Swiss Federal Tribunal, 4A_486/2019 (SFT 146 III 358), Trabzonspor Sportif A.S. et al. v. Turkish Football Federation, Fenerbahçe Futbol A.S. and Fédération Internationale de Football Association, 17 August 2020

This contribution reviews the SFT judgment that ended the legal battle of the Turkish football club Trabzonspor to initiate disciplinary proceedings against another Turkish club before the tribunals of national, continental, and international football governing bodies and subsequently before CAS and the SFT. The SFT judgment addresses several interesting legal questions. These include—but are not limited to—the right of a party to request a public hearing before the CAS, the conditions for the standing to appeal a decision by a third party indirectly affected by such decision, and the right of the CAS to bifurcate the proceedings without violating the parties’ right to be heard.