Published on 11 December 2023
SECOND SECTION
Application no. 59957/21
GALATASARAY SPORTİF SINAİ VE TİCARİ YATIRIMLAR ANONİM ŞİRKETİ
against Türkiye
lodged on 22 November 2021
communicated on 21 November 2023
SUBJECT MATTER OF THE CASE
The application concerns the independence and impartiality of the Arbitration Committee of the Turkish Football Federation (“TFF”) which dismissed a claim brought by the applicant company, a professional football club in the top Turkish professional league. In the proceedings before the Arbitration Committee of the TFF the applicant company challenged a monetary fine (224,000 Turkish liras) imposed on it by the Disciplinary Committee of the TFF on account of non-observance of Covid-19 measures (such as admitting more spectators than allowed, and violation of mask rules by those spectators) in a match that took place on 15 May 2021 in the applicant company’s stadium. On 27 May 2021 the Arbitration Committee dismissed the applicant company’s claim.
Relying on the findings of the Court in the case of Ali Rıza and Others v. Turkey (nos. 30226/10 and 4 others, §§ 201-223, 28 January 2020), the applicant company complains under Article 6 § 1 of the Convention that their dispute was not decided by an independent and impartial tribunal. Under the same provision, they further complain that the Arbitration Committee failed to respond to their arguments relating to the determination and proportionality of the amount of the fine.
QUESTIONS TO THE PARTIES
1. Did the proceedings in issue satisfy the requirements of independence and impartiality in accordance with Article 6 § 1 of the Convention (see Ali Rıza and Others v. Turkey, nos. 30226/10 and 4 others, §§ 194-223, 28 January 2020)?
2. Did the Arbitration Committee’s decision of 27 May 2021 contain adequate reasoning with respect to the applicant company’s arguments (see, among others, Alonso Saura v. Spain, no. 18326/19, §§ 34-35, 8 June 2023 and the cases cited therein)?
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