Palmeiras loses court battle over FGTS payments for 89 players

The Brazilian football club Palmeiras has lost a legal dispute in the Regional Federal Court of the 3rd Region (TRF-3) regarding unpaid FGTS and social contributions. The case concerns payments made between 2006 and 2009 to 89 professionals, including former players and coaches such as Marcos, Tite, Muricy Ramalho, Vanderlei Luxemburgo, and Rosembrick.

The dispute arose from a Ministry of Labor inspection which concluded that payments classified by the club as image rights were, in fact, disguised salary. The court found that the payments were made monthly, in fixed amounts, and were not effectively linked to the commercial exploitation of the athletes' images. Consequently, the judge ruled that these amounts must be subject to labor taxes and FGTS contributions.

While Palmeiras had previously won in the first instance, the court has now overturned that decision. The total debt is estimated to exceed R$ 6 million, potentially reaching approximately R$ 9 million when including interest, fines, and inflation adjustments. The club maintains the right to appeal the decision to the Superior Court of Justice (STJ).