Belgian agent challenges FFP rules

BRUSSELS: A football agent is challenging UEFA’s financial fair play ( FFP) rules at the European Commission because of the likely impact they will have on his income, AFP learnt yesterday.

Belgian agent Daniel Striani released a statement via his lawyer, Jean-Louis Dupont, in which he claims that the rules will lead to restrictions in terms of investment, will diminish the number of player transfers that take place and will also bring down the revenues of player agents.

“This rule also impacts upon the right to free movement of capital (of club owners), to free movement of workers (players and clubs) and to the free availability of services (player agents),” added the statement, seen by AFP.

Striani’s representative Dupont rose to prominence as the lawyer who acted for JeanMarc Bosman, who successfully challenged football’s transfer rules at the European Court in 1995 on the basis of restraint of trade. The Bosman ruling allowed players over the age of 24 to switch clubs without a transfer fee at the end of their contracts, and also ended national league limits on foreign players from other European Union countries.

Striani told Belgian news paper Le Soir on Tuesday that “while the aim of financial fair play is without doubt commendable, it’s effects are harmful. I can’t see why salaries should be limited and why we would prevent investors from putting money into a club.”

UEFA president Michel Platini wanted to introduce FFP as a way of forcing clubs to balance their books if they want to take part in the Champions League or Europa League.