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Fifa fines Al Jazira, five other clubs over players' wages

Arabian Gulf League club Al Jazira have been fined by Fifa, the world governing body for football, for non-payment of overdue amounts of money to players.
Al Jazira, who lost to European champions Real Madrid in the semifinal of the Fifa Club World Cup on home soil last December, were fined 25,000 Swiss Francs (Dh 92,344) over the non-payment of players' wages.
The two-time League champions also face the prospect of a lengthy transfer ban and other sanctions if they fail to make the payments over the next 60 days, as announce by the Fifa Disciplinary Committee.
"The club Al Jazira SC, United Arab Emirates, was sanctioned with a fine of CHF 25,000 and given a final deadline of 60 days to pay the outstanding amounts. The club will face an automatic deduction of six points and the automatic imposition of a transfer ban for two entire and consecutive registration periods if it fails to meet the final deadline," Fifa said in a statement.
Two Qatari clubs as well as one each from Egypt, Turkey and Russia also copped fines, prospective bans and deduction of points, for the same infringement.
Qatar's Al Arabi Sports Club and Al Kharaitiyat were fined 30,000 and 25,000 Swiss Francs respectively, while Egypt's Zamalek Sporting Club were fined 25,000 Swiss Francs. Turkey's Mersin Idman Yurdu Spor Kulübü were fined 20,000 Swiss Francs, while Russia's FC Kuban copped a 15,000-Swiss Franc fine.
"All clubs concerned were found guilty of failing to comply with previous decisions of a Fifa body or a subsequent CAS appeal decision ordering them to pay significant overdue amounts of money to players. In accordance with FIFA Circular no. 1628, with respect to the application of art. 64 of the Fifa Disciplinary Code to debtor clubs, and in order to ensure that all decisions passed by Fifa bodies are respectedas soon as they are issued, should the relevant amounts due not be paid in full by the debtor within the final deadline, the debtor's association will be required to automatically apply the point deduction and/or the ban from registering any new players," the statement said.
"Should a member association fail to automatically implement said sanctions at national level and provide the secretariat to the Fifa Disciplinary Committee with proof of the implementation of the point deduction and/or transfer ban, disciplinary proceedings - which may lead to an expulsion from all Fifa competitions - may be opened against the association concerned," the statement added.
james@khaleejtimes.com