ProShotsAnwar El Ghazi
NOS Voetbal•vandaag, 08:54
Jady van Leusden
editor NOS Sport
Jady van Leusden
editor NOS Sport
Did Anwar El Ghazi just give his opinion, or did he discredit his club? That question is central today during the lawsuit between the footballer and FSV Mainz 05, which fired him a month ago after a controversial post on social media about the war between Israel and Hamas. A lawsuit that has far-reaching consequences for the attacker himself, but possibly also for the rest of the football world.
First of all, the consequences for El Ghazi himself: the lawsuit is of great importance for his football season. The rules of the world football association FIFA state that football players may play for a maximum of two clubs in one season. El Ghazi played two official matches for PSV at the beginning of this season and played three times for Mainz.
End of season after 58 minutes?
All short appearances, but his season already seems to be over. “Such a labor ban actually makes no sense,” says Evgeniy Levchenko, chairman of the VVCS, the Association of Contract Players. The VVCS will not take action on behalf of El Ghazi, as the attacker is not affiliated with the association.
Exceptions to the rule of a maximum of two clubs per season are rare. Playing football in a competition that starts in the spring, such as the Norwegian or Swedish, is possible. Or for example, perhaps the case for El Ghazi, if a player has been dismissed by a club for incorrect reasons. Although that option does partly depend on the football associations.
ANPThe eight official minutes that El Ghazi played for PSV this season will prevent him from playing for another club in 2023/2024
“But a civil judge will not take into account in his legal analysis the fact that he can no longer play football this season,” sports lawyer Frans de Weger responds. According to the lawyer, the judge will take a clear position on the extent to which freedom of expression applied here.
Loaded words
El Ghazi was suspended in mid-October because he posted the controversial sentence on social media “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” had written. In Germany, the Ministry of the Interior sees the sentence as a hallmark of Hamas. The slogan is used by, among others, the Palestinian terrorist group. Hamas is bent on the destruction of the state of Israel.
The German Public Prosecution Service announced a month ago that it would be investigating El Ghazi because of a “serious suspicion of disrupting public order by approving crimes in combination with incitement to hatred and spreading it.”
The ruling in the lawsuit will also set a precedent for other players to make political statements.
Frans de Weger
Writing down the slogan made El Ghazi’s statement of support controversial in Germany. “There may be other national sentiments and the context of such a statement weighs heavily,” says De Weger.
According to the lawyer, a club cannot simply punish players directly with a dismissal for making politically sensitive statements, “unless, for example, he had explicitly called for supporting Hamas. Less severe punishments, such as a fine or warning, could also have been given.”
The question is whether El Ghazi’s statements were so explicit. De Weger explains how difficult and delicate this issue is legally, as there is no record of what a player may or may not say.
elghazi21 InstagramStatement El Ghazi against statement Mainz
Also in Germany, where the legal system is comparable to that of the Netherlands: “Here, in any case, it would not easily be a reason for dismissal. Sometimes other issues also play a role, for example whether there is an underlying labor conflict.”
Labor dispute or not, it is certain that there was some noise on the line. For example, El Ghazi publicly distanced himself from a statement from his club. According to Mainz, the player had shown remorse in various conversations with the board and had emphatically distanced himself from terrorism.
Players in trouble after posts on social media
In addition to Anwar El Ghazi (Mainz 05), Noussair Mazraoui (Bayern Munich) and Youcef Atal (OGC Nice) also got into trouble after posting messages on Instagram about the war between Israel and Hamas. It shows how difficult the relationship between club and player can be.
Ultimately, Mazraoui was allowed to remain in the selection after he explained his intentions to the club management. Atal was suspended for seven matches. El Ghazi met a different fate and had to leave Mainz, after persistent disagreements between him and the club over his statements.
The former Dutch international later claimed that the statement had been made without his knowledge. El Ghazi responded, among other things: “My sympathy lies with the innocent victims of this conflict, regardless of their nationality.” Contradicting the club’s statement may have been the last straw for Mainz and according to De Weger, Mainz can use it as a reason for dismissal in the lawsuit.
Freedom of speech
Still, De Weger thinks that El Ghazi can successfully challenge the dismissal. “With freedom of expression in mind, but a ruling will be very dependent on the judge’s view,” he says.
Dolf Segaar, also a sports lawyer, agrees. “There is no clear answer, because speaking out is not a clear offense, as is, for example, sharing a trade secret,” says Segaar.
AFPSport has different rules. Football associations try to separate political discussions from the game as much as possible
Contractual agreements are also important in the lawsuit. A tour of agents shows that political or religious agreements are never explicitly included in a contract. The players’ agents do say that footballers should never discredit the clubs or speak negatively about their employers.
Levchenko has reservations about these types of agreements. According to him, players should have the freedom to express themselves, but there should be no room for misinterpretation. “Nuance is always important with these types of sensitive topics, otherwise it can quickly be misunderstood,” he explains.
The VVCS chairman adds that football clubs try to make agreements about how players speak out in the media, including in political discussions. According to the former footballer, they want to prevent players from making impulsive statements. “It therefore has consequences if statements go against the values of the club,” Levchenko explains.
Mohamed Salah, in consultation with his club Liverpool, spoke out about Gaza
The El Ghazi case was perhaps a difficult issue for his ex-employer, partly because of those club values. One of the founders of Mainz was the Jewish Eugen Salomon, whose club functions were taken away by the Nazis in 1933. Salomon died in a concentration camp in 1942.
Precedent for football players
“This problem extends beyond just football,” says lawyer Segaar. Due to the history of Germany and Mainz, the statements about the Hamas-Israel war were extra dangerous according to the lawyer. Yet the feeling is that a dismissal after making statements is lopsided. “It will only become a different matter if you continue to undermine the authority of the club,” the lawyer concludes.
The question is whether El Ghazi’s dismissal will be linked to the content of his statements or to his behavior towards his ex-employer. “The result will in any case also be a precedent for other players for making political statements,” De Weger concludes.
2023-12-06 07:54:02
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