BAHRAIN Trends and Developments Contributed by: Sultan bin Nasser Alsowaidi, Sultan bin Nasser Alsowaidi
Financial Sustainability in Bahraini Football: The Need for Financial Fair Play Rules as a Preventative Tool to Address Club Debts Introduction In recent years, the Kingdom of Bahrain has witnessed notable progress in the institutional and legal frame - work regulating the sports sector, particularly regard - ing sports dispute resolution. Sports federations have moved towards establishing specialised chambers for dispute resolution, extending their jurisdiction to include financial disputes and the settlement of pro - fessional athletes’ entitlements. Furthermore, an insti - tutional sports arbitration system has been introduced through the Bahrain Chamber for Dispute Resolution (BCDR), which launched its Sports Arbitration Rules in 2022. This development has contributed to providing specialised and effective mechanisms for resolving sports disputes and has enhanced the confidence of various stakeholders in dispute settlement mecha - nisms outside the ordinary judicial system. However, notwithstanding the importance and effec - tiveness of these mechanisms, they remain, by their nature, remedial tools applied only after the occur - rence of a problem, as they are only activated after a dispute has arisen and its effects have escalated – particularly with respect to the accumulation of pro - fessional players’ dues and delays in the settlement of contractual obligations owed to them. In many cas - es, such dues have accrued over extended periods, leading to the exhaustion of clubs’ financial positions and compelling players to resort to dispute resolu - tion mechanisms as a last resort after the failure of amicable solutions. The impact of this issue extends beyond the contrac - tual relationship between the club and the player; it also affects the overall competitive stability of Bah - raini football. Disparities in clubs’ financial capacities, coupled with some clubs’ failure to meet their players’ financial entitlements in a timely manner, have given rise to an uneven playing field that adversely affects the integrity of sporting competition. This, in turn, undermines the reputation of the domestic league and diminishes its attractiveness to professional players, agents and investors.
Accordingly, the need has arisen to shift from a reac - tive approach focused on post-dispute resolution to a proactive approach centred on preventative meas - ures, through the adoption of regulatory instruments aimed at curbing the emergence of financial crises before they materialise. In this context, the introduc - tion of rules or principles inspired by the Financial Fair Play framework constitutes one of the most viable solutions, as a preventative mechanism designed to regulate expenditure, align financial obligations with clubs’ actual financial capacities, safeguard players’ entitlements, and enhance the league’s competitive stability, in a manner consistent with the specific char - acteristics of the Bahraini market and the nature of domestic football. This article seeks to examine the necessity of intro - ducing rules inspired by Financial Fair Play in Bahraini football, not as a literal transplantation of foreign mod - els, but rather as a flexible regulatory solution adapt - able to the local context. The aim would be to address the problem of accumulated club debts – particularly outstanding financial entitlements owed to profes - sional players – and contribute to the establishment of a more sustainable and balanced football ecosystem in the medium and long term. The structural particularities of Bahraini football and the recurrence of the debt crisis To understand the recurring nature of indebtedness and the accumulation of players’ financial entitlements in Bahraini football, it is insufficient to view the issue as a transient administrative shortcoming affecting one or two clubs. The reality points to the existence of structural factors intrinsically linked to the nature of the local sports market, which directly affect clubs’ ability to engage in sound financial planning and meet their obligations on a sustainable basis. According - ly, any preventative solution – such as the adoption of Financial Fair Play – must be grounded in a clear understanding of these structural particularities, rather than relying on the wholesale transplantation of ready- made external models. The football environment in Bahrain is characterised by the fact that the majority of clubs operate on a non-profit basis and rely primarily on government or quasi-government support, with significant limitations
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