Soccer agents lose appeal against Fifa on new regulations

The soccer agents were defeated in this second fair (24), at the Sports Arbitration Court (CAS), in an attempt to appeal to block the new Fifa regulations that will limit their transfer fees and introduce tests for these professionals to obtain their licenses.

The Association of Professional Soccer Agents (PROFAA), based in Zurique, filed an appeal to the CAS, or highest sports court, in Switzerland, after Fifa introduced a new regulatory structure in January this year. The new regulations will enter into force on October 1st.

The allegations of PROFAA that the regulations violate concurrence and the laws of the European Union are “rejected in their entirety”, says the CAS. The group of agents claimed to be “extremely upset” with the decision.

“PROFAA will carefully examine the determination before deciding on the next steps and will continue to support all and any litigation against these regulations, specifically the introduction of a commission term”, added the group.

Fifa wants to limit the earnings of two agents to a maximum commission of 3% for any transfer of more than 200,000 dollars (about R$ 948 million) and 5% for transactions under 200,000 dollars. There will be a 10% limit on earnings when the agents work on behalf of the seller’s club.

The regulations also require that the agents have a license, for which they must undergo a new test on October 1st. The agents took the exam for the first time in April, with only 52% of the 3,800 candidates obtaining the necessary grade for approval.

Other important changes include the prohibition of multiple representation to avoid conflicts of interest and the payment of agent fees through the FIFA financial clearinghouse.

“Fifa welcomes today’s decision… which fully confirms the legality, validity and proportionality of the FIFA Soccer Agent Regulations (FFAR)”, said the soccer regulatory body.

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