Inter trembles and ends up in court: Sporting Lisbon asks for thirty million

The CAS has been called to rule on a sentence that could have a very heavy impact on the Nerazzurri club: here's what's at stake

The story between Joao Mario and Inter continues , but this time there is no talk of the transfer market . The Nerazzurri are being dragged into the matter by Sporting Lisbon , who have reportedly asked for a monstrous compensation of 30 million euros from the Italian club regarding the termination of the Portuguese footballer's contract in 2021. But let's take a step back. The footballer, when he was still owned by the Milanese, after a series of loans between Lokomotiv Moscow and the Biancoverde club, reached an agreement for the separation with the Biscione, then settling as a free agent at Benfica . And this is where the legal dispute begins.

According to the Record portal , Sporting claims that the termination was carried out to circumvent a clause included in the contract , namely that Inter could not sell Joao Mario to other Portuguese teams, unless compensation of thirty million euros was paid to the Portuguese team. After seeing a first request rejected by FIFA, the new appeal, this time to the TAS, resulted in a hearing set for next December 9th .

Inter's position on the Joao Mario issue

In the 2023 budget, Inter explained its position on what Sportig declared:

" On 10 August 2022, Inter received a request for compensation of Euro 30 million raised by Sporting Clube de Portugal – Futebol (“Sporting CP”) in relation to the permanent transfer of the player Joao Mario to Benfica due to the failure to activate the pre-emption clause in favour of Sporting CP in the event of the player's transfer to any other club participating in the Portuguese championship. On 10 July 2023, FIFA rejected Sporting CP's appeal in full. Subsequently, on 6 September 2023, Sporting CP filed an appeal with the CAS (“Court of Arbitration for Sport”); the Company, although considering itself not responsible for contractual violations, is examining the opposing party's objections with its lawyers and will take action in the competent venues to protect its interests . "