Adrian Mutu must pay Chelsea more than 17 million euros (US$20.7 million) in compensation after losing his final appeal in a five-year legal case over a positive cocaine test.
The Swiss Federal Court yesterday followed the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) and FIFA in ruling that Mutu must pay the sum — a record for a soccer case.
It was unclear whether the Romania international will be able to pay the full amount.
Romanian television reported last year that the total compensation would likely bankrupt the 31-year-old, who is currently serving a nine-month doping ban in Italy.
Chelsea terminated Mutu’s contract after he failed a drug test for cocaine in 2004. He still had nearly four years left on his contract with the Premier League club.
Chelsea received no compensation when Mutu rebuilt his career in Italy, first with Juventus and since 2006 with Fiorentina.
FIFA awarded damages to Chelsea because Mutu breached his contract, a decision upheld by the CAS.
Mutu took his appeals to Switzerland’s supreme court, which ruled that the CAS followed correct legal process when it dismissed Mutu’s challenge to the FIFA decision.
The federal panel also considered whether the amount of compensation awarded to Chelsea violated legal principles.
“It reached the conclusion that this was not the case and the Romanian footballer’s appeal was unfounded,” the court said in a statement.
Mutu must pay 17,173,990 euros plus annual interest of 5 percent applied from Sept. 12, 2008. The federal panel also ordered him to pay court costs totaling 145,000 Swiss francs (US$127,000).
Mutu’s career prospects also have dimmed while waiting for the final court judgment.
He is currently suspended for nine months after twice testing positive for the banned stimulant sibutramine after Italian league and cup matches in January.
Mutu is expected to leave Fiorentina before he can resume playing on Oct. 29.
Mutu, then 24, arrived at Chelsea when billionaire owner Roman Abramovich funded a spending spree after buying the club in 2003.
Chelsea paid 22.5 million euros to sign the striker from Italian club Parma, but 14 months later he tested positive for cocaine. Mutu did not challenge the test result.
The English Football Association banned Mutu for seven months and Chelsea terminated his contract.
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