High Court Freezes Civil Court Ruling Against FAM in Stadium Construction Dispute
The High Court has suspended a Civil Court ruling that ordered the Football Association of Maldives (FAM) to pay USD 3,382,000 (MVR 52.1 million) to South Korean contractor TKuing Construction Co. Ltd over unpaid dues related to the development of football stadiums in Hulhumalé and Villimalé.
The payment dispute stems from a 2021 agreement under which TKuing Construction was contracted to build the two football fields. According to the contract, USD 1,197,200 was allocated for the Villimalé project and USD 1,940,800 for the Hulhumalé project. The total amount FAM was ordered to pay also includes USD 122,000 each for reconstruction works.
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Despite the company granting FAM leeway after its failure to make timely payments, the sum remained outstanding. TKuing Construction subsequently filed a lawsuit at the Civil Court seeking compensation for financial losses incurred due to the non-payment.
On 1 October 2024, the Civil Court ruled in favour of the contractor, ordering FAM to pay the full amount within one month. The verdict was delivered in absentia after FAM’s defence team failed to attend the hearing. FAM has since appealed the decision at the High Court.
In an interim order issued on 10 November, the High Court stated that enforcing the Civil Court’s ruling before the appeal is concluded could risk causing irreparable harm to FAM’s interests. The court therefore suspended the lower court’s order pending a final judgment. It also noted that TKuing Construction had not responded, within the given timeframe, to FAM’s request to halt the enforcement of the Civil Court ruling.
The dispute comes in the wake of another major, but unrealised, infrastructure initiative undertaken by FAM. Shortly before signing the agreement with TKuing Construction, FAM entered into a USD 17 million deal with another South Korean firm, Sky Wind Global. That project envisioned a 20-storey “FAM House”, a four-storey futsal arena and the development of 20 artificial turf football fields nationwide, but it was never materialised.
The association has faced significant internal controversies in recent years. Its former president, Bassam Adeel Jaleel, is serving a prison sentence after being convicted of embezzling funds from FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). Additional cases are still ongoing against the former head of football operations..
