Soccer-FIFPro to meet French player in Qatar exit row

Nov 26 (Reuters) - The world players' union FIFPro are sending a delegation to Qatar to meet French player Zahir Belounis who claims he has been prevented from leaving the country after falling into a dispute with the club. The union said the delegation led by board member Mads Oland would also seek "urgent talks" with Qatari sports authorities and the 2022 World Cup organisers. "FIFPro will meet with Zahir Belounis and implore local authorities to hear his cry for help," said the Dutch-based organisation in a statement, adding that the situation was "deplorable". "(We) would like to praise his courage and determination during this extremely difficult period. FIFPro hopes Belounis and his family will be able to enjoy a normal life as soon as possible." FIFPro said that Belounis is stranded in Qatar, with his wife and two daughters, and being denied an exit visa until he agrees to drop a legal case against his former club, Al-Jaish, over his claim of almost two years unpaid wages. Soccer's governing body FIFA has said it cannot intervene in the case, which is the latest controversy involving the 2022 World Cup hosts following an outcry over the treatment of migrant workers in the country's construction industry. FIFPro also criticised the kafala system under which employees cannot change jobs or leave the country without the permission of their sponsors. "Belounis, his wife and two daughters have been stranded in Qatar due to the country's kafala visa sponsorship system. His is a story we unfortunately know only too well. "To prevent future misery for professional footballers, FIFPro will target the application of the kafala system with Qatari authorities and football's world governing body FIFA. "The World Footballers' Association will not sit idly by as the rights of our players are being abused." It added: "As the Zahir Belounis saga illustrates, a foreign player who enters into a dispute with a club in Qatar could be prevented from leaving the country under the kafala work visa system," added FIFPro. "Consequently, and players around the world are advised by FIFPro to take note, we assume under the present arrangement that foreign players in Qatar can never feel certain their basic rights will be upheld and respected if a dispute, contractual or otherwise, arises with a club." It added that FIFA had laid down clear standards for disputes between clubs and players. "A player is well within his rights to refer any employment related dispute to the local courts or, if it has an international dimension, to the FIFA Dispute Resolution Chamber (DRC)," said the statement. "That dispute should not be allowed to interfere with a player's ability to continue to carry on his profession as a footballer. Commonly, FIFA takes provisional measures to allow players to continue to play with another club even where a contractual dispute exists." (Reporting by Brian Homewood, editing by Justin Palmer)