CAS ruling forces Moldovan club to pay over one million euros to Van Iperen
Donny van Iperen has achieved a significant legal victory: the sports tribunal CAS has ordered the Moldovan club FC Zimbru to pay more than one million euros, after the former defender suffered severe brain injury in a collision on the field in 2022.
Legal victory
The CAS‑panel issued its ruling on 16 October and found Van Iperen partially right. The awarded amounts include compensation for lost earnings, earning capacity, medical costs and non‑pecuniary damage. For Van Iperen this represents a substantial shift compared with the earlier FIFA decision.
Financial obligations of Zimbru
FC Zimbru announced via Instagram that it now has to pay more than one million euros. The club acknowledges that it has already covered medical costs, transport to the Netherlands and the remaining salary, but states that the mandatory insurances required by the player contract have not been taken out. The sports tribunal therefore replaces the earlier decision of the FIFA dispute chamber.
In July 2025 NH News reported that Van Iperen had filed a claim for more than two million euros, while FIFA had only awarded a compensation of €28,000. The family considered this insufficient given the lasting limitations and future care costs, prompting them to turn to CAS.
On 6 August 2022 Van Iperen collided in his second match for Zimbru with the goalkeeper of the now‑defunct Dinamo‑Auto Tiraspol. The collision resulted in severe brain injury and forced him to end his professional career.
“I have been declared fully incapacitated for work,” Van Iperen told NH News earlier. “I can no longer play football or work. It is all because of the brain injury.”
FC Zimbru emphasizes that, despite the payments already made, the additional financial obligations threaten the club’s existence. The organization therefore wants to negotiate the implementation of the ruling, because “it is not only about the future of an organization, but also about preserving a club with a long history.”