A EFETIVIDADE DA LEI PELÉ E DA CLT NA PROTEÇÃO DOS ATLETAS PROFISSIONAIS DE FUTEBOL: ANÁLISE COMPARATIVA ENTRE O TRT-2 E O TRT-15

Abstract

This study aims to analyze the labor rights of professional football players in Brazil, with a particular focus on the legal provisions established in the Consolidation of Labor Laws (CLT) and Law No. 9,615/1998 (the “Pelé Law”), as well as on doctrinal and jurisprudential interpretations of the subject. The research is based on the premise that, although sports activities have specific characteristics, professional football players are legally classified as employees, subject to formal contractual relations and subordination to their employing clubs. The study is structured into three main axes: (1) the conceptual delimitation of the professional athlete and the distinction from amateur and self-employed sports practitioners; (2) the analysis of the reciprocal rights and duties between athletes and sports entities, with emphasis on the special sports employment contract; and (3) a comparative study of the case law from the Regional Labor Courts of the 2nd and 15th Regions, focusing on rulings regarding constructive dismissal, occupational accidents, image rights, and remuneration fraud. The research adopts a deductive method and a qualitative approach, grounded in updated legislative, doctrinal, and jurisprudential sources. It concludes that, despite normative progress and the role of the Labor Courts, challenges remain in the effective protection of football players’ rights, requiring continuous improvement of legislation and judicial interpretation sensitive to the specificities of sports activity. The study reaffirms the centrality of human dignity as the foundation for protecting the worker-athlete. Keywords: Labor Law; Professional athlete; Football; Sports contract; Labor jurisprudence.