Last week, the State Duma raised the question of the need for additional regulation of the activities of sports agents in Russia and the introduction of regulation in the field of sports transfers. So, the head of the committee on physical education, sports, tourism and youth affairs Mikhail Degtyarev and a member of the State Duma’s committee for health protection Vladislav Tretyak introduced several bills that could significantly affect the future transitions of athletes to both domestic and foreign clubs.
One of the proposed documents proposes the adoption of amendments to the federal law “On Physical Culture and Sport in Russia”, which will allow for the establishment in the agreements for the provision of sports training services the conditions and conditions for the athlete to transfer to other organizations in accordance with the standards adopted by the all-Russian sports federations , as well as impose sanctions for their failure to comply. According to Degtyarev, this initiative is aimed at protecting the interests of sports schools during the transfer of their pupils to other organizations.
“For many years, the state has been investing budget funds in the education of promising children. Once the best athletes are taken away by professional clubs, schools lose the strongest players, teams fall apart, spectators lose interest. And the federations do not know anything about transitions, ”the parliamentarian said.
In this regard, the deputy believes that compensation paid during transfers should take into account the expenses of sports schools for the “cultivation” of athletes, and the rules and conditions of transitions should be determined by the relevant federations.
Another proposed amendment relates directly to transfers of Russians to foreign clubs. It is assumed that athletes and their agents will be required to conclude agreements with sports organizations in other countries only in the manner established by the all-Russian federations. At present, the legislation of the Russian Federation does not have rules governing the transition to foreign teams, and the authors of the bills propose “to return this issue to the state’s field of vision”.
“Russia has created all the conditions for building an ideal sports career. Agents and bigwigs of the sports world today are breaking the fates of hundreds of talented boys in many sports, luring them abroad, ”Degtyarev commented on the initiative.
“By the bill, we propose to oblige athletes and their agents to conclude agreements with foreign clubs only in accordance with the norms approved by the Russian sports federations. The situation on the transfer market is still reminiscent of a freemen, we must return the issue to the field of view of the state and federations by sports, ”the parliamentarian emphasized.
In the history of the country there was a period when the transitions of players to foreign clubs were tightly regulated and met with serious resistance. At the end of the 1980s, the State Sports Committee allowed Soviet athletes, in particular hockey players, to compete abroad upon obtaining permission. One of the key conditions for leaving for a foreign championship or league was that most of his salary had to be transferred to the state. Some players were satisfied with this situation, others did not want to share their income and fled the country, as Alexander Mogilny, for example, did. However, the difference between that situation and the current initiative of Degtyarev and Tretyak is that federations, that is, public organizations, and not the state, will have to regulate the conclusion of agreements.
Legislators also proposed to tighten the activities of sports agents involved in the employment of athletes in professional clubs. The Ministry of Sports is invited to develop requirements for the activities of agents that will improve the quality of their services, as well as protect the interests of athletes and coaches. Currently, some federations regulate the activities of intermediaries on their own initiative. For example, the Russian Football Union is closely involved in the issue of licensing agents, but in the vast majority of cases, accreditation of a sports agent is not required.
“In Russia, more than a thousand sports agents carry out professional activities. Moreover, the legislation on physical education and sports does not contain sufficient requirements for the procedure for admitting agents to work from the position of state regulation. This is a mess, ”Degtyarev stated.
Finally, the last proposal of parliamentarians is that sports federations determine the rules by which their contracts with the athletes and sports organizations should determine their affiliation with the latter.
Currently, all bills are aimed at a preliminary consideration by the State Duma Committee on Physical Culture, Sports, Tourism and Youth Affairs.