Friday, November 13, 2009
FIFA to Give Up Regulating Agents
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The Guardian/Matt Scott
Fifa to give up regulating player agents• Fifa to withdraw from global transfer market supervisory role
• FA and French federation oppose move
[b]Fifa is preparing to abandon all rules relating to player agents, in a move that could turn the global transfer market into a free for all.[/b]
A circular that football's world governing body has distributed to all of its 208 national associations is canvassing opinion on a proposal that will see it withdraw from its role as regulator of the international transfer market. The development was the talk of an agents' conference at Wembley yesterday, with one delegate claiming the move signals that football is heading "back to the wild west".
At a time when criminal inquiries are under way on both sides of the Channel over allegedly illegal activities in football transfers, the proposal has already met with a cold reception in France. In that country the statutory authorities also regulate sports agents under national laws. The French football federation's legal director, Jean Lapeyre, said: "We are going to make clear to Fifa that our stance towards this sort of idea is hostile."
Fifa's stance is a pragmatic one. It has made clear that only one in five transfers worldwide employs a licensed agent and under its one-member, one-vote policy the removal of costly red tape is likely to gain considerable support.
Currently the administrative burden on regulating agents lies with the national associations and even the tiny island nation of São Tomé and Príncipe, off the west coast of cental Africa, has three licensed agents working from its shores.
For major football nations such as England, that is not a problem. Indeed, the Football Association has been a world leader in its enforcement of agents' regulations, bringing in additional rules and licensing arrangements following the Quest inquiry into allegations of "bungs" in football.
The FA refused to comment yesterday on how it will respond to Fifa's survey. However it is believed privately to be dismayed that the progress it has made in recent years could be undermined.
There is some speculation that Fifa will even forbid national associations from having any involvement in governing the activities of agents, which the FA would certainly resist. However, there is a strong feeling among agents that Fifa's withdrawal from the regulatory space will be of benefit to world football.
"It would be a blessing if Fifa backed out," said Mel Stein of the Association of Football Agents. "They do nothing, they respond to nothing: the whole regulatory structure is a mess. This is them throwing their hands up, they can't cope."
There is a severe backlog of cases at Fifa. Among them is the FA's complaint about Pini Zahavi's presence at the meeting at which Chelsea "tapped up" Arsenal's then left-back, Ashley Cole. As an agent registered in Israel, the FA has no authority over Zahavi and must rely on Fifa's role as the international regulator. Yet more than three years since it was given an extensive dossier relating to the incident, Fifa says only that the case is "ongoing".
By contrast, the FA has won praise. "The FA has tried very hard to come to terms with the commercial reality and has done some very good work. It would be a terrible shame to throw the baby out with the bath water," Stein said. He believes that the AFA and its European counterparts would be willing to self-regulate if Fifa does strip back federations' rights to govern transfers.
A Fifa spokesperson said: "Fifa has engaged itself very actively in trying to find a solution to the regulation of international transfers, working together with its member associations and also with the clubs. It is also fair to recall that players' agents are not licensed by Fifa, but by the national associations already since 2001."
West Ham sweetener
West Ham United's fans might want rid of their club's current owner but they owe Straumur more than they think. Such has been the disastrous financial landscape – with millions owed to clubs, players, former managers and wronged parties – at Upton Park that Straumur has covered projected cashflow deficits with a £5m injection in recent weeks. A spokesman for Straumur refused to comment but it is likely the cash infusion was a gift, since any shareholder loans would presumably be vetoed by other banks whom the club already owe about £50m. The recovery in global financial markets has improved Straumur's fortunes no end, but it comes to something when a collapsed Icelandic bank is relied upon to support a Premier League side.
Guardian
The Guardian/Matt Scott
Fifa to give up regulating player agents• Fifa to withdraw from global transfer market supervisory role
• FA and French federation oppose move
[b]Fifa is preparing to abandon all rules relating to player agents, in a move that could turn the global transfer market into a free for all.[/b]
A circular that football's world governing body has distributed to all of its 208 national associations is canvassing opinion on a proposal that will see it withdraw from its role as regulator of the international transfer market. The development was the talk of an agents' conference at Wembley yesterday, with one delegate claiming the move signals that football is heading "back to the wild west".
At a time when criminal inquiries are under way on both sides of the Channel over allegedly illegal activities in football transfers, the proposal has already met with a cold reception in France. In that country the statutory authorities also regulate sports agents under national laws. The French football federation's legal director, Jean Lapeyre, said: "We are going to make clear to Fifa that our stance towards this sort of idea is hostile."
Fifa's stance is a pragmatic one. It has made clear that only one in five transfers worldwide employs a licensed agent and under its one-member, one-vote policy the removal of costly red tape is likely to gain considerable support.
Currently the administrative burden on regulating agents lies with the national associations and even the tiny island nation of São Tomé and Príncipe, off the west coast of cental Africa, has three licensed agents working from its shores.
For major football nations such as England, that is not a problem. Indeed, the Football Association has been a world leader in its enforcement of agents' regulations, bringing in additional rules and licensing arrangements following the Quest inquiry into allegations of "bungs" in football.
The FA refused to comment yesterday on how it will respond to Fifa's survey. However it is believed privately to be dismayed that the progress it has made in recent years could be undermined.
There is some speculation that Fifa will even forbid national associations from having any involvement in governing the activities of agents, which the FA would certainly resist. However, there is a strong feeling among agents that Fifa's withdrawal from the regulatory space will be of benefit to world football.
"It would be a blessing if Fifa backed out," said Mel Stein of the Association of Football Agents. "They do nothing, they respond to nothing: the whole regulatory structure is a mess. This is them throwing their hands up, they can't cope."
There is a severe backlog of cases at Fifa. Among them is the FA's complaint about Pini Zahavi's presence at the meeting at which Chelsea "tapped up" Arsenal's then left-back, Ashley Cole. As an agent registered in Israel, the FA has no authority over Zahavi and must rely on Fifa's role as the international regulator. Yet more than three years since it was given an extensive dossier relating to the incident, Fifa says only that the case is "ongoing".
By contrast, the FA has won praise. "The FA has tried very hard to come to terms with the commercial reality and has done some very good work. It would be a terrible shame to throw the baby out with the bath water," Stein said. He believes that the AFA and its European counterparts would be willing to self-regulate if Fifa does strip back federations' rights to govern transfers.
A Fifa spokesperson said: "Fifa has engaged itself very actively in trying to find a solution to the regulation of international transfers, working together with its member associations and also with the clubs. It is also fair to recall that players' agents are not licensed by Fifa, but by the national associations already since 2001."
West Ham sweetener
West Ham United's fans might want rid of their club's current owner but they owe Straumur more than they think. Such has been the disastrous financial landscape – with millions owed to clubs, players, former managers and wronged parties – at Upton Park that Straumur has covered projected cashflow deficits with a £5m injection in recent weeks. A spokesman for Straumur refused to comment but it is likely the cash infusion was a gift, since any shareholder loans would presumably be vetoed by other banks whom the club already owe about £50m. The recovery in global financial markets has improved Straumur's fortunes no end, but it comes to something when a collapsed Icelandic bank is relied upon to support a Premier League side.
Guardian
