Saudi Arabia, the promised land of football, where only milk and honey flow? Well, for a German professional, that was not the case recently. Until he sued.
Leroy Mickels is not likely to mean much to many fans in this country. Which is not surprising, his most prominent clubs in the senior sector in the Federal Republic were Alemannia Aachen, MSV Duisburg and Rot-Weiß Oberhausen. After a six-month interlude with the West regional league club, he ventured abroad to Spartak Varna in Bulgaria. And from there he moved to the second Saudi league to Al-Taraji in the summer of 2023.
Change in the Saudi summer of million-dollar transfers
It was the summer when the kingdom pumped billions into the transfer market. 35 million euros for Riyad Mahrez, 46.7 million euros for Fabinho, 60 million euros for Otavio, 30 million euros for Sadio Mané. And, and, and. Mickel’s transfer to Taraji, on the other hand, was free of charge. However, the now 29-year-old received a contract there that was quite attractive for a professional who had only played in the third division in Germany at most and most recently only in the regional league.
When he signed the contract on July 3, 2023, he was guaranteed a net seasonal salary of €111,000, payable in ten monthly installments. In addition, a deposit of €37,000 was to be paid in October. There would have been €28,000 in bonuses for advancing to the Pro League, plus €9,000 if Mickels recorded ten or more scorer points. But things turned out differently.
In the fall, the club’s payment practices suddenly deteriorated.
Not only did Al-Taraji end up being relegated to the 3rd division, but the club’s payment practices seemed to have deteriorated massively from the fall of 2023. On February 26, 2024, the winger sent reminders for outstanding payments of €77,000, four months’ salary and the October signing bonus were missing. Three months later, Mickels resigned and filed a lawsuit with FIFA: he wanted almost €108,000 plus €4,600 in legal fees.
And Al-Taraji? Apparently, he did not respond when asked by the World Association’s dispute resolution chamber. This is stated in the corresponding FIFA ruling, which kicker has obtained and which awards the professional the full amount of the claim, plus legal fees. Mickels has long since turned his back on Saudi Arabia and now plays for the Azerbaijani first division club FK Shamakhy.