FIFA orders Vietnam club to pay $200,000 compensation to foreign player

The International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) on Thursday ordered the club to pay Stevens $200,000 in salaries and bonuses they owe him with interest, costs and compensation for his mental suffering.

Stevens' salary at Hai Phong was $8,000 per month.

Hai Phong FC need to pay the amount within 45 days or face more severe penalties, including a transfer ban for three years and potentially a ban on playing.

Hai Phong chairman Tran Manh Hung expressed surprise at the ruling and said the club would appeal.

They had previously submitted documents explaining Stevens' violations to FIFA but they were rejected, he said.

Stevens, 33, joined Hai Phong in 2015 after playing for a number of Jamaican and Russian clubs, and quickly became a mainstay in their frontline.

His contract was later renewed for 2018 and 2019, but the club refused to let him keep any of the contract copies.

Without a copy of the contract he could not apply for a passport for his son who was born in Vietnam, and he recorded a video criticizing and insulting the club's managers in a fit of anger in August 2017.

The club took disciplinary action against him soon after.

In February this year he left for Jamaica despite having one year left in his contract, and filed a complaint against the club with FIFA.

Hai Phong club have made no comments on why they did not let him keep a copy of the contract.