While Lube Civitanova has an agreement in place for Robertlandy Simon to come to Italy for the 2019-2020 season, they seem to still be working to get the middle blocker in their lineup sooner than that. Though Lube’s Director of Sport, Bebe Cormio, announced they did not have it in their budget to buy out Simon’s contract from Sada Cruzerio, the Brazilian media continues to report that has not stopped them from trying to find a way for him to suit up in Italy this fall.
Sada Cruzeiro released a statement announcing that they intended on Simon fulfilling his contract until it is over on May 31, 2019. The figure being publicized by Brazilian journalist, Bruno Voloch, is 400,000 USD. That is apparently the value of Simon’s contract for the year and what Sada expects in order to relinquish rights to the player. While that is more than what Lube is willing or able to offer, it is reported that they are now turning to the Cuban Volleyball Federation for help.
Voloch reports that the Cuban federation has the ability to release their player to play abroad. Lube would only have to pay an ITC (an international transfer fee) to the federation in which the player belongs to thus bypassing the money Sada is requiring. The Italian website iVolleymagazine noted that Simon is no longer under the umbrella of Cuban federation since his defection. The Italian media asserts that the decision of his release will come from the FIVB.
It remains to be seen if the FIVB will effectively void a valid contract between a club and an athlete. Each time the issue of Simon’s transfer seems put to rest, another development comes to light. If Simon stays in Brazil he will be playing with Taylor Sander for the first time. Sander is Sada Cruzeiro’s only incoming international player for the 2018-2019 season.
Leave a Reply