According to reports, PSL side Royal AM are considering referring Kaizer Chiefs’ acquisition of offensive midfielder Tebogo Potsane since they believe he is still very much their player.
Potsane joined Chiefs last week on what is now believed to be a free transfer after his contract with AM expires on June 30.
Royal AM had maintained that Potsane’s contract included a clause that allowed them to extend his contract for another year, but they did not act quickly enough to bind him.
While Chiefs fans wonder what could go wrong, especially given the club’s brush with FIFA a couple of years ago for signing a Madagascan player in the same circumstance as Potsane, they can be confident that such a problem will not occur again.
According to Unplayable’s renowned sports journalist Tiyani wa Ka Mabasa, the KwaZulu-Natal club lost control of the player’s rights after failing to inform him on whether they intend to extend his stay or not.
He indicated that when a player’s contract enters its final six months, regardless of whether there is an option or not, he is allowed to negotiate with any team, and in any case, the parent club should exercise the option to extend the contract a month before the current one expires, which means Royal AM should have extended Potsane’s contract by May 31st if they still wanted him to continue with them.
FIFA: “A professional shall only be free to conclude a contract with another club if his contract with his present club has expired or is due to expire within six months. Lots of these options go against FIFA rules and disadvantage players. Needs a serious conversation,” Tiyani posted on Twitter.
FIFA: "A professional shall only be free to conclude a contract with another club if his contract with his present club has expired or is due to expire within six months."
Lots of these options go against FIFA rules and disadvantage players. Needs a serious conversation. https://t.co/8xEtwQ1Bl4
— Hosi Makhonya (@TTM16) July 15, 2023