A BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE REFORMS PRESENTED AT FIFA FOOTBALL ANNUAL REVIEW 2021

A BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE REFORMS PRESENTED AT FIFA FOOTBALL ANNUAL REVIEW 2021

1. FIFA REGULATIONS ON THE STATUS AND TRANSFER OF THE PLAYER:

In June 2021 FIFA will publish the new "Commentary on the FIFA RSTP" in the 4 official FIFA languages (English, German, French and Spanish) which will include the analysis of the new articles regarding football coaches and female football players. The latest commentary was published in 2005 (16 years ago!)

2. NEW FIFA FOOTBALL TRIBUNAL

After the approval of FIFA Congress, a new so called "FIFA Football Tribunal" will be established to which FIFA Players' Status Committee (PSC), FIFA Dispute Resolution Chamber (DRC) and the new "Agent Chamber" (a Chamber which will only deal with agents controversial) will be subordinated. The Procedural Rules regarding FIFA Football Tribunal will be approved in May 2021 while the Tribunal will start to operate on 1 July 2021.

3. ESTABLISHMENT OF 'FIFA LEGAL HUB'

It was announced the creation of a new digital platform through which all FIFA proceedings will be carried out, setting aside the e-mail correspondence.

The use of this platform will become mandatory starting from 2022 and the lawyers/legal representatives of the parties involved in the controversial will be allowed to have access to it.

4. CLEARING HOUSE

It should start to work on the second quarter of 2021 in order to facilitate the payments between clubs. At the very beginning it will only run the payments regarding the training compensation and the solidarity mechanism but in the future it will also the function to handle the payments related to the football transfers and the agents' commissions.

5. TRAINING COMPENSATION 2.0

A new 1% 'training levy' will be applied to the transfer fees and it will be destinated to the so called “Training Fund.The payments related to the training compensation will be jointly paid by the obliged club and the Fund. The monetary contribution of the Fund will be proportionate to the obliged club’s revenues. The categorization of the clubs which has not been updated since 2001 will be made on an individual basis from now on as well as a new category called “Elite Clubs”will be introduced. The criteria to collocate each club in the appropriate category will be two: 1) the turnover and 2) the correction factor. It has also to be highlighted that only the first criteria will apply for “Elite Clubs”.

6. EXECUTION OF MONETARY DECISIONS

Art.12bis and art. 24bis FIFA RSTP have been amended with the scope to improve the execution process of the decisions. From now on the claims before FIFA will have to contain in the submission the Bank account details.

Moreover, FIFA decisions including a monetary sanction and an obligation for a party to pay the other, will have to contain the consequences of the non-payment of the amounts due in the same terms as described ex. Art. 13 Rules Governing the Procedures of the Players' Status Committee and the Dispute Resolution Chamber.

According to art.24bis 2 FIFA RSTP the consequences are the following:

1) For the club: the prohibition to sign and register new football players at national and international level until the payment of the amounts due (until a maximum of 3 consecutive registration periods).

2) For the player: the ban from any official match until the payment of the amounts due (until a maximum period of 6 months).

If the party obliged does not pay all of the amounts due (with the relative interests) within 45 days since the notification of the decision, the creditor will be allowed to request FIFA the imposition of the execution of its consequences without initiating a proceeding before FIFA Disciplinary Committee.

7. NEW RULES FOR FOOTBALL COACHES AND A GREATER LEGAL PROTECTION FOR FEMALE FOOTBALL PLAYERS

With the introduction of the new Annex 8 of the Regulation on the Status and Transfer of the Player, FIFA implemented new specific rules in relation with the status and the contractual relation of football coaches. At the same time, FIFA also established new provisions related to the legal protection of female football players in case of pregnancy: a rest period of 14 weeks and the right to receive at least the 2/3 of the salary. Both of the provisions could be bettered (no reformatio in peius) from the relative national associations.