TV Emsdetten must pay education compensation for Gretarsson

The EHF Court of Appeal has released its decision in the case regarding education compensation due to the transfer of Oddur Gretarsson from KA Akureyri (ISL) and TV Emsdetten (GER).

The EHF Court of Appeal confirmed the decision of the Administrative body of first instance dated 22 November whereby TV Emsdetten must pay the education compensation to both the club KA Akureyri and the Icelandic Handball Federation.

The Appellant mainly argued that the IHF system of education compensation violated European Union law, compared the current system with the issue in the Bosman case and underlined that the Icelandic Handball Federation was not competent to demand education compensation for the club KA Akureyri.

In its decision, the EHF Court of Appeal finds that it is not its competence to examine the compatibility of any EHF/IHF applicable regulations with EU law. Regarding the Bosman case, although a system of fee for training and development was mentioned, it is in no point comparable to the one setup by the IHF. In addition, as the national federation is the representatives of clubs through the transfer procedures in light of the IHF Regulations for Transfer Between Federations, the Icelandic Federation was entitled to demand education compensation for KA Akureyri.

In line with the EHF Legal Regulations, a statement of claim may be filed by any of the parties to the EHF Court of Arbitration (ECA) within 21 days.