Football agents and FIFA’s agent rules

In one lineAgents negotiate contracts and transfers for players, coaches and clubs; since 2023 FIFA has required them to hold a licence, but several of its rules, including the fee cap, have been suspended while courts examine them.

What agents do

A football agent acts for a client in a deal. FIFA’s rules define agent services as football-related work done for a client — negotiation, and the communication around it — with the aim of completing a transaction. A transaction can be a player signing for a club, a coach being hired, a transfer between clubs, or a change to a contract.

Clients can be players, coaches, clubs, national associations, or leagues that employ players directly. Agents often provide other work too, such as legal advice, financial planning, scouting, managing image rights or negotiating commercial contracts. FIFA’s rules treat these as “other services”.

No one is obliged to use an agent. A player or club can negotiate alone, and the resulting contract must then say so.

FIFA’s rules

The FIFA Football Agent Regulations (FFAR) were approved by the FIFA Council on 16 December 2022. They came in two stages: the licensing rules from 9 January 2023, and the rules on acting as an agent from 1 October 2023. The current edition has applied since 1 January 2025.

The FFAR cover deals with an international dimension, such as a transfer between countries. National associations had to adopt their own agent rules for domestic deals by 30 September 2023, consistent with FIFA’s.

Getting a licence

To become a licensed agent, a person must apply through FIFA’s online platform, meet the eligibility rules, pass FIFA’s exam and pay an annual fee. The licence is personal, cannot be transferred, and is valid worldwide.

Eligibility rules include:

• no criminal conviction for listed offences, such as fraud, corruption, money laundering or match manipulation;
• no suspension of two years or more for breaching ethics or professional-conduct rules;
• not being an official or employee of FIFA, a confederation, an association, a league or a club;
• no stake in, or position of influence over, a club, academy or league;
• no interest in a betting business in the previous 12 months.

The exam lasts 60 minutes and has 20 multiple-choice questions on FIFA’s rules and the transfer system. The pass mark is 75%. From 2025, FIFA moved to one exam session a year. Licensed agents must then earn 20 credits of continuing professional development (CPD) — ongoing training — each year.

The representation agreement

An agent may only act for a client under a written representation agreement. It must name the parties, state the duration (where one applies), the fee and the services, and be signed by both sides.

• An agreement with a player or coach may last no more than two years, and automatic renewals are void.
• The agent must advise the player or coach, in writing, to consider taking independent legal advice.
• A clause that stops a player negotiating their own contract, or penalises them for doing so, is void.

Minors have extra protection. An agent may approach a minor only in the six months before the age at which, under local law, they can sign a first professional contract, and only with a guardian’s written consent. The agent must also complete a FIFA course on representing minors.

Who pays, and how much — as written

The FFAR set out the following payment rules. As the next section explains, several of them are currently suspended.

• Client pays. An agent is paid by their own client. There is one exception: for a player earning under USD 200,000 a year, the new club may pay the agent on the player’s behalf. When one agent lawfully acts for both player and club, the club may pay up to half of the total fee.
• Dual representation. An agent may act for only one party in a deal. The single exception is acting for both the player or coach and the signing club, if both agree in writing beforehand. An agent may never act for the selling club together with another party.
• Payment method. Fees were to be paid through the FIFA Clearing House, the body that processes certain transfer payments.
• Fee caps. The maximum fee per deal is:

Bonuses that depend on conditions are left out of the pay used for the calculation. For a selling club, compensation for breach of contract and sell-on fees are left out of the transfer fee.

Legal challenges and where things stand

Agents have challenged the FFAR before several courts and tribunals.

• Court of Arbitration for Sport. On 24 July 2023, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), a sports arbitration body based in Switzerland, rejected a challenge brought by an agents’ association.
• Germany. On 24 May 2023, the Regional Court of Dortmund issued a preliminary injunction against several provisions.
• FIFA’s suspension. On 30 December 2023, FIFA suspended worldwide the provisions covered by that injunction, until the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled on the rules. The suspended provisions include the fee cap, the client-pays rule, the timing of fee payments, the ban on dual representation, certain reporting and publication duties, and payment through the Clearing House. FIFA recommended that national associations suspend their equivalent rules. The requirement to hold a licence was not on the suspended list, and FIFA has kept running its licensing exam.

The Court of Justice ruling. On 16 July 2026, the Court of Justice of the European Union answered questions sent by the Regional Court of Mainz in a separate case (C-209/23, RRC Sports). It did not decide the case itself. It said the German court must judge whether the contested rules, including the fee cap, breach competition law or can be justified. It did state that:

• one rule looks incompatible with EU competition law whatever the national court decides: the rule that lets an agent approach, or sign, a client tied to another agent’s exclusive agreement only in the final two months of that agreement;
• FIFA may hold a dominant position in the market for agent services in international transfers;
• limits on multiple representation, the licence conditions linked to an applicant’s criminal or disciplinary record, and the approach rules restrict the freedom to provide services, but may be justified by aims such as avoiding conflicts of interest, protecting players and coaches (especially early in their careers) from abusive practices, and protecting the integrity of the transfer system — again for the national court to assess;
• EU data protection law does not allow FIFA to publish sanctions on agents or their clients, or detailed information on every transaction involving agents.

FIFA welcomed the judgment the same day. It said it would study its practical effects and invite agents’ representatives to talks aimed at an agreed solution.

Where to go next

• How football transfers work — windows, fees, loans and the payments that follow a player’s move.

Key terms

• Football agent — a person licensed by FIFA to act for a client in a football deal.
• Representation agreement — the written contract between an agent and a client.
• Dual representation — one agent acting for more than one party in the same deal.
• Client pays — the rule that an agent is paid only by their own client.