JERUSALEM, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) -- In a precedent ruling on Monday, an Israeli court ordered Spanish soccer player Ruben Rayos and his former Israeli club Maccabi Haifa to compensate an Israeli player 4 million new shekels (about 1.16 million U.S. dollars) for injury during play.
In an Israeli League match in 2014, between Haifa and Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv, midfielder Rayos tackled Tel Aviv's midfielder Rafi Dahan, causing him fractures and a serious knee injury which led to disability, ending his career at the age of 24.
Dahan claimed the tackle was wild and deliberate, while Maccabi Haifa and Rayos, today playing for Cypriot club Anorthosis Famagusta, said the injury was not deliberate and was a part of the game.
The court rejected the defendants' argument that the tackle was normal and common, and an integral part of every soccer match.
In addition, a claim that the national civilian courts do not have the authority to deal with injuries caused during sport games was also not accepted.
It was ruled that courts usually do not interfere with injuries that happen during sports games, but this is an exceptional case.
The court relied, among other things, on the testimony of the match's referee, Nir Shitrit, who said that Rayos intended to injure Dahan and did not intend to get the ball.
The court also relied on Rayos' anger and frustration during the match prior to the brutal tackle, as well as the analysis of the tackle itself.
