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Grace Chingoma-Senior Sports Reporter

FOOTBALLERS Union of Zimbabwe secretary-general Thomas Sweswe says Premier Soccer League recommendations and guidelines over players’ contracts which they agreed on during the annual indaba on Friday should not infringe on players’ rights. 

He said clubs and players should respect the terms of their contracts. 

The former Zimbabwe international, however, warned that FUZ would not hesitate to step in to defend players when they feel their rights are being infringed. 

FUZ have always maintained that clubs should not misrepresent the contents of the guidelines from FIFA and ZIFA, which he said were just recommendations, with no legal backing. 

“We haven’t received the official response from the PSL regarding the players’ contracts issue. 

“From our end, we look at the regulations and rules. As long as a contract expires, a player is free to move on. 

“And once a player says he is not being allowed to move or getting a clearance, then we move in,” said Sweswe. 

On Friday, the PSL chairman Farai Jere emerged from the meeting to announce that they have made some headway regarding contracts issue which threatened to derail the restart of football. 

“The other critical issue which we discussed is the issue of player contracts. 

“Amongst ourselves we had a lawyer, and that lawyer clarified issues which have been outstanding and these have been very pertinent and critical to both players and the clubs. 

“So everything was clarified, and it’s actually in line with the recommendations from FIFA. This gave us comfort since it actually came from the lawyers. 

“The lawyer who was amongst us took us from the definition of a contract. 

“A contract has got terms or services, which are supposed to be provided. So if the service is not provided, obviously the clubs has got right to claim for specific compensation. 

“This means whichever club wants a player, who has been fully paid as per the guidelines from ZIFA for 2020 but had not provided the service, they can compensate the club for his signing-on fee and all the salaries. 

“Those were the conditions up to the last day of the last season because there is an obligation by that particular player to provide a service which he has been paid for. 

“So that service, if proven that it has not been provided, then there is an issue of specific performance which the lawyer guided. All the governors were very happy because it was a sticking point, but these are the guidelines from ZIFA, which means the ZIFA lawyers had looked at it. 

“So this is the position we are at,” said Jere. 

However, this position, according to other parties involved, just might be a recommendation and not legally binding. 

“Whatever the arrangement or agreement they made, or the compensation they are talking about, they can do it in their closed doors. Rules remain rules, once a contract expires, one is free to go. 

“As long as a player says he is deprived the opportunity to go and play somewhere, and has not been cleared then that becomes violation,” said Sweswe. 

FUZ have since said that a contract becomes null and void on the day of expiration and it’s not automatic that it rolls over to the next season because there was a force majeure which disrupted the football season.

A week ago, Sweswe wrote to PSL chief executive Kenny Ndebele, making reference to the letter which was issued out by ZIFA on December 31 encouraging clubs to engage players over expired contracts. 

“We have noted with great concern the situation regarding expired contracts that is being wrongly interpreted by some clubs within our industry,” read part of the letter.

“Secondly, we would like to stress that the guidelines which were issued on 31 December 2020, do not make it sufficiently clear that the recommended points are not binding on players and clubs. 

“In other words, we feel that it has not been made sufficiently clear that these are just recommendations from ZIFA and that for any and all amendments to be made to loan/transfer agreements and employments contracts, the consent of all parties is required including the consent of the player,” reads part of the letter which extensively quoted FIFA recommendations.