Dimitri Vernet 9:59 a.m., October 22, 2022

FIFA summit meeting, since Friday, in New Zealand.

On the program, the body will look into one of the hottest issues: the profession of player agent.

After abandoning the case in 2015, the highest football body intends to regain control of this completely adrift profession.

It's a real back-pedalling.

After giving players' agents much more freedom in 2015, FIFA intends to regain control of the profession by introducing new regulations.

An overhaul which provides for the agents the restoration of a compulsory license, the capping of the commissions collected, as well as the control of the various flows of money.

“We will frame the agent system”

This reform of the system has been in preparation for more than four years now.

Already in 2017, FIFA President Gianni Infantino warned of their desire to "frame the agent system", which is totally adrift.

In particular, the finger is pointed out: the superprofits, with more than 500 million euros generated just this season, and the illegal practices of the profession.

FIFA's objective is to regain control of the player transfer business, which often takes up more space than the sporting aspect.

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The regulations presented this Friday at the FIFA summit in New Zealand include making the FIFA license compulsory again for agents, creating a clearing house, where all money flows must circulate, capping the commissions paid to agents - to 10% of the transfer compensation when they represent the selling club, and to 3% of the player's salary when they represent the player or the acquiring club - and to put an end to the multiple representation which allowed agents to represent the three parties during a transfer (player, selling clubs and buyer).

Rules that will have to be applied from June 2023.

"FIFA wants to bring more transparency"

Jean-François Brocard, sports economist at the Center for Sports Law and Economics and specialist in player agents, explains to Europe 1 that "FIFA wants to bring more transparency".

But for this to be effective, everyone will have to play the game and especially the clubs and the players.

They will not only have to call on licensed agents and above all refuse to discuss with unqualified intermediaries who abound in this profession.

According to Jean-François Brocard, it is also "the objective of FIFA, to evacuate unqualified players, who have harmful behavior on the market".

However, deviations are still possible

Like the French model, which is already well regulated, deviations remain possible.

"Today, there are two scenarios, there are legal agents who are checked. Then there are those who respect nothing and who are never bothered", explains to Europe 1 Jennifer Mendelewitsch, agent licensed player of the French Football Federation.

She fears that this new regulation will have "a counter-productive effect, further constraining agents respecting the rules".

While unlicensed intermediaries "could have even more freedom".

This regulation therefore seems to have flaws, especially if FIFA does not track down unqualified agents.

And it is surely on this point that the real construction site is played out.