Leading football agents including Mino Raiola, Jorge Mendes and Jonathan Barnett have threatened FIFA with legal action over plans by the football governing body to put a limit on their commissions from transfer payments.
Mendes, who represents the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Jose Mourinho, and Raiola, who boasts Paul Pogba and Zlatan Ibrahimovic among his clients, were among 200 of the world’s biggest football agents in attendance as the Association of Football Agents (AFA) met in north London.
Following that meeting, the agents all agreed on presenting a united front against FIFA’s plans to cap their earnings from transfers.
FIFA in September of last year unveiled plans to limit agents of the selling club to a maximum of 10% of the transfer fee.
In addition, FIFA want a 3% cap of the player’s fee for agents of the buying club.
But Barnett who represents high profile clients like Gareth Bale and England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford took exception to the plans.
“We want fairness,” said. “FIFA should recognise us and treat us in a proper manner.”
FIFA want to see the plans implemented as early as next season but Barnett added: “The truth is Fifa doesn’t know exactly what an agent does.
“No-one from FIFA has ever been to my office or had a conversation with me.
“If you ask players what they want, they are in favour of agents. There are never complaints about agents’ fees from players.
“We will try until the last minute to resolve the problem but rest assured, if necessary we will go to every court in the world.”
“For the first time, we have agreed a united policy in respect of FIFA’s proposals,” said Mel Stein, life president of the Association of Football Agents.
“We will be writing to them jointly to advise them that once there is a formal, consultative process in place where all parties can bring their proposals to the table, we will be eager to meet with them.
“As far as we are concerned, it sends a clean, positive message to FIFA on where we are on this.”
In response FIFA said: “We are aiming for a system of balanced and reasonable regulation, instead of the law of the jungle currently in place, with conflicts of interests rife and exorbitant ‘commissions’ being earned left and right.
“In the last year alone, football agents earned $653.9m (£498.2m) in fees, four times more than in 2015.”
FIFA said it was proposing “sensible, reasonable, rational, proportionate and necessary” regulations “to protect the interests of players and the wider interests of football”.
