European Commission upholds FIFA's agents regulation before the European Court of Justice

The statute ensures the protection of contractual stability, the limitation of conflicts of interest, and the protection of players

The Football Agents Regulation (FFAR) came into force on 1 October and not without controversy, which is gradually being cleared up, especially with the push received from the European Commission (EC) before the European Court of Justice.

In its submission to the Court, the EC acknowledged that sports federations such as FIFA enjoy a certain degree of discretion in regulating sport. The more the core area of sporting activity is affected, the more room for manoeuvre can be given to sports federations.

It also acknowledged that agents have a considerable impact on the transfer behaviour of clubs and therefore have a decisive impact on sporting competition.

As such, it is legitimate for FIFA to require football agents to be subject to a licensing regime that safeguards uniform international standards for professional and ethical rules.

In the EC's view, as reflected in the documents to which MARCA has had access, any restriction of competition is justified by the legitimate objectives pursued by the FFAR, in particular the protection of contractual stability, the limitation of conflicts of interest, and the protection of players who often lack experience or information on the player transfer system.

The EC goes on to explain the reasons for what it considers to be the implementation of the regulation: «The eligibility criteria setting out the ethical standards to be met by potential football agents are legitimate.»

It also considers that the most contentious aspect of the FFAR, the service fee cap, is also justified as necessary to protect contractual stability because of the power agents have to