FIFA bans Macarthur from signing players until Yorke is paid compensation

Macarthur FC will be banned from recruiting new players until the middle of 2026 unless the club pays former coach Dwight Yorke the hundreds of thousands of dollars of compensation an international court ruled he was owed after being sacked over a dressing room spray.

The action taken on Wednesday by governing body FIFA prohibits the club from signing new players, including international players, until Yorke is paid close to $300,000 plus any applicable interest.

Macarthur FC has been banned from recruiting new players until the middle of 2026 unless the club pays former coach Dwight Yorke hundreds of thousands of dollars in compensation.Credit: Wolter Peeters

In September, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) upheld a FIFA Players’ Status Chamber (PSC) decision that Macarthur pay the former Manchester United star $212,500, which rises to about $290,000 with interest, after ruling the club had breached the parties’ contract and sacked Yorke without just cause. Yorke has not yet seen the money.

Under the ban, the club – winners of the 2024 Australia Cup after a 1-0 victory over Melbourne Victory last month – will not be able to recruit new talent until the A-League’s mid-2026 pre-season transfer window. The ban will be lifted when the payment is made.

Macarthur will miss the A-League’s next transfer window, which falls during the 2024/25 season and runs from January 16 to February 12, as well as the next pre-season window and the following mid-season window if it does not pay the compensation.

In a letter to Macarthur and obtained by this masthead, FIFA’s head of disciplinary, Américo Espallargas, said it appeared the club had still not complied with its financial obligations to Yorke.

Espallargas said the ban would remain in place for three transfer windows, but Yorke could ask for a further ban if the full amount plus any interest was not paid by the end of the existing penalty.

“I have maintained dignity throughout this and will continue to do so,” Yorke told this masthead through his lawyer, Greg Griffin.

“FIFA and CAS have found in my favour. As of now, I’m awaiting my settlement. I wish the players, the supporters and the club all the best.”

According to Espallargas’ letter, Football Australia is required to implement the ban on the club, stopping it from recruiting at a national level.

Macarthur CEO Sam Krslovic declined to answer questions about when the club would pay Yorke, or if the ban would affect future seasons.

The Bulls will play their opening match of the season at home against Perth Glory on October 20.

Macarthur had appealed the PSC’s original decision, handed down in June last year, to award Yorke the compensation, arguing he had damaged the club’s reputation with remarks, later reported in the media, that were made during a dressing room spray after a 1-0 away loss to Adelaide United on January 20, 2023.

Yorke lodged a counterclaim against Macarthur’s appeal to have the remainder of his lucrative contract paid out, which would have seen him take home more than $800,000 if successful. However, due to a CAS rule change in 2010 making counterclaims inadmissible, it was dismissed.

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