PORT-OF-SPAIN, Trinidad (CMC) — A long-standing dispute over millions of dollars owed to 13 members of Trinidad and Tobago’s 2006 World Cup squad has ended, the country’s Football Federation (TTFF) has reported.

The players were owed nearly TT$12 million after the UK-based Sports Dispute Resolution Panel (SPDR) and later the Trinidad and Tobago High Court ruled in their favour in a legal impasse with the Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation (TTFF).

The TTFF confirmed payment to the players in a release issued Wednesday saying the court order has been fully executed.

“We are quite pleased today to announce that we have reached an agreement and that the court order was fully executed. This is a major hurdle that has been crossed,” declared Raymond Tim Kee, president of the TTFF, who was elected to the post late last year.

“While we are delighted to have reached a settlement, this goes far beyond just a settlement. We felt it was important to begin a period of reconciliation and collaborative efforts in our thrust forward for football in Trinidad and Tobago.”

The SDRP had awarded the players 50 per cent of proceeds associated with the 2006 World Cup campaign.

However, the matter had to be contested in the high court here after the TTFF failed to settle on the grounds that the players had breached the Panel’s gag order.

Earlier this year, members of the World Cup squad of 2006 were threatening to ask the high court here to liquidate the assets of the TTFF so that the money owed to them can be paid.

“For Trinidad and Tobago’s footballing future, players and administrators alike, a precedent has been set, one that I think will give the players a better footing in the game going forward, and one that gives the administrators of the present and the future a framework of mutual respect to build from,” said former national goalkeeper Shaka Hislop.

“To the 13 players it means an acknowledgement that we were right to stand our ground, stand for what we believed was just. For far too long we felt that players had been taken advantage of, and at some point someone had to make a sacrifice in making a stand that would benefit future footballers.”

The former West Ham United and Newcastle United goalkeeper praised Tim Kee and his new general secretary Sheldon Phillips for their role in resolving the dispute.