Fifa to ban third-party ownerships
Fifa president Sepp Blatter has confirmed that the world's football governing body is set to outlaw third-party ownership (TPO) of footballers.
While no details were released about when the new rule will come into effect, Blatter revealed that the ban will only come into place after a grace period.
Speaking after a Fifa executive committee meeting, the Swiss said: "We took a firm decision that TPO should be banned but it cannot be banned immediately. There will be a transitional period."
Discussion
Secretary general Jerome Valcke said the length of the transitional period will be discussed by Fifa's working group, with a proposal to be submitted before the next executive committee meeting in December.
"The ban cannot be implemented immediately and we are discussing the number of transfer windows we have to wait for this ban (to come into affect)," said Valcke.
"It's a matter of whether we are talking about six transfer windows, meaning three years, or eight, meaning four years, this is what we will be discussing in this working group."
Third party ownership is a common phenomenon in South America and exists in some European leagues like Portugal, although it is banned in countries like England and France.
Sporting Lisbon president Bruno de Carvlaho, who experienced problems with third-party ownership when his club sold Argentine defender Marcos Rojo to Manchester United in the summer, blasted firms involved in the practice, describing them as a "menace" and a "monster" that undermines club finances and the game's integrity.
Blatter had said in 2007 that Fifa was looking into banning the practice but nothing was done about it.
Source: Reuters
Get The New Paper on your phone with the free TNP app. Download from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store now