Zurich. Soccer clubs around the world have received 125 million dollars that were owed to them for the transfers of their former players, FIFA reported this Wednesday.
The money was channeled through the FIFA Clearing House, an independent financial entity based in Paris. There is a delay of almost another 200 million dollars.
An additional disbursement of $31.7 million has been agreed upon, but has not yet been submitted.
The Clearing House will distribute payments to more than 5,000 grassroots and professional clubs.
FIFA published an update on two years of work by the Clearing House, which began in November 2022 to bring more transparency to the multi-billion dollar and often opaque transfer industry. It is also trying to ensure that smaller clubs receive the money they are owed from future sales of players they trained.
When Moisés Caicedo set a record amount in the British soccer transfer market, moving from Brighton to Chelsea last year, his former clubs in Ecuador were entitled to share millions of dollars of the £115 million (145 million dollars).
The money channeled by FIFA “was a dream,” said the president of the Ecuadorian club CD Espoli, Lenín Bolaños, cited in the FIFA report. The amount was used to pay for a practice field, a medical clinic and a gym.
Some parts of FIFA’s transfer market rules in place since 2001 are under review after a European court ruling last month in a case brought by former France midfielder Lassana Diarra.
FIFA’s current system gives the former clubs of players who coached them between the ages of 12 and 21 the right to share up to 5 percent of a future transfer fee.
However, clubs were often unaware that a transfer had taken place or did not have the experience or resources to pursue a claim. The online process is now managed by the FIFA Clearing House, which notifies purchasing clubs of approved payments that must be made within 30 days.
The richest buying markets, England and Saudi Arabia, have paid the most in what are called “training rewards,” FIFA said — $50.1 million and $18.7 million, respectively, over the past two years.
The main net recipients have been clubs in the Netherlands ($8.7 million), France ($7.8 million) and Argentina ($7.1 million).
One reason for the delay is that clubs are not complying with the system, the FIFA report said. He noted that at least 1,600 clubs in more than 100 countries are accredited.
“There are still significant challenges ahead and areas for improvement,” Emilio García, FIFA’s legal director, said in the 52-page report.
#Soccer #clubs #pay #million #transfer #debts #FIFA #reports
–
