xtratime Logo

XtraTime Web Desk: Indian footballers who have their salaries pending from their respective clubs in I-League and ISL last season can apply to FIFA by end of this month. Several clubs like East Bengal, Jamshedpur FC, Mohun Bagan are yet to clear the dues of the footballers from the last season. The clubs have been citing the lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic as the reason for not being able to clear the player’s dues. Kolkata giants East Bengal players are not paid last two months salaries as the erstwhile sponsors of the club have parted ways on May 31. Recently Football Players' Association of India (FPAI) president Renedy Singh has asked Indian clubs not to take advantage of the Coronavirus pandemic and deny players their salaries.

The players can apply to the FIFA through FIFPRO and the last date for applying is June 30. In its latest update by FIFA, as many as 441 players have applied so far claiming unpaid wages of clubs disappearing. Out of those players, 89% are from European clubs while 11% is from rest of the world. The genuine players will be paid from FIFA Fund for Football Players (FIFA FFP).

Earlier FIFA and FIFPRO, the World Players’ Union, have reached an agreement to establish the FIFA Fund for Football Players (FIFA FFP), which aims to provide financial support to players who have not been paid and have no chance of duly receiving the wages agreed with their clubs.

FIFA has set aside USD 16m for the fund up to 2022, with this allocation to be divided as follows: USD 3m in 2020, USD 4m in 2021 and USD 4m in 2022, plus a further USD 5m set aside for the retroactive protection of players’ salaries for the period between July 2015 and June 2020.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino welcomed the new initiative, stating: “This agreement and our commitment to helping players in a difficult situation show how we interpret our role as world football’s governing body. We are also here to reach out to those in need, especially within the football community, and that starts with the players, who are the key figures in our game.”

This new mechanism will come into operation on 1 July 2020.