Daejeon Set an Important Precedent in K League...I'm injured. Give me the money after I return home! Reject all absurd demands FIFACAS
Feb 27, 2025
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Daejeon Hana Citizen set an important precedent in the K League after a long effort. He finally won a lawsuit filed by Kaiser (Henatu Kaiser), a Brazilian foreign player who was brought on loan three years ago and left due to injury. On January 27 (Korean time), the International Court of Arbitration for Sport released the full text of the ruling on its website.
Daejeon signed a contract in July 2022 to lease Kaiser, who was a member of Fortaleza, until Dec. 31 of that year. At that time, Daejeon offered conditions such as $200,000 in loan to Fortaleza, $50,000 in salary to Kaiser and $50,000 in promotion bonuses, and finally signed. In case of Kaiser's injury, he also purchased accident insurance worth up to $400,000.
Kaiser suffered a major injury with a ruptured Achilles tendon on Oct. 25, ahead of the promotion playoff against Gimcheon. In response, Daejeon asked "Please pay me a return ticket, treatment fee, monthly salary until December, and insurance money of $400,000 because I want to return to Brazil for surgery and treatment." Daejeon accepted Kaiser's request to return to Brazil and to pay treatment costs and remaining salaries, but announced that he could not receive insurance payments if he did not receive treatment in Korea. Despite this, Kaiser did not hesitate to go back, and in November of that year, he performed surgery in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
After the surgery, Kaiser hired a local Brazilian lawyer and began urging Daejeon to pay for the surgery. Daejeon paid salaries and bonuses on the date specified in the lease contract, and at the end of December, it said it would also pay for surgery and treatment and return to Korea requested by Kaiser.
However, Kaiser asked Daejeon to continue paying $400,000 in insurance money. Even after receiving the promised cost from Daejeon, he asked for insurance money, saying he was willing to cut it to $350,000. However, Daejeon replied that it has fulfilled all the terms of the lease contract, and that the insurance amount is the maximum and there is no obligation to give the full amount. In response, Kaiser filed a complaint against the FIFA DRC (hereinafter referred to as DRC).
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In its ruling, the DRC ruled that `Although Daejeon normally subscribed to insurance with Kaiser and Fortaleza as beneficiaries at the time of the contract, according to the terms of the contract, the right to the entire insurance amount was not clearly granted to Kaiser in the event of an accident.' As a result of the review, since Daejeon has fully paid medical expenses related to Kaiser injury, any further claims for advancement are dismissed.'
Kaiser objected to this and filed an appeal with CAS. He also said he hopes the trial will be held in Brazil, his home turf. In response to this, a hearing was held in Sao Paulo, Brazil in April 2024. Daejeon hired a local Brazilian lawyer, and club officials began a video hearing as witnesses. Kaiser initially requested $400,000 to offer 5% of unpaid interest per year to Daejeon from the time the contract was terminated.
However, CAS also ruled in favor of Daejeon.
CAS said in its ruling that `the compensation for damages required by Kaiser should be interpreted as the minimum amount of insurance to compensate for damages caused by injuries.' The purpose of the insurance contract in the first place is only to prepare for accidents that occurred during the lease period of Daejeon, and there is no responsibility for subsequent situations. Accordingly, the plaintiff's appeal is dismissed and the DRC ruling is finalized.
An official from Daejeon said, `We fulfilled our obligations to the players according to the contract procedure, and the agreement process was made in a smooth atmosphere, but after returning to Brazil, we have made unreasonable demandsLooking back at the time, "DRC or CAS tend to side with the players, and it's meaningful that they've taken the side of the club."
As important as detailed contracts and implementations, responses in problem situations are also important. Daejeon's precedent, which proved it right after a long fight without giving in to unfair demands, deserves an important lesson for the K-League.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
