The climax, as defined by the appeal, was in a game on April 21, 2018 in Ramat Hasharon, where a missed goal by Ran near the end (in a game that ended in a draw) led to a resounding shout by the coach towards him: "You son of a bitch." Even afterwards, the coach continued to yell at him for long minutes, and even swore at him in front of the players who were on the bench at the time, according to the claim.
Close to that game in Ramat Hasharon, in which Ran was ashamed to reveal to his parents, the season ended, on May 12, 2018. At the end of the game, the club informed the players that the coach would continue with the team for the next season, which will begin in the fall of 2018, to the surprise and disappointment of Ran and many other players in the team, according to him.
The next day, Ran's father, Adv. Amit Arad, contacted the club and asked to release his son from the team. In the meantime, Ran stopped showing up for the team's training, which the coach conducted. The club's representatives explained to the father that he was overprotective of his son, and rejected the request. On May 23, 2018, the father spoke with the club's new professional manager, Mr. Eyal Lachman, who tried at length to persuade the father to keep Ran at the club. In response to the descriptions of the abuse, Mr. Lachman explained that he, too, when he was a coach, shouted at his players, and even mentioned an incident in which the famous coach Alex Ferguson threw a shoe at the player David Beckham; Arguments that show the appeal method about the club's perception and the backing for the abusive behavior. A final request to the team, for Ran's release from the team in accordance with the provisions of section 11a(a4) of the Sports Law, was rejected and refused. Hence the appeal.
- The appeal was filed in accordance with a combination of provisions Sections 11A(A4) and 12 Law Sports, according to which a judge who has been authorized in accordance with the law may permit an athlete Minor, even if his club refuses, to be released from the club if his continued activity in the association is "Unreasonable or impossible, for reasons that are not dependent on him, or his continued activity as aforesaid may cause him real damage". Such is the continuation of Ran's activity, it is claimed. Although he also has arguments regarding the question of the existence of the agreement, this is not what the appeal is dealing with, it was argued. Verbal abuse, humiliation, humiliation and treatment by the coach, And all With the full backing of the club, And the influence of these on Ran, have created a situation in which Ran cannot continue to play for the club, and the court is asked to clarify that there is no room for such conduct towards minors.
- The club responded: He refused and refuses to release Ran. The club invested Bo Many funds and resources, gave him all the conditions Required, and built the team, among other things, based on the appellant, while seeing in him the potential to be a player in the club's senior team. The damages claimed by the appellant: trivial and general. A "critical mass" was not created as required by the case law for his release, without compensation and without conditions. Granting a player permission to be released from a club, while being subject to a binding contract, would constitute "a very dangerous opening for a wave of appeals filed by athletes", simply because they felt themselves were harmed by "professional criticism".
An explicit and detailed denial does not go into the substance of the claims. It was only claimed that the coach did not curse the appellant and did not call him "blunt names". And immediately after this general denial: an explanation of why the coach should behave this way. His job is to prepare the team for the game and manage the game. He must motivate his players and criticize them when they make mistakes, in the game, on the training ground, and in the locker room. His job is to give them professional instructions, and also to say "difficult things that are sometimes unpleasant." After all, he has overall responsibility for the results that the team achieves. "The coach is measured by the team's achievements and professional ability," it explained, and "a coach whose team he coaches fails may pay for it in his position." Criticizing or reprimanding a footballer for poor professional performance, a mistake he made, or disrespecting the coach is "the heart of the coach's job." Only in this way will the coach be able to fulfill his role, even if it involves raising his voice, even if it involves youth players or teenagers. Indeed, a coach's rebuke of a player may reach the ears of others. The shouting of a player's coach is "a daily affair in the sport of football", as is the case in other sports of the team. Moreover, things that a coach says to a player, even if the player was hurt by them or if they were severe, are not grounds for appeal under the Sports Law.
- For the sake of completeness, it should be noted that alongside the arguments to the body of the appeal, the club argued that there was no room at all to clarify the dispute in court, but only before internal judicial institutions of the Israel Football Association (hereinafter: The Association). This position initially came as a claim of "lack of authority", within the framework of the response to the appeal, and after it was rejected, it came as an independent request to stay the proceedings due to the existence of an arbitration clause. The club based its request on the provisions of clauses 10 & 11 to the Sports Law, and the bylaws established by virtue of them, which are binding on all athletes operating within the framework of the Association. The association supported the club's position: in accordance with its reading of the provisions of the law, it found that it had the exclusive authority to adjudicate, and that if the court thought otherwise, then "the court cancels the institution for arbitration and mediation", and any player who wishes to be released will claim that "whoever cursed him". The appellant presented a contrary position, which is based on the existence of the explicit provision of the law 12 to the Sports Law, which deals with the right to appeal to a judge against a club's decision not to release a player who believes that he has met the conditions in section 11a(a4) to the law. In my decision of July 29, 2018, I rejected the request to stay the proceedings, for the reasons detailed in that decision, and a hearing was scheduled to clarify the appeal's arguments on their merits.
Hearing the appeal
- At the hearing, he himself testified on behalf of the appellant, and his mother and uncle also made statements. His teacher submitted an affidavit, even though she could not appear for the hearing and the appellant petitioned for an additional hearing to be heard; With the consent of the parties, the need for her interrogation was spared. On the other hand, the coach, as well as the team manager, Mr. Kfir Edri, testified.
- Ran testified, in a way that illustrated what was argued in the appeal. He did not dispute that the role of a coach is also to criticize, but argued about how this was done. Thus, he described how the coach used to stand at a short distance of two meters or less from the player, shout at him and call him nicknames, in the ears of all the other members of the team. He described how every week he receives the nickname "Golem", as do all the other players, and even other curses. He described how the training was nothing but a series of shrieks, "How much you are not and no and no." Stopping a ball inappropriately: "Screaming, and the whole stadium is silently watching as it stands a meter away from you and screams at you." Ran was not the only one in this regard: almost all of his friends (who did not testify) were like him, he claimed. In games, "everyone was afraid to hold the ball because they were afraid they would scream at it, they would try to get rid of the ball, people would play with fear. If you lose a ball, it doesn't matter what you get, you get a scream."
In particular, Ran described the game against Ramat Hasharon on April 21, 2018, where he missed a goal from a comfortable position after trying to kick instead of attacking, and then he saw and heard his coach shouting at him "son of a bitch", turning to the bench, starting to kick objects, losing control, and continuing to yell at him "put your head in the cocoon". Even after the incident, while Ran was playing as a winger on the side closest to the coach, he continued to yell at Ran for many minutes. "You feel humiliated," Ran explained, saying, "At this moment I just wanted to go"; And only after a pause did he add: "From the game."