Rédaction Africa Links 24 with Edouard Djogbénou
Published on 2024-04-18 11:07:34
Two Beninese players claim 300 million CFA from an airline after being denied boarding.
Two Beninese footballers have taken the Chamber of Commerce in Cotonou to court after being denied boarding by an airline, reports Banouto.
The two young players each demanded 150 million CFA in damages. The court ruled in favor of the two players, ordering payment, but not the total amount of 300 million CFA.
The two players accused the company of preventing them from participating in a training camp in Portugal in 2022, which could have led to contract signings. The two players, who are from a club in Sèmè-Kpodji, were invited to Portugal following correspondence dated July 6, 2022, to participate in a football training camp.
The one-month camp was supposed to start on July 20, 2022. They bought two plane tickets from the company in question. However, due to the high season, they were unable to board at Cotonou airport and the company transferred them to Lomé airport in Togo.
The two players claim that the training period was delayed by a month and was supposed to take place from August 20 to September 20, 2022. They state that they had all necessary travel documents, including valid passports and visas.
However, after being denied boarding, with no explanation or apology, the same company quickly called them for a flight scheduled for September 5, 2022, according to the Lomé-Paris-Lisbon flight plan. This caused them to lose the opportunity to participate in the training camp, thus preventing them from signing contracts with the Portuguese club.
The demands of the two plaintiffs
In their complaint, the plaintiffs requested the reimbursement of the ticket prices, penalties, and an additional amount of 2,500 euros (equivalent to more than 1.5 million CFA) paid to the Portuguese club. They also demand payment of 150,000,000 CFA each, covering all damages suffered. Additionally, they request provisional execution of half of the sought sentence.
The airline refused to consider the plaintiffs’ claims, defending itself by stating that the two players were unable to board due to discrepancies in their travel documents. According to the company, the invitation letter issued by the Portuguese club indicated that the training camp started on July 20, 2022, for a duration of one month, until August 20, 2022.
The company claims that the two players went to the airport on August 27, 2022, when the training camp should already have ended. In their view, the denial of boarding was justified and they cannot be held responsible for the decision of Togolese airport authorities regarding border crossings.
The Cotonou Chamber of Commerce ruled that the denial of boarding of the two players by the company on August 27, 2022, “is not based on any objective and serious reasons.” According to the judge, this refusal constitutes “a breach by the company of its obligation” towards the players. Consequently, they are entitled to damages. However, since the claimants could not prove that they paid 2,500 euros to the benefit of the Portuguese club due to the denial of boarding, they cannot claim a refund.
The airline is ordered to pay each player the sum of five million CFA as compensation for all damages suffered. The decision is not provisional and condemns the company to pay the court costs.
Read the original article(French) on Benin Web TV
