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Three years after Germany 2006, Warner holds on to players’ bonus
By Olukayode Thomas (234next.com)
The interim president of the Football Players Association of Trinidad and Tobago (FPATT), Shaka Hislop on Thursday asked Nigerians to tell FIFA Vice-President Jack Warner to pay their allowance and bonus for the Germany 2006 FIFA World Cup.
Warner, the head of FIFA U-17 committee is currently in Nigeria for the ongoing FIFA U-17 World Cup.
Hislop who was goalkeeper for Trinidad and Tobago at that World Cup and who is now a commentator with ESPN told NEXTSports from his base in America that Nigerians should appeal to Warner to pay the players who qualified for the World Cup for the first time that year.
“Nigerians should appeal to him to pay the players in the name of fair play for FIFA. Fair play should start with Warner paying us our money,” Hislop said.
Another World Cup here
With another World Cup just a few months away, Hislop cannot understand why they have not been paid. Giving an insight into the issue, Hislop said: “The players won at the arbitration. It was Warner that told us to go the arbitration, which we did and won on all counts in 2008, but now he wants to take us to the High Court for an appeal and that is where we are right now. So we are waiting for the decision of the High Court this month. As at now he has not paid like 13 of the players. I think he has paid between eight and 10 players who have accepted a very small payment but 13 have refused to receive the payment because we believe that the figure they have provided is not correct.”
Breach of trust?
“We had an agreement on the money, first it was 70-30, then Warner changed it to 50-50 and we agreed, that is where we are now; we have not seen any of that money. The experience is varying for the players. For me, I retired from international football immediately after the World Cup but for the others... Warner blacklisted everybody else; they could not feature for the national team. He eventually recalled some others like eight months later but effectively Warner has frozen out all the players that took him to court.”
Relief for Hislop
When the court of arbitration ruled in favour of the players, Hislop and others were relieved, but the football federation shifted the goalpost again. Though they acknowledged the arbitrator’s decision they pointed out that “both parties agreed that the arbitration hearings will be in private and no one is allowed to disclose the contents of the proceedings and/or the judgment.”
As of today, the federation has not respected the ruling.
Claims and counter claims
According to Play The Game, an international body fighting corruption in sports, the Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation may have understated its earnings by 173 million Trinidad and Tobago Dollars (USD 28 million), devaluing bonus payments for national team players.
Players of the Trinidad and Tobago national team, the Soca Warriors, were promised equal shares in a bonus fund of 50 per cent of the revenues of World Cup earnings gathered by the TTFF for qualifying for the 2006 World Cup in a deal hammered out between the players and TTFF special advisor Jack Warner.
The TTFF quoted World Cup earnings at TTD 18.25 million (approximately USD 3 million), and claiming costs of TTD 17.9 million, initially offered players a bonus of a little under USD 1000.
This figure came as a surprise to Hislop. “As little as we knew about football finances that figure just didn’t seem right given the fanfare and corporate involvement with the team during Germany 2006,” he said.
Greedy players
Warner had earlier accused the players of greed. In a statement to CMC Sports, Warner said “What Trinidad is suffering from is from a situation whereby 16 or 18 players are holding a country and a federation to ransom because of greed.”
No comment
Efforts to get Warner and FIFA officials to speak on Hislop and Warner’s statement were abortive.
FIFA’s media officer Wolfgang Resch said on Thursday that Warner, since arriving Nigeria, has granted two interviews and that it will be difficult to get Warner to do a one-on-one interview, “It will be difficult to speak to him; he is not available.”
Resch will also not respond to Hislop and Jennings’ allegations on the phone. Answering a call placed across to him, he said: “I can hardly hear you, please send your questions.”
When NEXTSports sent the question via SMS, he replied that he would prefer an e-mail.
A mail was sent to the address he gave, the response was an out-of-office instant response.
All efforts to speak with Resch since then have been unsuccessful. Hopefully, Warner will read this and react to Hislop and Jennings.
By Olukayode Thomas (234next.com)
The interim president of the Football Players Association of Trinidad and Tobago (FPATT), Shaka Hislop on Thursday asked Nigerians to tell FIFA Vice-President Jack Warner to pay their allowance and bonus for the Germany 2006 FIFA World Cup.
Warner, the head of FIFA U-17 committee is currently in Nigeria for the ongoing FIFA U-17 World Cup.
Hislop who was goalkeeper for Trinidad and Tobago at that World Cup and who is now a commentator with ESPN told NEXTSports from his base in America that Nigerians should appeal to Warner to pay the players who qualified for the World Cup for the first time that year.
“Nigerians should appeal to him to pay the players in the name of fair play for FIFA. Fair play should start with Warner paying us our money,” Hislop said.
Another World Cup here
With another World Cup just a few months away, Hislop cannot understand why they have not been paid. Giving an insight into the issue, Hislop said: “The players won at the arbitration. It was Warner that told us to go the arbitration, which we did and won on all counts in 2008, but now he wants to take us to the High Court for an appeal and that is where we are right now. So we are waiting for the decision of the High Court this month. As at now he has not paid like 13 of the players. I think he has paid between eight and 10 players who have accepted a very small payment but 13 have refused to receive the payment because we believe that the figure they have provided is not correct.”
Breach of trust?
“We had an agreement on the money, first it was 70-30, then Warner changed it to 50-50 and we agreed, that is where we are now; we have not seen any of that money. The experience is varying for the players. For me, I retired from international football immediately after the World Cup but for the others... Warner blacklisted everybody else; they could not feature for the national team. He eventually recalled some others like eight months later but effectively Warner has frozen out all the players that took him to court.”
Relief for Hislop
When the court of arbitration ruled in favour of the players, Hislop and others were relieved, but the football federation shifted the goalpost again. Though they acknowledged the arbitrator’s decision they pointed out that “both parties agreed that the arbitration hearings will be in private and no one is allowed to disclose the contents of the proceedings and/or the judgment.”
As of today, the federation has not respected the ruling.
Claims and counter claims
According to Play The Game, an international body fighting corruption in sports, the Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation may have understated its earnings by 173 million Trinidad and Tobago Dollars (USD 28 million), devaluing bonus payments for national team players.
Players of the Trinidad and Tobago national team, the Soca Warriors, were promised equal shares in a bonus fund of 50 per cent of the revenues of World Cup earnings gathered by the TTFF for qualifying for the 2006 World Cup in a deal hammered out between the players and TTFF special advisor Jack Warner.
The TTFF quoted World Cup earnings at TTD 18.25 million (approximately USD 3 million), and claiming costs of TTD 17.9 million, initially offered players a bonus of a little under USD 1000.
This figure came as a surprise to Hislop. “As little as we knew about football finances that figure just didn’t seem right given the fanfare and corporate involvement with the team during Germany 2006,” he said.
Greedy players
Warner had earlier accused the players of greed. In a statement to CMC Sports, Warner said “What Trinidad is suffering from is from a situation whereby 16 or 18 players are holding a country and a federation to ransom because of greed.”
No comment
Efforts to get Warner and FIFA officials to speak on Hislop and Warner’s statement were abortive.
FIFA’s media officer Wolfgang Resch said on Thursday that Warner, since arriving Nigeria, has granted two interviews and that it will be difficult to get Warner to do a one-on-one interview, “It will be difficult to speak to him; he is not available.”
Resch will also not respond to Hislop and Jennings’ allegations on the phone. Answering a call placed across to him, he said: “I can hardly hear you, please send your questions.”
When NEXTSports sent the question via SMS, he replied that he would prefer an e-mail.
A mail was sent to the address he gave, the response was an out-of-office instant response.
All efforts to speak with Resch since then have been unsuccessful. Hopefully, Warner will read this and react to Hislop and Jennings.
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