On October 19, 2017, a chamber hearing took place before the Cologne Labor Court in the legal dispute 11 Ca 4400/17. The plaintiff has been employed as a professional football player by the defendant, who manages the operations of Viktoria Köln, since early 2014. With his lawsuit, the plaintiff challenges the termination of his employment contract effective June 30, 2017.
The plaintiff's claim was unsuccessful.
If the duration of a fixed-term contract exceeds two years, its validity generally requires a factual reason in accordance with Section 14 (1) of the Part-Time and Fixed-Term Employment Act (TzBfG). The Regional Labor Court of Rhineland-Palatinate recently addressed in a judgment of February 17, 2016 (4 Sa 202/15) the extent to which the specific characteristics of professional football must be considered in light of this legal hurdle. Unlike the lower court (Mainz Labor Court, judgment of March 19, 2015 – 3 Ca 1197/14), the Regional Labor Court of Rhineland-Palatinate assumed that a factual reason for the fixed-term contract existed due to the specific characteristics of the legal relationship between a Bundesliga club and a licensed player. This legal dispute is currently pending before the Federal Labor Court (7 AZR 312/16).
The Cologne Labor Court deemed the fixed-term employment contract valid due to the specific characteristics of professional football. The “nature of the work performance” justified the fixed-term contract, even in the regional league, despite lower earning potential.
The decision is not yet legally binding. An appeal against the judgment can be lodged with the Regional Labor Court of Cologne.
Source: Press release of the Cologne Labor Court
GoldbergUllrich Law Firm 2017
Attorney Michael Ullrich, LL.M. (Information Law)
Specialist Attorney for Information Technology Law
Email: info@goldberg.de
