There are few times when the holder of a sentence does not comply with the practical conclusions drawn from its content. The case of the ruling on the compensation list for the training of female soccer players sub'23 that was released this Wednesday by the National Court is an obvious example. The sentence dictates that the list is not null, but in practice no player who was released this summer is going to stop signing for the team they want because of it. Because you can do it without the destination club having to pay anything for it, contrary to what the list says whose validity has been countersigned.

Yes, the subject is complex and it is worth starting with its background.

The case exploded a few months ago, in full confinement. The logic and fair satisfaction of women's football for the definitive signing of the first collective agreement in its history, suddenly, was not complete. The advance for the rights of the footballers was immense, of course, but the unions had slipped a Chinese shoe, perhaps very small for the group, but giant for a handful of affected players. The full translation of an article of the men's agreement meant that the clubs could retain under-23 players who had ended their contracts for absolutely disproportionate amounts. A legal loophole discovered when the agreement was already signed.

Thus, Levante decided to claim 500,000 euros if Eva Navarro and Ona Batlle left the club; Athletic, 250,000 for Maite Oroz and Damaris Egurrola ; Barcelona, ​​100,000 for five other players. Astronomical figures for a market like women's soccer. In Spain, the maximum that has been paid for the transfer of a player is 50,000 euros. Logroño, Espanyol and Madrid CFF (not to be confused with Real Madrid) also requested smaller amounts for some of their sub'23 players, between 20,000 and 10,000 euros, completing the compensation list.

Not yet published in the BOE

The two main unions understood that they had to find a resolution to this matter, agreeing on the disproportion of some of these amounts. AFE, majority, defended an individual negotiation between each club and player, while Futbolistas On filed a class action lawsuit with the National Court, demanding the nullification of the compensation list. The clubs, agreement in hand, defended their right to request what they considered convenient for these players, with the only self-limitation of having to increase the footballer's salary by 7% of the amount claimed by her if she finally renewed her contract. What they had signed in the agreement, go.

What the National Court has decided is that, in effect, the list and its quantities are valid, since they comply with what is included in the collective agreement signed by the parties. And here, in the parts, is the heart of the matter, which changes its whole meaning. The agreement has not yet been published in the BOE because it is contested by the UGT for another matter that is not related to it. In practice, this means that the agreement is now a mere private contract between the signing parties, which does not affect the rest of the players in Spanish women's football. The text is signed by the member clubs of the Association of Women's Soccer Clubs, among which are not Athletic, Real Madrid and Barcelona. And it affects only those players who are affiliated to one of the unions.

In other words, these three clubs cannot demand anything for their sub'23 players, nor do they have to pay anything for those they want to sign. And neither can any club with players who are not members of a union. Thus, Maite Oroz (signing already announced) will go to Real Madrid for free, as surely will Eva Navarro. Damaris Egurrola seems to end up at Barça, again with no payments in between. And Ona Batlle had already decided to go abroad (Manchester United), where the clauses of the Spanish agreement do not apply. The five of Barça are also free to choose their future. According to union sources, the rest of the potentially affected cases will not be affected either, because either the players decided to renew with their clubs or, in a contract case, they are not affiliated with any union. In other words, the list is valid, but nobody is going to pay anything.

Free of their entire compliance

The reverse of this decision is that the National Court implicitly acknowledges in its ruling that the clubs that are not signatories to the agreement are, until their definitive publication in the BOE, free of their full compliance. AFE, in this sense, has already shown its concern about "an absolute lack of protection for these soccer players with regard to their labor rights included in the collective agreement, placing them in a scenario of total defenselessness." Footballers On downplays this circumstance, since Barça, Madrid and Athletic meet their players above the minimum of the agreement. Rebounding, and without even intending to, UGT has achieved with its challenge that these clubs do not have to pay anything.

The dispute is thus resolved, but only for now. The agreement expired on June 30 and it is time to renegotiate it for next season. Apparently, there is some will to specifically regulate the training right of the sub'23 players, agreeing on a common table based on variables such as salary, time spent at the club and other factors that reflect the real cost for the clubs. have trained the athletes. It will be necessary to see how progress is made, and if it is done, from the will to the facts. The National Court has already warned that it is not competent to fix anything in this regard. As in almost all football wars, the judicial response is a 'please agree between yourselves, it is not that difficult'.

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