Premier League transfers could change forever after new court ruling

FIFA has been dealt a blow after the European Court of Justice found some of its transfer rules are anti-competitive and restrict freedom of movement - and a "major" FIFPRO statement has claimed the decision will change the landscape of the sport

FIFPRO, the world players’ union, has stated that a court decision on FIFA’s transfer rules will "change the landscape of professional football".

The European Court of Justice ruled that some of the global governing body's rules are contrary to EU law as they restrict freedom of movement and are anti-competitive.

This follows a challenge by former Arsenal, Chelsea and Portsmouth midfielder Lassana Diarra. Despite FIFA downplaying the significance of the ruling, FIFPRO believes it will have a profound impact.

"The European Court of Justice has ruled that a central part of the FIFA transfer system, in place since 2001, constitutes a restriction of competition by object and a violation of the free movement of workers," said the players’ body in a statement posted on its official X account. "The ECJ has just handed down a major ruling on the regulation of the labour market in football....which will change the landscape of professional football."

Diarra sued FIFA for damages in the Belgian courts, citing two of its rules for the collapse of a move to Belgian club Charleroi after the termination of his contract with Russian club Lokomotiv Moscow in 2014.

The first rule, Article 17.2 of FIFA’s Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players (RSTP), states that a new club will be jointly liable for compensation, alongside the player, to be paid to the old club where the player has terminated contract without just cause. The second rule allows the national association of the player’s former club to withhold an international transfer certificate (ITC) where there is a contract dispute.

Prior to Friday’s judgement, FIFA sources had questioned the significance of the ITC rule, noting that in all cases where a club wishing to sign a player involved in a dispute referred the matter to FIFA, registration with the new club was permitted. Some had billed the decision as the most significant since the 1995 Bosman ruling, which effectively gave out-of-contract players complete freedom at the end of their contracts.

Jean-Louis Dupont, who worked on that case and represented Diarra in this one, and his firm described Friday’s ruling as a "total victory" for Diarra. The Dupont-Hissel firm statement said the decision would pave the way for a modernisation of governance in the transfer market, "in particular the use of collective bargaining between employees and employers" as are more common in American sports.

The ECJ ruling, set to be published in full later on Friday, will now be handed back to the Belgian appeal court which made the referral for a final decision on the specifics in the Diarra case.

A press release from the ECJ issued on Friday morning declared: "The rules in question are such as to impede the free movement of professional footballers wishing to develop their activity by going to work for a new club."

The statement continued, explaining the court's stance that while some restrictions on movement may be legitimate to ensure fair competition and stability within teams, it believes the disputed regulations exceed what is necessary for those aims. FIFA responded positively, saying: "FIFA is satisfied that the legality of key principles of the transfer system have been reconfirmed in today’s ruling."

It added, however, that "The ruling only puts in question two paragraphs of two articles of the FIFA Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players, which the national court is now invited to consider."

Emphasising caution until further analysis, FIFA stated: "FIFA will analyse the decision in co-ordination with other stakeholders before commenting further."

Underlining the limited scope of the impact, Emilio Garcia, FIFA’s chief legal and compliance officer, remarked: "We have taken note of the ruling issued today by the Court of Justice of the European Union in relation to the case involving Lassana Diarra. It is important to clarify that today’s decision does not change the core principles of the transfer system at all. ".

Maheta Molango, the chief executive of English players’ union the Professional Footballers’ Association, commented on FIFA's system improvements: "FIFA has been continuously improving that system for many years – not for its own benefit, but for the benefit of players, clubs, leagues and member associations, to ensure that players can train, be developed and have stability, while safeguarding the integrity of competitions by implementing a robust regulatory framework for the international transfer system."

He also warned that the ruling could have "far-reaching ramifications" for football.