Questions are emerging regarding the extent of compliance with the legal regulations governing the work of football player agents in Syria, amid warnings about the growing role of unlicensed intermediaries and the potential legal and financial risks that threaten the rights of clubs and players.
While the regulations of the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) allow clubs and players to conclude their contracts directly without the assistance of an agent, they require that anyone practicing agency services holds the necessary license, raising questions about the reality of applying these regulations in the Syrian transfer market and the mechanisms for monitoring compliance.
A License Regulating the Profession and Protecting Rights
Lawyer Nasr Azzam, who works within the FIFA legal affairs department, explained that the International Federation has regulated the work of player agents through a licensing system that requires passing an online exam, aiming to ensure legal and safe transactions in the transfer market. Azzam pointed out that clubs are obliged to deal only with licensed agents to avoid violations and the resulting extortion of players or loss of rights arising from their transfer contracts.
For his part, Alaa Barakat, head of the legal affairs department at the UAE club Al Wasl and a lawyer, stated that obtaining a license for an agent means familiarity with international regulations and understanding the legal rights and obligations resulting from the relationship between the player and the club. He added that the agent's role is not limited to completing the signing deal legally, but can extend to helping the player invest their money, supervise the implementation of their projects, and manage advertising and media rights.
Absence of Licensed Agents from the Local Market
Licensed FIFA player agent Anas Ammou stated that the current season witnessed an increase in the pace of contracting foreign players, coinciding with an increase in the financial amounts allocated to these deals. However, this investment openness collided with a silent legal crisis: the near-total absence of official and legally recognized FIFA player agents within the local market. Ammou clarified that the absence of a legal agent leaves clubs vulnerable to unprofessional practices, including the submission of video clips of players that do not reflect their true level.
Ammou pointed out that the Syrian Football Association's disregard for its supervisory role over player deals and contracts, and its ignoring of all violations, has turned the Syrian league into fertile ground for unlicensed intermediaries of other nationalities, who have begun to become more active in the Syrian league without oversight. He noted that most disputes that go to sports courts end with imposing financial fines and administrative sanctions on clubs.
Qualifying Personnel and Regulating Intermediaries
Ammou believed that the Football Association has not worked to prepare qualified personnel to practice the legal agency profession, leaving the field open to non-specialists to manage negotiations based on their passion for football or family and friendship ties, despite the fact that this profession requires expertise and knowledge of international laws and regulations. He pointed out that the absence of controls and legal deterrence encouraged the practice of intermediation without a license.
He explained that he underwent intensive tests and questions after an in-depth study of the International Federation's regulations, covering various aspects of football laws, according to curricula prepared for this purpose and available in several languages. The absence of a legal agent widens the scope for unlicensed intermediaries, who may seek to achieve financial gains and unregulated commissions, which could lead to drafting unfair contracts lacking compensation clauses.
The repercussions of this are not limited to the local market, as clubs may find themselves facing financial and legal disputes at FIFA, based on complaints from foreign professional players or breach of contract clauses, which could lead to the imposition of fines or sanctions, including bans on registering new players.
Source: Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA)
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