Corinthians suffers new transfer ban from FIFA due to José Martínez’s debt

O Corinthians suffered new FIFA transfer ban this Thursday (21) and is prevented from registering new athletes. The punishment, valid for three transfer windows, refers to the debt owed to Philadelphia Union, from the United States, for the signing of Venezuelan midfielder José Martínez.

Martínez was hired in January 2024, even when Augusto Melo was president, for US$ 1.8 million (approximately R$ 10 million at the time). THE American team did not receive most of the amount for the purchase of the athlete and decided to notify FIFA.

Estadão found that there is no deadline for Corinthians to regularize the situation. The next transfer window opens in July. The Corinthians terminated with Martínez by mutual agreement in February of this year. The player returned 40 days late and, after undergoing medical examinations, was diagnosed with a rupture in the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his left knee.

The situation greatly irritated Dorival Júniorthe team’s coach at the time, who decided to no longer count on the player.

The Venezuelan’s contract with Corinthians was valid until the end of 2027. To end the relationship with the player, the board agreed to pay 30% of his salary until the end of this year and cover the costs of surgery to repair the serious knee injury.

There is still a risk of new punishments. Corinthians is seeking an agreement to pay a debt of approximately R$42 million to Talleres for the signing of Rodrigo Garro. The club also gave around R$6 million to Midtjylland, from Denmark, for the purchase of Charles.

This is not the first time that Corinthians has suffered a transfer due to debts due to the signing of athletes. In January of this year, the club had to pay R$41.6 million to Santos Laguna for the purchase of defender Félix Torres, who is on loan to Internacional, and was free to register athletes after four months of punishment.