Legal victory for Werder Bremen before the CAS: Following a case brought by the "green and whites" together with Schalke 04 and FC Barcelona, the international court of arbitration has established that clubs do not have a duty to release players for the football tournament which forms part of the Olympic Games. Consequently, it will now be up to the club whether Werder professional footballer Diego is able to take part in the matches in Peking.
"This verdict confirms our view of the law which we have upheld again and again during the last few months", said Werder’s Manager, Klaus Allofs, who continues to stress the fact that it is precisely this rule which is established in the statutes of the FIFA. "That is why we were not able to understand the behaviour and statements of various FIFA officials. The FIFA has failed in its attempt to revoke the existing paragraphs and to create new law. It was our duty to defend ourselves against this arbitrary approach."
While taking into account all of the circumstances, the management of Werder has together with Chief Trainer, Thomas Schaaf, decided to take the following step: "Diego will be released to play in the Olympic Games while the Brazilian team remains in the Olympics, provided that the Brazilian Football Association establishes the basic conditions for his participation in the short term," says Allofs, who among other things mentions insurance cover for the player in the event of injury.
The basic decision for Diego’s remaining in the tournament was not an easy one for Werder officials. "We also have great plans for all competitions this year and would like to have our best possible team available for the start of the DFB Cup and the first two Bundesliga matches. We raised this matter with the FIFA in plenty of time. However, we have the impression that the matter was deliberately put off until the start of the Olympics in order to force the clubs into the current situation", says Allofs.