CORAL GABLES, Fla. – Global soccer governing body FIFA announced on Monday that former French international midfielder Lassana Diarra has ended his 65 million euro ($75 million) damages claim against the organization through a settlement that requires no financial payment from FIFA.
Diarra, who has played for top European clubs including Arsenal, Real Madrid, and Paris Saint-Germain, originally launched the damages lawsuit against FIFA and the Belgian Football Association last year. The legal action followed a landmark 2024 ruling from the European Union’s highest court that struck down key parts of FIFA’s global transfer regulations.
In an official public statement, FIFA confirmed that the two sides have reached a global agreement that dismisses all ongoing legal proceedings between Diarra and the organization. The statement also clarified that “FIFA has not made any admission of liability nor payment by way of compensation” as part of the settlement deal.
As of Monday, it remains uncertain whether this resolution will impact the separate class-action lawsuit that Diarra’s legal team has brought against FIFA growing out of the earlier Luxembourg-based European Court of Justice case. Representatives from Dupont Hissel, the Belgian law firm representing Diarra, have been contacted for additional comment on the settlement terms and the status of the class-action suit.
This recent legal resolution brings an end to one chapter of a decade-long dispute between Diarra and international soccer’s governing body. The conflict first erupted back in 2014, when Diarra’s contract with Russian top-flight club Lokomotiv Moscow broke down acrimoniously. Following the split, FIFA and the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled in favor of the Russian side, finding that Diarra had terminated his contract without valid just cause. The ruling imposed a 10.5 million euro ($12.1 million) liability that fell on both Diarra and any new club that sought to sign him after the split.
That original dispute pushed Diarra to challenge the legality of FIFA’s centralized global transfer system, a fight that ultimately led to his case being heard by the European Court of Justice. In the 2024 landmark decision, judges ruled that core elements of FIFA’s transfer rules violated both European Union competition legislation and the EU’s principle of free movement for workers.