The Fifa ban on third-party ownership of football players

Abstract

Third?party ownership is a type of alternative financing model in which an investor takes ownership of all or part of a football player’s economic rights and is thereby entitled to a percentage of the transfer fee each time the player is sold. Third-party ownership of players’ economic rights is of growing concern in the global football sphere. Despite this business practice having been partially regulated by FIFA in 2009, third-­?party ownership continued to grow. This practice was subsequently banned by FIFA on 1 May 2015. In the international football community, there are different opinions of third-­?party ownership. Some state that a complete ban is necessary while others insist that the practice be better regulated. The purpose of this dissertation is to demonstrate that FIFA has come to the correct decision when imposing a blanket ban on third-­?party ownership. This dissertation deals with the history of third-­?party ownership, the different arguments brought forward by the opposing parties, and how FIFA came to the conclusion to ban the practice. This research assumes a quantitative approach comprising an in-­?depth analysis of third-­?party ownership from the available case law, journal articles and news articles on what is a considerably opaque topic. The shady practice of third-­?party ownership is a difficult topic to research because the majority of the parties enter into non-­?disclosure agreements in order to protect themselves. This secrecy has played an important role in perpetuating the existence of third-­?party ownership.