Southeast Asia Indonesia

Persija to Pay IDR 20.7 Billion to Former Striker Simic in Salary Dispute

Former Persija Jakarta striker Marko Simic was entitled to be paid 20.7 billion Rupiahs by the Macan Kemayoran after the Croat had won a dispute regarding unpaid wages at FIFA’s Dispute Resolution Chamber.

Simic, who scored 73 goals in 111 games for Persija between 2018 and 2021, left the Macan Kemayoran at the end of last season underneath a dark cloud. The Croat striker, who won Persija the 2018 Liga 1 Indonesia title, had alleged that the club had not paid his wages during the COVID-19 pandemic from May 2020 to April 2022, with Simic being sidelined throughout the tail-end of the 2021/22 season due to the disagreements between himself and the Persija management.

After leaving Persija for a short stint at Serbian top-flight club FK Radnicki 1923, Simic took his case to FIFA, with the ruling body favoring the 35-year old and ordered Persija to pay Simic 20.7 billon Rupiahs that they had owed him. The amount included all of Simic’s unpaid wages as well as his unpaid bonuses relating to goals and assists, accomodation and travel reimburstments, and compensation for violation of Simic’s contract.

Persija were given 45 days to settle their arrears with Simic, otherwise the Macan Kemayoran will be slapped with a registration ban in the upcoming transfer window that would see Persija unable to register new players into their squad. The Macan Kemayoran management has so far left no comment on the matter.