Pittso Mosimane, head coach of Bafana Bafana, is embroiled in a commission dispute with Iranian club Esteghlal, which has dragged South African football into yet another legal controversy.

Hamed Ghadiri, an Iranian football agent, has gone to the Johannesburg High Court to lay claim to unpaid fees he allegedly received for helping to facilitate Mosimane's transfer to the Iranian club.

In October 2024, Ghadiri allegedly began talks with Esteghlal about the appointment of Mosimane and members of his technical team. This was sanctioned by MT Sports Marketing and Management, the sports management company owned by Moira Tlhagale, according to court papers cited by the Sunday Times.

According to Ghadiri, Mosimane signed a contract with the Iranian club on October 18, 2024, after he was offered a job offer through his connections.

Esteghlal is allegedly expecting a $100,000 (about R1.6 million) agent's fee, which is at the heart of the legal dispute.

According to Ghadiri, MT Sports promised to pay him $75,000—75% of the expected agency fee—for his role in arranging the deal.

Nevertheless, the agent asserts that he believes he is entitled to the money, even though he has fulfilled his responsibilities and helped secure the agreement.

According to the court documents, Ghadiri also used a WhatsApp message that Mosimane supposedly sent on February 28, 2025.

Mosimane told the agent not to worry about the overdue payment because his wife would take care of it, according to the agent's account.

Additionally, Ghadiri asserts that Mosimane assured him that the commission matter would be resolved once the proper football channels had been utilised to resolve his disagreement with Esteghlal regarding outstanding salaries.

Tlhagale and MT Sports both deny the agent's claims in whole or in part, which has further complicated the situation.

Tlhagale and her business allegedly admit in their response to the Johannesburg High Court that Ghadiri introduced Mosimane to Esteghlal.

But they claim he was only supposed to contact the Iranian club to see if they were interested in hiring the South African coach, and that was the extent of his authority.

They say he didn't have the authority to accept the agency fees, finalise contracts, or continue negotiations.

Alfonso Leon Lleo, another agent registered with FIFA, worked alongside Tlhagale, according to the defendants, who also claim that Lleo handled subsequent negotiations.

The purported service agreement is the subject of yet another significant dispute. Tlhagale and MT Sports allegedly contest the document's validity, claiming that the appropriate parties never properly signed it. Ghadiri, on the other hand, maintains that it established his entitlement to the commission.

Additionally, they claim that MT Sports was not paid the agency fee until Esteghlal sent them the money.

Their legal documents state that the Iranian club either did not pay or flat-out refused to pay the agreed upon fee, so the business never got the money that was owed to Ghadiri.

Financial troubles had previously surrounded Mosimane's appointment at Esteghlal, which is why the dispute has garnered attention.

The Iranian club and the coach and his technical staff split up in January 2025 due to salary disputes. At the time, his management firm verified that, despite efforts to settle the matter, outstanding salaries remained unpaid.

The most recent court actions have refocused interest on the financial details of that appointment.

The agent's purported contractual entitlement, the scope of his authority, and the satisfaction of payment conditions are the current foci of the dispute at the Johannesburg High Court.

You shouldn't take the accusations against MT Sports or the defence as proof of wrongdoing. The duty of the court to ascertain the parties' contractual responsibilities is final.

So, Mosimane's short stint in Iranian football is also the subject of an R1.25 million commission dispute, the resolution of which will likely shed light on who was responsible for facilitating his Esteghlal appointment.

Source : https://x.com/TimesLIVE/status/2116733397926031650