Maltese Premier League club Floriana FC has been ordered by FIFA to pay over €90,000 in compensation to former head coach Gianluca Atzori for breach of contract, following a legal battle that spanned nearly two years.
Atzori, who took charge of Floriana in 2021, left the club in May 2023 with one year still remaining on his contract. While Floriana initially announced that the Italian coach had chosen to depart voluntarily, Atzori claimed his exit was due to a breakdown in relations at the club and unpaid wages, leading him to take his case to FIFA rather than the local football authorities.
FIFA’s Player Status Chamber ruled in Atzori’s favor in December 2023, awarding him €25,765 in unpaid salaries with 5% annual interest, plus a further €62,000 in damages for breach of contract—bringing the total to over €90,000. The ruling was upheld by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on 28 February 2025 after Floriana FC’s appeal was dismissed.
Following the CAS decision, FIFA imposed a transfer ban on Floriana FC on 17 March 2025, preventing the club from registering new players internationally. This ban will remain in place until the outstanding payment is made, and could last for up to three full transfer windows. FIFA has also instructed the Malta Football Association to implement a corresponding national-level registration ban.
Atzori, a former coach of Serie A sides such as Sampdoria and Reggina, claimed he was forced to resign due to an unworkable environment and non-payment of wages for February, March, and April 2023, as well as unfulfilled bonus agreements. He argued that he had “just cause” to terminate his contract, a position FIFA ultimately supported.
Floriana FC responded by alleging Atzori had already expressed a desire to leave the club and that he had breached his contract by engaging in youth coaching work in Italy. The club cited financial difficulties as the reason for the delayed payments and claimed that both parties had begun to negotiate a mutual termination agreement.
Despite these claims, FIFA and CAS both found Floriana in breach of contractual obligations. Atzori expressed satisfaction with the final outcome, stating that the decisions affirmed his right to receive wages for work he had already completed. While disappointed in how the situation unfolded, he also reflected positively on his time with Floriana, where he led the team to an FA Trophy triumph in 2022 and a second-place league finish in his first season.
In his second season, the club struggled to find form, missing out on European competition and finishing seventh. Atzori described the experience as an ambitious project that had the potential to achieve more, had circumstances been different.
As of now, Floriana FC must settle their debt to avoid long-term transfer restrictions that could significantly impact their squad planning in upcoming seasons.
