The PFA is pleased to confirm its success in safeguarding the rights of Adriano Pellegrino, ensuring the full payment of his contractual rights with Malaysian club Kedah FA.
Having secured close to $7M for members in the past four years alone through its representation and advocacy work, the successful prosecution of Pellegrino’s case brings to an end what was an extremely difficult period for the former Perth Glory and Central Coast Mariners player.
Following the expiration of his contract with the Mariners in 2013, he joined Kedah. Weeks after he began training with the club it emerged that the Malaysian federation would not register him on account of having briefly played for the Mariners Academy immediately prior to joining Kedah.
After attempts to resolve the issue proved unsuccessful, the club refused to honour Pellegrino’s contractual obligations and the matter was referred to the FIFA Dispute Resolution Chamber (DRC). The DRC ruled in favour of the player, following which the club appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, where the PFA was once again successful.
“It is such a relief for me,” said Pellegrino of the final decision. “It is a precedent for further players and clubs to not take contracts lightly, especially with Australian players.
“The key to me receiving my money was the work the PFA did. They put in place the safeguards for me and also did the work to ensure I eventually got what I was owed.”
Now playing in Thailand, Pellegrino said he was pleased to be able to put the matter behind him.
“My first concern when it all started, and when Kedah said the were not going to honour my contract, was not playing football. I hadn’t had a period of my life where I had not been playing.
“The second concern was they were saying they were ‘not paying me and you are out of here.’
“I had not received any payment for months so I was out of pocket for a lot. There were a lot of calls to Angela Collins [PFA General Counsel] to work out what to do next.
“The PFA’s support was so important. Australian players should be very grateful for the support they have from the PFA.”
For more information on the PFA legal and advocacy services contact Angela Collins via angela@pfa.net.au.
