Football
ESPN staff 9y

UEFA 'ready to introduce crackdown on third-party ownership'

#INSERT type:image caption:The possible UEFA rules could see players partially owned by third parties being banned from Champions League squads. END#

European football's governing body could bring in new legislation to tackle the issue of third-party player ownership among clubs competing in the Champions League and Europa League, the Guardian has reported.

The paper reports that UEFA could impose transfer bans on clubs breaching the legislation and exclude players from European competition squads under the proposed rules, which could be introduced from the 2015-16 season.

It says UEFA has become increasingly frustrated at what it sees as a reluctance by FIFA, world football's governing body, to crack down on third-party ownership.

Under the proposed rules, clubs would have to prove that their players were wholly owned by them, with those partially owned by third parties not allowed in squads for UEFA's European club competitions.

If the legislation is introduced, there would be -- as with the financial fair play rules -- a transition period in which clubs would be able to adjust.

With data showing that the number of players owned by third parties increasing -- a KPMG study said the value of such players now stands at 1.1 billion euros -- increasing concerns have been raised over the effects of such ownership structures.

The Guardian reports that a study commissioned by FIFA and carried out by the Centre de Droit et d'Economie du Sport and the Centre International d'Etude du Sport, had concluded that third-party ownership put clubs at risk of a "cycle of debt" and raised serious questions about integrity.

The research found that there was a lack of transparency among those investing in third-party funds, warning of the threat that pressure could be applied to players, club owners and coaches and saying the practice could even be linked to match-fixing.

Although FIFA president Sepp Blatter said seven years ago that action could be taken on the issue of third party ownership, UEFA general secretary Gianni Infantino told the Guardian that the European body was now prepared to impose its own measures.

"It threatens the integrity of sporting competition, it damages contractual stability, it undermines the relationship of trust that should exist between a player and the club that employs him, it creates conflicts of interests, it means that players have less control over the development of their own careers and it damages the overall image of football," he told the paper.

"Furthermore, there is little doubt that third-party investors do influence the transfer policies of clubs, even though FIFA rules expressly forbid this. If FIFA does not address the problem, UEFA will."

Third-party ownership is banned in England, France and Poland but is increasingly widespread in other parts of Europe as well as further afield.

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