in January 2019, FIFA released a transfer market report that revealed, inter alia, that the total spending on international transfers in 2018 reached a new high of USD 7.03 billion, 10.3% more than in 2017. A new record was set with 16,533 international transfers, 5.6 % more than in 2017, involving 14,186 players of 175 different nationalities. The highest transfer fee paid was the transfer of Neymar from FC Barcelona to PSG, priced at USD 263 million.

If comparing these figures with football transfers historically, the level of transfer fees being paid for players has been exploding in recent years. In 1995, in comparison, only USD 403 million were spent on 5700 international transfers. The amount spent on all international transfers in 1995 is USD 73 million lower than PSG spent on the two transfers of Neymar and Mbappé in 2018, USD 263 million and USD 213 million respectively.

This explosion in transfers and transfer fees in the past 20 -25 years, makes it all the more necessary for clubs, players and national associations to understand how these transfers are regulated. In order to understand the FIFA transfer regulations, it is necessary to understand why FIFA decided to create these transfer regulations, and to understand the process of the making of the regulations.

Pre Bosman

Before 1995, few rules applied to transfers of players. Both FIFA and UEFA had transfer regulations, but these regulations to a large degree encouraged the involved clubs to come to agreements. Domestic transfers were handled according to the transfer regulations of the national associations, which varied from association to association. According to UEFA’s transfer regulations at the time, which had similar provisions to FIFA’s transfer regulations, a player under contract could only transfer to a new club if allowed to do so by his former club[1], which is the same provisions as the FIFA RSTP has today. Moreover, the club had the opportunity to offer the player a new contract before its expiry. The player was free to accept or refuse that offer, but if the player refused the offer, the club could still claim a transfer fee if the player found a new club[2].

Bosman

The Belgian football player Jean-Marc Bosman was never a football star but had for several years earned a living as a professional football player. In 1988, when Bosman was 24 years old, he signed a contract with Belgian first division club RC Liege. In 1990 his contract with the club expired, but before its expiry, RC Liege used the possibility in the transfer regulations to secure a future transfer fee by offering Bosman a new contract. In its offer of a new contract, RC Liege cut Bosman’s wages from 120.000 BFR to 30.000 BFR a month[3]. It was quite obvious that the club offered a new contract because they wanted to receive a transfer fee for the player, even though the they showed little interest in keeping the player.

Since Bosman was not willing to accept the cut of his wage he was actively looking out for a new club. He even found a club that showed interest in him, the USL Dunkirque, a club of the second French division that wanted to sign him. The two clubs even agreed on a transfer feee, but RC Liège had doubts as to USL Dunkerque’s solvency, and consequently did not ask the Belgian FA to send the transfer certificate to the French FA. As a result, the transfer collapsed, and Bosman was left without the possibility to continue his professional football career.

Both Belgium and France were, and are, members of the European Union. One of the main principles in the EU is the freedom of movement of workers within the EU area. This principle was at the time stated in art. 39  of the Treaty establishing the European Community (now article 45 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union) which read as follows:

`1. Freedom of movement for workers shall be secured within the Community.

2. Such freedom of movement shall entail the abolition of any discrimination based on nationality between workers of the Member States as regards employment, remuneration and other conditions of work and employment.’

Bosman claimed that RC Liège’s refusal to release him was a breach of the principle of free movement of workers and took the case to The European Court of Justice (ECJ). In short, ECJ agreed with him and concluded that professional football constitute an economic activity and is subject to EU law. With regards to the relationsh