The International Football Federation — FIFA imposed a severe penalty on Moscow’s "Lokomotiv" club from Russia. The club is now unable to register new players.
The organization officially announced this measure on June 18, 2024, and it will be effective for three transfer windows.
Why did this happen?
The reason is — "Lokomotiv" refused to pay a compensation of 50,000 euros to Ukraine’s "Mariupol" club.
This amount was demanded for the training expenses of the player Mark Mampasi.
Case details
Mark Mampasi moved from Donetsk's "Shakhtar" club to "Lokomotiv" in December 2021. He had previously played for the Ukrainian youth national team. "Mariupol" recognized Mampasi as its trainee and demanded compensation from "Lokomotiv".
The Muscovites refused to pay this amount and defended their position in court.
Interestingly, "Lokomotiv" representatives claimed that "Mariupol is already a Russian city, the club has been annihilated and does not exist" as a basis for not paying the compensation.
However, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) found this argument to be baseless and obliged "Lokomotiv" to make the payment. But the club's failure to comply with this decision led FIFA to impose sanctions.
Now, "Lokomotiv" cannot register new players. This punishment will have a negative impact on the club not only from a sporting perspective but also in terms of reputation and finances.
