𝐄𝐂𝐉 𝐫𝐮𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐅𝐈𝐅𝐀 𝐫𝐮𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐟𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐟𝐨𝐨𝐭𝐛𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐄𝐔 𝐥𝐚𝐰 ⚽️

Following a request for a preliminary ruling, the ECJ has issued a judgment which will likely have far-reaching consequences for the professional football market.

The case concerns a former professional footballer who challenged a number of FIFA rules before Belgian courts, arguing that these prevented his employment by a Belgian football club. The rules in question concern the situation where a club considers that one of its players has terminated his employment contract before the normal term of that contract without “just cause”. In such a situation, the FIFA rules state that the player and new club are jointly and severally liable to compensate the former club. The new club may also be banned from registering new players for a certain period of time. Lastly, the national association of the player’s former club must refuse to authorise any transfer as long as the dispute between the player and his former club is pending.

The ECJ ruled that these rules were contrary to the free movement of workers and competition law:

1. The rules impede the free movement of professional footballers wishing to work for a new club. Although restrictions on the free movement of footballers may be justified by overriding reasons in the public interest consisting in ensuring the regularity of interclub football competitions, by maintaining a certain degree of stability in the player rosters of professional football clubs, the rules in question seem to go beyond that objective.

2. The rules have as their object the restriction, and even prevention of cross-border competition between clubs established in the EU. The ECJ remarks that recruiting trained players is a key factor of competition in the professional football sector, and rules that place a restriction on that form of competition are similar to no-poach cartels. The ECJ further remarks that those rules do not appear indispensable or necessary.

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐧𝐨𝐰?
Today's decision marks another major setback for football’s regulatory bodies, which were already weakened by the trio of sports antitrust rulings of last December (concerning the European Super League, the ISU and the Royal Antwerp Football Club). While this case is not officially concluded, as the referring court still needs to issue a ruling based on the ECJ’s guidance, it seems unlikely that the transfer system will remain unchanged. Football’s regulatory bodies shall urgently need to seek alternative routes to organise the professional football transfer system.

𝐌𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐨 ?
🔗 Read the judgment: https://lnkd.in/e6r2GddV

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