after defeat in court - Mainz 05 appeals against El Ghazi's dismissal
FSV Mainz 05, a Bundesliga team, will file an appeal after the Mainz Labor Court declared the termination of football professional Anwar El Ghazi's contract due to his controversial Instagram posts as invalid. The club announced in a statement that they will go before the Rhineland-Palatinate Labor Court as soon as the written reason for the judgment is available.
"The judgment is not understandable from our perspective regarding the arguments about deadlines and the lack of consideration of the overall context. Therefore, we advised the club to appeal," explained Johan-Michel Menke, Mainz 05's labor lawyer for employment law.
After the terrorist attack by Hamas representatives on Israel on October 7, El Ghazi wrote in a since-deleted Instagram post: "From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free." This means that Palestine should expand from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea, effectively denying Israel's existence.
Controversial Social Media Post
The post was not evaluated for the legitimacy of the termination for this type of case because there is a 14-day period after the announcement of the termination reason. The club did not observe this period because they terminated El Ghazi's contract on November 3.
In the decision, the focus was on El Ghazi's social media post from October 1, where he stated that he stood by his original posting and would not retract it. According to the general public's understanding, this was covered by freedom of speech, according to the Labor Court. In the opinion of the presiding judge, Bettina Chaudhry, there was no breach of duty that would necessitate the termination of the employment relationship without notice.
El Ghazi's contract extended
El Ghazi is owed approximately 1.7 million Euros in unpaid wages and bonuses. He is also to be re-employed as a licensed player, according to the judgment. His contract originally ran until June 30 of this year but has been extended due to Mainz's promotion to a year.
The Bundesligist announced that regarding the consequences for payments and the employment of the player arising from the judgment, the parties are in negotiations with each other. The exact meaning of this remained unclear in the statement.
- FSV Mainz 05, a renowned soccer team from Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, will challenge the Mainz Labor Court's ruling in the Bundesliga.
- Johan-Michel Menke, Mainz 05's labor lawyer for employment law, believes the club should appeal due to misunderstandings regarding deadlines and context.
- Anwar El Ghazi, a former football professional of FSV Mainz 05, faced contract termination due to his controversial Instagram post supporting Palestine's expansion, which was perceived as denying Israel's existence.
- The Labor Court deemed El Ghazi's contract termination invalid due to the club's failure to adhere to the 14-day period for evaluating the post's legitimacy.
- The Labor Court's decision emphasized El Ghazi's strong stance on the issue, stating it was protected under freedom of speech, as he refused to retract the original post on October 1.
- The court ruled that Bettina Chaudhry, the presiding judge, saw no breach of duty that would warrant termination of El Ghazi's employment relationship without notice.
- As a result, El Ghazi is entitled to receive approximately 1.7 million Euros in unpaid wages and bonuses, along with reemployment as a licensed player.
- Mainz's Bundesliga team is currently engaged in negotiations with El Ghazi's party regarding the financial and employment implications arising from the court's judgment.
- Posting about the situation on Instagram, El Ghazi, widely known as The Ghazi, expressed gratitude to his supporters while remaining optimistic about the ongoing processes.
