Major League Soccer

New FIFA transfer regulations present serious challenge to U.S. league.

(Tuesday, January 27, 2004) -- An edict from world governing body FIFA will restrict Major League Soccer's ability to conduct player transactions. Just how limited MLS will be by the new ruling remains to be seen.

MLS has requested clarification from FIFA on several points, trying to clear up issues such as how the decree affects dealings with other American leagues.

FIFA's goal is to unify the international calendar and bring MLS more in compliance with the way the rest of the world does business.

The central problem is that while most of the rest of the world plays a season that runs from August to May, with a winter break of varying length depending on the league, the MLS season starts in March or April and runs to October or November. In the first eight years of its existence, MLS was able to acquire players from other clubs around the world at any time of the year.

Now, FIFA says MLS must adhere to a schedule that allows it to obtain or trade away players via transfer or loan only during four months of the year. The "transfer windows" run from January 1 to March 31 and from August 15 until September 15.

Transfer windows "have caused a lot of challenges around the world," MLS deputy commissioner Ivan Gazidis told the Newark Star Ledger. "Now it's our turn."

In early years, MLS has been able to obtain players from other parts of the world from May to August when other leagues were off for the summer. Now, there is only a period of six-to-seven weeks in the year in which MLS can make acquisitions with such leagues as all those in Europe.

UEFA, Europe's governing body, allows player movement only from the end of seasons until September 1 and then again from January 1-31. This would mean MLS could only deal with European clubs for one month in its offseason, but then not for the more than two months before the American season starts, and only for about 17 days when the season in the United States is in progress.

One important caveat: the transfer window limitations only apply to players currently under contract to professional teams. Players whose contracts have expired or who are otherwise "out-of-contract" can be signed at any time.

The new FIFA regulations were actually issued to the U.S. Soccer Federation which regulates the game in America. For years, U.S. Soccer has been fighting to exempt MLS from these transfer windows. But now that fight has been lost.

The new rule severely limits the ability of MLS teams who improve themselves should they get off to a bad start or should an impact player go down with a serious injury. In the past, the league has often brought in foreign players during the period from April 1 to June 30. Now, MLS clubs will have only have two-and-one-half weeks, a period that does not begin until its season is more than four month old, to acquire players from most foreign teams.

"It doesn't change things radically," Gazidis said. MLS "teams will need to make decisions on players more quickly than they would have liked. Everyone in the world would like to have no restrictions, but we do. We're all still learning to deal with it."

Also critical to MLS is the FIFA interpretation of player movement between teams in the U.S. FIFA has generally ruled that player movement between teams in a particular nation -- for example from clubs in England's Premier League and First Division -- must also take place within the allowed transfer periods. However, MLS's relationship with the second-division A-League does not resemble those between teams in different divisions of other countries.

MLS does not have promotion and relegation between divisions as is the case in many other nations. Furthermore, MLS teams have working relationships with A-League teams for player call-ups, a system that more resembles Major League Baseball's minor-league system than the world's soccer structure.

MLS teams routinely summon players from their A-League affiliates when they are shorthanded because of injuries or national-team call-ups. Conversely, many of MLS's younger players are loaned to A-League teams to gain experience rather than sit on the bench of the big league.

A strict reading of FIFA's new regulations would seem to prohibit that.

It also should be noted that teams in the top leagues around the world routinely carry 30 or more players, so they have flexibility in the case of injuries and call-ups to national teams. MLS has a roster limit of 24, which means when a team loses players for whatever reason, it severely restricts its ability to field a team without A-League call-ups.

Another gray area regards the lower divisions in U.S. Soccer. Below MLS and the A-League are the third-division Pro Select League, in which players are paid, but few could be considered earning a living wage, and the fourth-division Premier Development League, which is essentially an amateur league with teams allowed to carry several professional players.

Would restriction of movement between American leagues violate U.S. anti-trust laws? After long negotiations, FIFA and UEFA have been granted a limited waiver from European Community anti-trust laws and freedom of movement regulations. No such agreement exists in the U.S.

U.S. Soccer, left to enforce FIFA policies, is waiting for clarification. "I don't have all the answers," said Jim Moorhouse, the organization's director of communications. "We're trying to follow the rules laid out by FIFA, being flexible as we can for our (member leagues)."

FIFA's action has already seemingly scuttled an MLS loan of San Jose Earthquakes and U.S. men's star Landon Donovan to Portsmouth in England's First Division. According to reports, a complex deal -- Donovan is under contract to both MLS and Germany's Bayer Leverkusen -- had been worked out for Donovan to join Portsmouth until the end of its season in May with Donovan then returning to MLS. With the new rules, Donovan would have to leave Portsmouth and return to San Jose by March 31, with several weeks left in the English season, or have to wait until August 15 when the transfer window opened.

Portsmouth reportedly asked FIFA for an expedited clarification of the rule since the deal has to be completed by January 31, when its transfer window closes.

Another issue that really has not been addressed is the unique -- in the soccer world -- single-entity structure of MLS which owns all player contracts and assigns players to its teams. Since players contracts would not be altered, it would seem players could be moved from team to team via trade and a variety of waiver procedures. However, MLS must be assured by FIFA that it does not consider each league team a separate entity despite joint ownership. Otherwise, the issue would surely wind up in court.

Robert Wagman is a SoccerTimes senior correspondent. E-mail Robert Wagman. Gary Davidson is SoccerTimes managing editor. E-mail Gary Davidson.