiarily governed the dispute, just cause for termination exists when a breach is so severe that continuing the relationship is untenable. The club's actions, particularly the demotion and suspension, were deemed serious breaches justifying termination.
Regarding compensation, the panel upheld the FIFA decision, awarding Martínez $216,000 for the remaining contract term, noting that external factors like the COVID-19 pandemic made it unreasonable to expect Martínez to find new employment. The panel also dismissed the club's argument that Martínez acted in bad faith, as there was no evidence he refused to seek alternative work. The club was ordered to cover Martínez's legal fees and CAS costs. The panel underscored the importance of contractual fidelity and the protection of employees' rights, aligning with FIFA and CAS jurisprudence. The decision highlighted the high threshold for just cause termination under Swiss law and the need for employers to respect contractual obligations. The CAS ultimately dismissed the club's appeal, confirming the FIFA decision in its entirety and reinforcing the principles of fairness and contractual integrity in sports employment disputes.