FIFA & football stakeholders recommend cap on agents’ commissions & limit on loans!

As part of the ongoing process to reform the transfer system, and after a continuous consultation period, FIFA’s Football Stakeholders Committee today endorsed a series of key steps to protect the integrity of the system and prevent abuses. In particular, the committee recommended the introduction of a cap on agents’ commissions and a limit on loans of players.

The key measures agreed today by the Football Stakeholders Committee are the following:

Agents:

• establishment of a cap on agents’ commissions (10% of the transfer fee for agents of releasing clubs, 3% of the player’s remuneration for player agents and 3% of the player’s remuneration for agents of engaging clubs);
• limitation of multiple representation to avoid conflicts of interest.

These new measures concerning agents come on top of several proposals already endorsed last year and currently being developed by the FIFA administration, in particular:

• reintroduction of a mandatory licensing system for agents, which will include further education measures and a requirement for continuing professional development;
• all agents’ commissions to be paid via the FIFA Clearing House, which is currently being developed;
• an effective FIFA resolution system to solve disputes between agents, players and clubs.

Loans:

• to prevent player hoarding and ensure that loans have a valid sporting purpose for youth development as opposed to commercial purposes, limitations on international loans of players aged 22 and older;
• as of the 2020/2021 season, a limit of eight international loans in and out, going down to six by the 2022/2023 season, with a maximum of three loans in and three loans out between the same clubs.

The measures endorsed today by the Football Stakeholders Committee will be submitted to the FIFA Council at its next meeting on 24 October.

Following decisions by the Football Stakeholders Committee and the FIFA Council last year, several key initiatives to reform the transfer system are already being developed and will be implemented soon:

• The FIFA Clearing House will ensure automated payment of solidarity contributions and boost the amount duly paid to training clubs while improving the transparency of the whole system.
• Solidarity contributions will be paid on domestic transfers with an international dimension.

The Task Force Transfer System established by the Football Stakeholders Committee continues its work, particularly with ongoing discussions concerning training rewards, squad sizes, transfer windows, fiscal regulations and rules about minors.