GLOBAL TRANSFER MARKET REPORT

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1 GLOBAL TRANSFER MARKET REPORT

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3 1 FOREWORD Welcome to the Global Transfer Market 2015 (GTM15) report, the fourth edition of the FIFA Transfer Matching System GmbH (FIFA TMS) annual review of the international transfer market. The report reflects unique, official and reliable data directly gathered from professional football clubs and associations worldwide. This year s report provides four full calendar years of unique and comprehensive international transfer data. The edition continues building upon the strengths of previous editions and includes several new features, including for the first time club level information with a league comparison for French Ligue 1, Spanish Liga, Italian Serie A and English Premier League. The report also provides extended background insights into the international transfer environment, as well as case studies reflecting exclusive interviews carried out with clubs and member association representatives. The FIFA TMS vision is to foster and sustain a transparent global transfer market based on integrity, accountability and innovation. The full participation of all member associations and professional clubs in the FIFA Transfer Matching System greatly contributes to this vision and we would like to thank them for their continued support. I hope you will enjoy this edition of the Global Transfer Market If you have any questions, feedback or suggestions, please visit our website at Mark Goddard General Manager FIFA Transfer Matching System GmbH

4 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS 1 Foreword 4 Highlights of the 2014 key indicators 6 Executive summary 8 The nature of international transfers 10 1 Market activity and mobility patterns Overall market activity International transfers at confederation level Incoming transfers Outgoing transfers Transfer streams 22 Case Study 1: CONCACAF becoming a key destination Most active countries Incoming transfers Outgoing transfers All international transfers Transfer streams at country level Timing of transfers and transfer types Timing of transfers Transfer types 40 Case Study 2: FIFA World Cup effect in action 44 2 Transfer fees Overall spend Type of transfer fees Spending and receipts Spending and receipts at confederation level Spending and receipts at country level Net spending/net receipts Money flows 64 Case Study 3: Noticeable shift in French market 67 Club level information: French Ligue 1, Spanish Liga, Italian Serie A, English Premier League

5 Player characteristics Player age Player nationality Minor applications in the Transfer Matching System 84 4 Intermediary Overall activity Club intermediary commissions Top spenders of club intermediary commissions 96 About FIFA TMS 96 About FIFA TMS data 97 General disclaimer 98 List of figures per chapter 100 Rules and assumptions

6 4 Highlights of the 2014 key indicators USD 4.1 BILLION The total spending worldwide on international transfers, a new record 13,090 International transfers worldwide in ,793 Minor applications processed during the year Spain The market s biggest receiver (USD 667 million) ENGLAND The market s biggest spender (USD 1.2 billion)

7 Highlights of the 2014 key indicators 5 25 years and 6 months The average age of players transferred internationally USD 236 million The commissions paid to club intermediaries INDIA The country that engaged (646) and released (689) the highest number of players The country that engaged the oldest players on average (28 years and 10 months) Brazilian 397 Number of transfers on 1 September 2014, the busiest transfer day The most transferred nationality (1,493)

8 6 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Market activity continued to trend up in 2014, with a new record high in number of international transfers set at 13,090 transfers. Over the last four years, the international transfer activity increased at a slow but steady pace, with an average growth of 3.4% per year between 2011 and UEFA 1 continues to drive the market upward Once again in 2014 Europe was the main driver of the market activity worldwide; with UEFA representing 57% of all incoming transfers during the year. The UEFA confederation drove the market upward largely due to a higher number of international transfers within the region s own territory. CONMEBOL 2 recorded the second highest number of incoming transfers in 2014 (15% of the total), while the AFC 3 countries represented 14% of the total incoming transfers activity. Brazil keeps the top spot as the most active country in 2014, but England is quickly closing Brazil remained the most active country worldwide, with a total of 1,335 transfers (both incoming and outgoing), or 10.2% of the total number of international transfers. Nevertheless, the country s activity dropped by 7% when compared to 2013 (1,436 international transfers). Market spending on international transfers sets a new record high in 2014 at USD 4.1 billion Total spending worldwide on international transfers reached a new record high with USD 4.06 billion spent in This is the first time market spend has been above USD 4 billion and represents a 2.1% increase compared to 2013 (USD 3.98 billion). Spending remained very high in 2014, with UEFA countries accounting for 87% of worldwide spending during the year. In fact, international transfers between two UEFA clubs represented as much as 78% of all international transfer spending worldwide. Conditional transfer fees remained the fastest growing type of transfer fees in 2014 While fixed transfer fees represented 83.2% of the USD 4.1 billion spent in 2014, 15.2% (USD 617 million) came from conditional transfer fees, USD 43 million from solidarity contribution (1.0%) and USD 22 million from training compensation (0.6%). Over the last four years, the shift towards conditional transfer fees intensified. This type of transfer compensation represented 10.8% of the total transfer fees in 2011, increasing to more than 15% in England, with a total of 1,263 international transfers (+193 transfers vs. 2013) is rapidly closing the gap. Portugal was the third most active country in 2014, with its clubs being involved in a total of 823 international transfers (an increase of 6% year-over-year). 1 UEF A: Union of European Football Associations 2 CONMEBOL: South American Football Confederation 3 AFC: Asian Football Confederation

9 7 Record high spending by England in the international transfer market in 2014 English clubs were once again the biggest spenders in 2014 with more than USD 1.17 billion spent. This is more than a quarter of the total spending worldwide, but also 67% higher than the second biggest spender, Spain, which engaged players for a total USD 700 million is also the year China broke through the top 10 spenders worldwide, with total spending above USD 100 million. while Spain recorded a new high in receipts for a single country Spanish clubs recorded a new high in receipts in 2014, at USD 667 million. This represented a significant bump when compared to the previous peak recorded by a country over the last few years (previous record at USD 584 million, 2013, Spain). England occupied the second place in 2014, with USD 523 million and Portugal the third one with USD 435 million. Players aged 24 years old were the most sought after while players aged 27 were the most expensive to engage In 2014, the average age of players transferred internationally was 25 years and 6 months. This represented an increase of 5 months when compared to the average of 2013 (25 years and 1 month). UEFA is the confederation whose clubs have engaged players with the lowest average age, 24 years and 1 month. On the other hand, clubs of the AFC have engaged players with the highest average age, 27 years old. In terms of outgoing transfers, CAF released the players with the lowest average age in 2014 (23 years and 7 months). Brazilian players remained the most transferred players worldwide in 2014 Players of Brazilian nationality were involved in 1,493 international transfers in 2014 or 11% of the total. With regard to the nationalities involving the highest transfer fees; Brazilian players also kept the top spot in 2014 with USD 468 million spent worldwide to engage them. In second position are Spanish players, whose transfers accounted for USD 427 million in 2014, 51% more than the previous year. Intermediary commissions on the rise Intermediaries were involved in 21% of all international transfers in At the same time, commissions paid to club intermediaries represented USD 236 million in 2014; steadily increasing from USD 131 million in Among the top spenders by club intermediary commission worldwide in 2014 the top 10 were part of the UEFA confederation. England was by far the single most important spender in club intermediary commissions, with a total USD 87 million paid in 2014 (37% of the total club intermediary commissions).

10 8 THE NATURE OF INTERNATIONAL TRANSFERS This section provides an introduction for the benefit of readers new to this report or for those wishing to learn more about the key processes involved in international transfers of players. The transfer matching service provided by FIFA TMS involves the following stakeholders: the pla yer the r eleasing club the r eleasing club s association the eng aging club the eng aging club s association the int ermediaries and FIF A TMS FIFA s regulations stipulate that international transfers are only permitted if the player is over the age of Exceptions to this rule exist to allow a certain appropriate flexibility in specific situations. An international player transfer represents the movement of a player between two clubs in two different countries. So, from an association or country perspective, transfer activity can be separated into incoming transfers (players joining a country s clubs) and outgoing transfers (players leaving a country s clubs). Together, these add up to a country s overall transfer market activity. 8 Along the same lines, transfer activity can be aggregated at a confederation or regional level. 9 FIFA TMS is responsible for providing an electronic platform and processes which support the provision of an International Transfer Certificate (ITC). 4 Within the scope of this report, an international player transfer refers to the movement of a professional player s registration from one association to another, accompanying a change of a player s club affiliation. 5 Players can only be registered with a new association during one of two annual registration periods. 6 There are exceptions to this rule. For example, a professional player can move outside a registration period if his contract with his former club has expired prior to the end of that registration period. This report examines the patterns and trends that have developed in the international transfer market between 2011 and 2014 from a global, regional, country and, for the first time, club level perspective. 4 FIFA, Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players, Zurich, 27 September 2012, Annexe 3: A professional is not eligible to play in official matches for his new club until an ITC has been issued by the former association and received by the new association, or the new association has registered the professional with the new club on a provisional basis. 5 Throughout this report, the term transfer covers international transfers where players move across country borders, but excludes domestic transfers within country borders. 6 FIFA, Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players, Zurich, 27 September 2012, art. 6 7 FIFA, Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players, Zurich, 27 September 2012, art Throughout this report, the terms association and country are used interchangeably to denote the national football associations that represent FIFA in their countries. 9 Throughout this report, the terms confederation and region are used interchangeably to denote confederations as the umbrella organisations of the national football associations on each continent.

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12 01 MARKET ACTIVITY AND MOBILITY PATTERNS 1.1 Overall market activity 1.2 International transfers at confederation level 1.3 Most active countries 1.4 Timing of transfers and transfer types

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14 OVERALL MARKET ACTIVITY Market activity continues to be trending up with a new record high in number of international transfers set in 2014 at 13,090 transfers. In 2014, international transfers have reached a new alltime high for the third consecutive year since FIFA TMS started collecting data from professional football clubs in October Indeed, with a total of 13,090 international transfers in 2014 between 1 January and 31 December, professional football clubs worldwide increased their activity by 2.9% when compared to the 12,718 transfers recorded in The figure 1 includes all incoming and outgoing transfers recorded worldwide in The transfers are then classified based on the confederation of the countries involved in the transfers. The total of both incoming but also outgoing transfers sums up to 13,090 transfers given that every international transfer involves two countries (one country engaging and its releasing counterparty). As shown in figure 2, when looking at the trend over the last four years, the transfer activity has increased at a slow but steady pace, with an average growth of 3.4% per year between 2011 and The growth in number of transfers has however decelerated in 2014 when compared to that recorded between 2012 and 2013 (+6.0%).

15 Figure 1: Overall market activity in CONCACAF 972 incoming transfers 756 outgoing transfers CONMEBOL 1,909 incoming transfers 2,209 outgoing transfers CAF 933 incoming transfers 1,154 outgoing transfers UEFA 7,409 incoming transfers 7,528 outgoing transfers AFC 1,862 incoming transfers 1,428 outgoing transfers OFC 5 incoming transfers 15 outgoing transfers 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary Figure 2: International transfers worldwide between 2011 and ,883 11, % 12, % 13, % 11,661 transfers transfers transfers transfers

16 INTERNATIONAL TRANSFERS AT CONFEDERATION LEVEL INCOMING TRANSFERS 2014 figures reinforce Europe as the main driver of the international transfer market activity worldwide. UEFA accounted for 57% of all incoming transfers worldwide in As shown in figure 3, countries from the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) confederation 10 accounted for 7,409 incoming transfers in 2014 (57% of the total), representing an increase of 5.0% vs (7,057). This confirmed the region s prominent role on the international transfer market given that over the last 4 years, the number of players engaged by European clubs grew by 4.6% on average per year (2011: 6,511 incoming transfers); outperforming the overall market growth (3.4% per year) by a substantial margin. Countries from South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL) recorded the second highest number of incoming transfers in 2014: 1,909 transfers (15% of the total), or a substantial decrease of 7.1% when compared to the 2,055 incoming transfers recorded in The decrease in number of international transfers for South American countries has been a recurring trend over the last four years with an average decline of 3.6% from the high reached in 2011 at 2,142 transfers. In 2014, the number of international transfers to the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) countries increased to incoming transfers. This represented a yearly growth of 6.8% when compared to 2013 and followed two years of stability between 2011 and 2013 (-0.1% on average). In addition to this growth for the region as a whole, noticeable variations in the number of incoming transfers at country level can be highlighted. 10 Confederations are the umbrella organisations of the national football associations on each continent. Throughout this report, the terms confederation and region are used interchangeably. Accordingly, Asia stands for the AFC, Africa stands for CAF, North America stands for CONCACAF, South America stands for CONMEBOL, Oceania stands for the OFC, and Europe stands for UEFA.

17 15 Figure 3: Number of incoming transfers between 2011 and ,511 6,600 2,142 1, ,066 1, ,057 2,055 1,743 UEFA CONMEBOL AFC CONCACAF CAF OFC ,409 1,909 1, Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary One clear example is the case of Indonesia. The volume of players engaged by clubs in Indonesia has increased more than three times between 2013 and 2014, from 21 incoming transfers to 65 in The influx of players reflects the growing financial power of Indonesian football. The merger in 2014 of the country s two main leagues, 11 the Indonesian Premier League and the Indonesian Super League, has led to a lucrative new television deal, making Indonesia an attractive destination for overseas players once again. 12 The two leagues had operated separately between 2011 and While they were competing with each other, there was a steady drop in the volume of players engaged by Indonesian clubs, from 56 (2011), 14 (2012) and 21 (2013), with sponsors and, in some cases, salaries hard to come by. 13 Moreover, political interferences affected the domestic game and the performances of the national team suffered. 14 Football has become more popular in the world s fourth most populous nation in recent years, with interest in the English Premier League particularly high, driven initially by screenings of English matches on Indonesian terrestrial television. 15 Indeed, for some English matches in 2011, half of all global viewers were Indonesians, reports the Financial Times. 16 Now, with the merged Indonesian league raising its revenues, and the new television deal for the English Premier League also in place, the popularity of football in Indonesia looks set to increase further Indonesia s feuding leagues agree to merge, FourFourTwo, March 17, A global boost for Indonesian football following media rights agreement with Infront, Infrontsports.com, September 29, In Indonesia, football is kicked around by political parties, Reuters, May 23, In Indonesia, a scandal over soccer, New York Times, March 3, Indonesia football: English clubs pitch for fans as local league falls apart, Financial Times, January 29, Ms Murphy s law will help push football in a new direction, Financial Times, October 7, First Media kicks a goal with English Premier League rights, Jakarta Globe, April 27, 2013

18 16 Indonesia recorded 65 incoming international transfers in 2014, more than three times the level of The number of incoming transfers for countries of the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) has consistently increased over the last four years (from 763 transfers in 2011 to 972 transfers in 2014 or a significant increase of 9.1% on average per year), highlighting the fact that North American countries are now becoming a top destination for professional players on the international football market. 18 Figure 4: Incoming transfers in Indonesia between 2011 and 2014 The countries of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) on the other hand, recorded a total of 933 incoming transfer in 2014, or a decrease of 4.2% when compared to 2013 (974 incoming transfers), but still up 29.6% when compared to the 720 incoming transfers of Number of transfers engaging Year Indonesia The 11 countries of OFC (Oceania Football Confederation) recorded in 2014 very limited activity on the international transfer market, with only 5 transfers during the year, slightly decreasing from the 8 transfers the year before. 18 Mor e information with respect to the increased number of incoming transfers in countries part of the CONCACAF can be found in the case study number 1 dedicated to that topic.

19 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary

20 OUTGOING TRANSFERS Mirroring incoming transfers, 58% of all outgoing international transfers involved a European country in UEFA countries completed a total of 7,528 outgoing transfers in 2014, an increase of 6.1% compared to 2013 (7,095). European countries were as a result involved in 58% of all outgoing international transfers in South American countries ranked second in terms of outgoing transfers in 2014, with 2,209 players released internationally (17% of the total); 3.8% above 2013 level (2,128). Despite the increase, this number remained below the level recorded in 2011, when CONMEBOL countries released 2,223 players internationally. The AFC experienced a deceleration in the growth of its countries outgoing transfers in Asian countries recorded 1,428 outgoing transfers during the year, 3.0% above the 1,386 recorded in This followed two years of steady growth between 2011 and 2013 (at an average pace of 8.7% per year).

21 The trend in outgoing transfers for African countries also changed quite substantially in 2014 when compared to previous years. Indeed, the number of outgoing transfers dropped significantly from 1,336 in 2013 to 1,154 in 2014 (year-over-year decrease of 13.6%), after having experienced an 8.0% average yearly growth between 2011 and Countries of CONCACAF released a total of 756 players in 2014, 0.5% less than in This slight year-on-year decrease followed two consecutive years of growth in 2012 and 2013 (+1.8% and +10.9%, respectively). Finally, OFC countries were involved in 15 transfers to release players internationally in 2014; 2 more than the 13 recorded in 2013, hence confirming their confederation limited involvement on the international transfer market. 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary Figure 5: Number of outgoing transfers between 2011 and ,637 6,748 7,095 7,528 2,223 2,105 2,128 2,209 1,181 1,226 1,218 1, ,386 1, ,428 1, UEFA CONMEBOL AFC CONCACAF CAF OFC

22 TRANSFER STREAMS UEFA drove the market upward thanks to a higher number of international transfers within the region s own territory. In 2014, 82% of European countries incoming international transfers were done within the region s boundaries (6,056 transfers). This represented an increase of 7% vs. the 5,660 transfers realised within UEFA the year before. Consequently, in 2014, the lion s share of Europe s transactions but also worldwide: 46% of all international transfers was actually completed between two clubs belonging to UEFA confederation. Overall, as shown in the figure 6, international transfers occurring between two countries of the same confederation accounted for most of the international transfers worldwide in The second largest transfer stream at confederation level corresponded to that between countries part of the CONMEBOL, and made up for 8% of all international transfers worldwide (995). Similarly, the third stream involved Asian clubs (754 transfers, 6% of the total), and the fourth the main stream where two different confederations were involved was that of players released from South American countries and engaged by European countries (592 transfers, 5% of the total). OFC only conducted 20 transfers in the entire year, and all of them towards or from other confederations. Figure 6: Total incoming and outgoing transfers by confederation in 2014 Number of transfers 2014 releasing engaging CAF 584 (-6%) CONCACAF 7 (+17%) CONMEBOL 6 (-33%) OFC 0 (0%) AFC 114 (+3%) UEFA 222 (-3%) Total engaging 933 (-4%) CAF CONCACAF CONMEBOL OFC AFC UEFA Total releasing 14 (+40%) 357 (-2%) 346 (+15%) 3 (+50%) 31 (-6%) 221 (+28%) 972 (+12%) 11 (-66%) 177 (+7%) 995 (-3%) 0 (0%) 215 (-4%) 511 (-17%) 1,909 (-6%) 0 (0%) 0 (-100%) 0 (-100%) 0 (0%) 3 (-40%) 2 (+100%) 5 (-38%) 277 (-13%) 42 (+8%) 270 (+10%) 3 (-25%) 754 (+5%) 516 (+23%) 1,862 (+8%) 268 (-25%) 173 (-6%) 592 (+8%) 9 (+29%) 311 (+4%) 6,056 (+7%) 7,409 (+5%) % of total engaging 7% 7% 15% 0% 14% 57% 1,154 (-12%) 756 (0%) 2,209 (+4%) 15 (+22%) 1,428 (+3%) 7,528 (+7%) 13,090 (+3%) % of total releasing 9% 6% 17% 0% 11% 58% Figure 6 introduces the number of incoming and outgoing transfers at confederation level in The number in parenthesis represents the growth/decrease in the number of transfers when compared to 2013.

23 Figure 7: T otal incoming and outgoing transfers for the UEFA in CONCACAF CONMEBOL % % % CAF UEFA % 6, % AFC % OFC 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary A B A: Number of incoming and outgoing transfers in 2014 B: Percentage change versus 2013 UEFA 6, % CONCACAF % % % AFC % CAF % CONMEBOL OFC Figure 7 introduces the total number of incoming and outgoing transfers at confederation level for the UEFA countries in The graph also shows the percentage change in the number of transfers when compared to 2013.

24 22 CASE STUDY 1: CONCACAF BECOMING A KEY DESTINATION The 2014 FIFA World Cup and a new broadcast deal were behind the rise in players engaged by clubs in USA, Canada and Mexico. Ever more players are moving to the three large CONCACAF countries, the USA, Canada and Mexico. American reaction to the USA s stirring performances at the FIFA 2014 World Cup reflected a boom in soccer s popularity. Indeed, the country s top-tier Major League Soccer (MLS) is growing at a steady pace. 19 This is reflected by the volume of incoming players in the international transfer market increasing from 221 in 2013 to 269 in This rise can be explained, in part, by the expansion of MLS to 21 teams in New franchises New York City FC 20 and Orlando City 21 are already active in the international transfer market. We continue to see the number of professional soccer clubs in the United States increase, which means there is going to be an overall greater investment in players, explained Neil Buethe, Director of Communications for US Soccer. As the clubs look to bring in players, it is natural that there will be a greater involvement in the international transfer market. 19 After World Cup, MLS looks to steady growth, USA Today, July 5, Ex-Chelsea Midfielder Joins New York Expansion Club, New York Times, July 24, Behind the Scenes as Kaka Joins Orlando City SC, MLSSoccer.com, July 24, MLS sees Bradley and Edu lead way as US Soccer welcomes back its own, The Guardian, February 18, 2014 Two trends in particular reflect the growth of MLS. The first is the number of players engaged by CONCACAFbased clubs from UEFA clubs, which intensified over the last two years, rising from 172 in 2013 to 221 in As LA Galaxy and former US international midfielder Landon Donovan said in February 2014: There s a swell of momentum around our league and it s truly special and fun to be part of. 22

25 23 There is also a growing number of players moving from the CONMEBOL region to the CONCACAF region; 346 in 2014 compared to 301 in In 2012, MLS Commissioner Don Garber described the league s attempts to attract more fans from among the USA s many Hispanics by engaging more Latin American players as pure logic. 23 The trend looks set to continue. Significantly, a new television deal starting in 2015 worth USD 90 million per season for eight seasons, or about three times the level of the previous deal 24 includes the first time a Spanish-language television network will have its own exclusive night with a major professional sports league based in the United States. 25 All professional leagues in the United States and their owners have made it a priority to invest in players domestically and to seek top professional players from around the globe, Buethe added. Mexico is also experiencing an influx of players from UEFA and CONMEBOL. Mexican clubs have won the CONCACAF Champions League every year in its current format, starting from In 2014, the number of players moving from UEFA clubs to Mexico increased to 26, from 19 in The increase from CONMEBOL to Mexico during the same period was even greater: 108 to 123. The most significant increases came from fellow Spanishspeaking countries: Chile (up from 1 to 6), Argentina (24 to 29), Colombia (24 to 33), Ecuador (9 to 11) and Spain (3 to 10). The number of players leaving clubs in USA for Mexico also saw a significant increase, from 18 to 29, while the number moving in the opposite direction stabilised. 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary MLS has long been a popular destination for Argentine players in particular, with wages paid in US dollars and the off-season coinciding with Argentina s summer. Now, reports The Guardian, many youngsters from Latin America have even come to see MLS as a launching pad to Europe. 26 As a result, the volume of incoming transfers to the USA from Argentina jumped from 3 to 10 between 2013 and Canada, too, is a growing market for players. There was a slight increase in volume of incoming transfers to its two MLS expansion teams, Vancouver Whitecaps and Montreal Impact compared to More significant was the rise in volume of players signed from clubs in the USA, up from 20 in 2013 to 36 in Rise in Latinos in Major League Soccer, Fox News Latino, March 12, Major League Soccer announces new TV deals with ESPN, Fox, Univision, forbes.com, May 12, MLS, US Soccer, Sign Landmark TV and media rights partnership with ESPN, Fox and Univision Deportes, MLSSoccer.com, May 13, From Spurs to Seattle: Clint Dempsey s EPL-MLS Switch Divides Opinion, theguardian.com, August 7, This can be put down to three factors. One, regulations on MLS team rosters mean both Americans and Canadians are classified as domestic players at Canada s three MLS teams. By contrast, for USA-based teams, Canadians are classified as international players. Two, both Vancouver Whitecaps and Montreal Impact changed head coaches before the 2014 season. And three, Toronto s revolving-door policy, which has seen six head coaches in the last four years, has led to a high player turnover in that period.

26 24 With no wage cap, the average salary in the top-tier Liga MX is still significantly higher than in MLS. Despite MLS s designated player rule 28 allowing marquee players to be signed outside the salary cap, its clubs consider losing players south of the border a real issue rather than the other way round. 29 Liga MX s relaxing of the rules on overseas players has also contributed to the increase in Mexican clubs engaging players from the USA and CONMEBOL in Figure 8: Number of incoming transfers in Canada, Mexico and USA between 2011 and Canada Mexico USA Total While the regulations have contributed to the increase in players engaged by clubs in the CONCACAF region, the underlining factor is that Liga MX and MLS are both growing markets. MLS has more high-profile players and more fans than ever before, a new television deal beginning in 2015, while the average value of clubs has increased 175 per cent since Yet it remains too early to tell whether MLS is on target to achieve its aim of becoming one of the best leagues in the world by Designated Players, MLSSoccer.com, September 10, Paul Arriola signing the latest blow in growing battle between MLS, Mexico for youth talent, MLSSoccer.com, May 10, Liga MX relaxes rule on naturalised players, Yahoo! Sports, January 6, Many in MLS playing largely for love of the game, New York Times, October 26, MLS Commissioner Don Garber Conference Call: March 8, 2012, MLSSoccer.com, March 8, 2012

27 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary

28 MOST ACTIVE COUNTRIES INCOMING TRANSFERS Brazil keeps the top spot as the most active country to engage players in 2014, but its number of incoming transfers decreases by more than 15% year-over-year. In 2014, clubs from 175 different countries completed at least one international transfer (increasing from 169 in 2013). Of that number, 145 countries were involved in a transfer to engage a player from another country and 174 to release a player outside of their borders. Once again in 2014, the country with the highest number of incoming transfers was Brazil with a total of 646 players engaged internationally by the clubs of the South American country. Whilst keeping the top spot, Brazil recorded a significant drop in the number of incoming international transfers realised by its clubs when compared to 2013 (-118 transfers, or a decrease of 15% year-over-year). Figure 9: 10 most active countries in terms of incoming transfers in 2014 Country Number of transfers Change versus 2013 % of total transfers in 2014 Brazil % England % Portugal % Italy % Germany % Spain % Argentina % Greece % France % USA % The second most active country was England, with a total of 585 incoming transfers realised throughout Portugal completed this podium with 431 incoming international transfers during the year. As shown in figure 9, unlike Brazil, both England and Portugal recorded a substantial increase in the number of players engaged by the clubs of their association (+76 transfers and +75 transfers, respectively). In 2014, the top 3 countries accounted for 12.7% (1,662 transfers) of the total number of incoming transfers, the top 5 countries for 18.4% (2,405 transfers), and the top 10 for 30.0% (3,933 transfers). When compared to 2013, the transfer concentration for the most active countries remained flat (top 3: 12.8%, top 5: 18.2% and top 10: 29.2%).

29 Figure 10: Top countries for incoming transfers at confederation level in Canada CONCACAF USA Mexico Guatemala Costa Rica Colombia Brazil CONMEBOL Chile Uruguay Argentina England Germany Portugal Spain Italy Morocco Algeria Tunisia Egypt CAF South Africa UEFA Oman AFC China PR India Thailand Japan OFC New Zealand 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary Top countries for incoming transfers at confederation level in 2014 CAF CONCACAF CONMEBOL OFC AFC UEFA Egypt 113 (+126%) Tunisia 83 (-20%) Morocco 83 (-20%) Algeria 76 (+58%) South Africa 55 (-7%) Total 933 (-4%) USA 269 (+22%) Mexico 202 (+20%) Guatemala 81 (-12%) Canada 78 (+28%) Costa Rica 68 (+15%) 972 (+12%) Brazil 646 (-15%) Argentina 324 (+33%) Uruguay 198 (-13%) Chile 149 (-33%) Colombia 140 (-16%) 1,909 (-6%) New Zealand 5 (-38%) 5 (-38%) Thailand 157 (+15%) India 131 (+41%) Oman 128 (+3%) China PR 123 (+7%) Japan 110 (-10%) 1,862 (+8%) England 585 (+15%) Portugal 431 (+21%) Italy 387 (+19%) Germany 356 (+1%) Spain 346 (+24%) 7,409 (+5%) Figure 10 introduces the number of incoming transfers at confederation level in 2014 for the most active countries in each confederation. The number in parenthesis represents the growth/decrease in the number of transfers when compared to 2013.

30 OUTGOING TRANSFERS The number of outgoing transfers recorded by Egyptian clubs decreased by 43% between 2013 and 2014; from 140 players released in 2013 to 81 in Altogether, the top 3 countries accounted for 14.0% (1,836 transfers), the top 5 for 20.5% (2,685), and the top 10 countries for 33.3% (4,363) of all outgoing transfers in When compared to incoming transfers, the concentration of outgoing transfers at country level is greater although by a slight margin. Compared to 2013, the transfer concentration for the most active countries has slightly increased (top 3: 13.3%, top 5: 19.9% and top 10: 33.1%). Figure 11: 10 most active countries in terms of outgoing transfers in 2014 Country Number of incoming transfers Change versus 2013 % of total transfers in 2014 Brazil % England % Spain % Argentina % France % Italy % Portugal % Germany % Belgium % Greece % For the fourth consecutive year since FIFA TMS gathers exhaustive information on the international transfer activity, Brazil was the country with the highest number of outgoing transfers in 2014, with 689 players released internationally by Brazilian clubs. Despite an increase of 2.5% when compared to 2013, this number has been fairly stable over the last three years. Clubs from England have released substantially more players every year since 2011 and are quickly closing up on Brazil (678 outgoing transfers in 2014; +21% year-over-year). The third country by number of outgoing international transfers was Spain with 469 players released in Spanish clubs have also steadily increased their outgoing transfers since 2011, recording 33% more outgoing transfers in 2014 than in The exodus of footballers from Egypt has slowed, thanks largely to the resurgence of the Egyptian professional league. The number of players leaving the country dropped by 43% in 2014 against 2013, to 81 players. At the same time, the number of players engaged by Egyptian clubs rose strongly. This coincided with the restart of the league on 26 December In the two previous seasons, the league was not completed because of political turmoil. Football was restored because the social and political environment of the country stabilised, and economic prospects improved. Consequently, more Egyptian players than before decided to remain at home. That said, in all of CAF, only Nigeria and Ghana released more players than Egypt in There is another reason why the exodus of Egyptian players slowed in 2014: lower foreign demand for African players in general. Of the 11 CAF countries that released more than 30 players in 2013, the number of outgoing players dropped in nine countries, with South Africa and Mali being the only exception.

31 Figure 12: Top countries for outgoing transfers at confederation level in Canada CONCACAF USA Mexico Guatemala Honduras Colombia Brazil CONMEBOL Paraguay Argentina Uruguay England France Portugal Spain Italy Nigeria Côte d'ivoire Ghana Egypt CAF South Africa UEFA AFC China PR Thailand Japan Korea Republic Australia Vanuatu OFC New Zealand 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary Top countries for outgoing transfers at confederation level in 2014 CAF CONCACAF CONMEBOL OFC AFC UEFA Nigeria 124 (-26%) Ghana 97 (-16%) Egypt 81 (-43%) South Africa 65 (+20%) Côte d'ivoire 62 (-22%) Total 1,154 (-12%) USA 237 (+19%) Mexico 129 (-5%) Canada 76 (-1%) Honduras 62 (-3%) Guatemala 54 (-8%) 756 (+0%) Brazil 689 (+3%) Argentina 433 (+0%) Colombia 253 (+13%) Uruguay 220 (-11%) Paraguay 167 (+23%) 2,209 (+4%) New Zealand 13 (+8%) Vanuatu 2 N/A 15 (+22%) Japan 156 (+0%) China PR 111 (+7%) Korea Republic 103 (-13%) Thailand 92 (+37%) Australia 87 (+24%) 1,428 (+3%) England 678 (+21%) Spain 469 (+1%) France 416 (+5%) Italy 398 (-3%) Portugal 392 (-7%) 7,528 (+7%) Figure 12 introduces the number of outgoing transfers at confederation level in 2014 for the most active countries in each confederation. The number in parenthesis represents the growth/decrease in the number of transfers when compared to Not Applicable (N/A) has been added when the value was 0 the previous year.

32 ALL INTERNATIONAL TRANSFERS In 2014, England got closer to Brazil in terms of total number of international transfers (both incoming and outgoing). The country recorded 1,263 international transfers, only 72 less than Brazil. With regard to the total number of transfers (both incoming and outgoing) recorded by a single country, Brazil remained in 2014 the most active country worldwide with a total of 1,335 transfers (10.2% of the total number of international transfers). Nevertheless, the country s activity dropped when compared to 2013 (1,436 international transfers; -7%). England, on the other hand, with a total of 1,263 international transfers (+193 transfers vs. 2013) is rapidly closing the gap. Portugal ranked third with a total of 823 transfers in 2014 (+6% year-over-year). Figure 13: 10 most active countries on the international transfer market in 2014 (incoming and outgoing transfers together) Country Number of transfers Change versus 2013 % of total transfers in 2014 Brazil 1, % England 1, % Portugal % Spain % Italy % Argentina % Germany % France % Greece % Belgium %

33 Figure 14: Top countries for international transfers at confederation level in 2014 (incoming and outgoing transfers together) 31 Canada CONCACAF USA Mexico Guatemala Honduras Colombia Brazil CONMEBOL Chile Argentina Uruguay England Germany Portugal Spain Morocco Ghana Italy Tunisia Egypt Nigeria CAF UEFA Oman AFC China PR Thailand Japan Korea Republic Australia Vanuatu OFC New Zealand 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary Top countries for international transfers at confederation level in 2014 CAF CONCACAF CONMEBOL OFC AFC UEFA Egypt 194 (+1%) Nigeria 147 (-16%) Tunisia 145 (-26%) Ghana 132 (-18%) Morocco 134 (-24%) Total 2,087 (-10%) USA 506 (+20%) Mexico 331 (+9%) Canada 154 (+12%) Guatemala 135 (-11%) Honduras 121 (+3%) 1,728 (+5%) Brazil 1,335 (-7%) Argentina 757 (+12%) Uruguay 418 (-12%) Colombia 393 (+1%) Chile 304 (-17%) 4,118 (-2%) New Zealand 18 (-10%) Vanuatu 2 N/A 20 (-5%) Japan 266 (+4%) Thailand 249 (+23%) China PR 234 (+7%) Oman 191 (-1%) Korea Republic 174 (-4%) 3,290 (+5%) England 1,263 (+18%) Portugal 823 (+6%) Spain 815 (+10%) Italy 785 (+7%) Germany 712 (+3%) 14,937 (+6%) Figure 14 introduces the number of outgoing transfers at confederation level in 2014 for the most active countries in each confederation. The number in parenthesis represents the growth/decrease in the number of transfers when compared to Not Applicable (N/A) has been added when the value was 0 the previous year.

34 TRANSFER STREAMS AT COUNTRY LEVEL Figure 15: Top 25 transfer streams in 2014 at country level Country releasing Country engaging Number of transfers Change from 2013 England Wales Brazil Portugal England Scotland Portugal Brazil Wales England Argentina Chile Chile Argentina Scotland England Germany Turkey Spain England France Belgium 62-4 Spain Italy Slovakia Czech Republic Argentina Uruguay 46-9 Italy England Brazil Japan 43 0 England Italy Portugal Spain Austria Germany Canada USA Japan Brazil 36-6 USA Canada England Spain Spain Greece Czech Republic Slovakia 34-7 In 2014, the main transfer stream in terms of number of transfers was not from Portugal to Brazil anymore (transfers in this direction have constantly decreased and dropped to the 4th position in 2014: 101 transfers) but from England to Wales with 137 international transfers (+68 transfer year-over-year). Historically, the United Kingdom played a significant role when discussing transfer streams at country level. In 2014, with international transfers from England to Wales, England to Scotland and Wales to England appearing in the top 5 streams worldwide by number of transfers, the trend is confirmed. This largely reflected the strong relationship but also historic ties between these countries. In addition, the increase in transfer activity in recent years was also driven by the growing role of clubs from Wales such as Swansea City and Cardiff City FC, both part of the English Premier League during the 2013/14 season. Together, these two clubs represented 42% of the international transfers between Wales and England, and completed 39 engaging transfers more than in 2013 (57 vs. 18).

35 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary

36 TIMING OF TRANSFERS AND TRANSFER TYPES TIMING OF TRANSFERS 63% of all international transfer activity was concentrated in three months of the year in The busiest months of 2014 were January, July and August just as in International transfers done during these three months accounted for 63% of the annual total reflecting the fact that the most transfer windows were open during these months. In fact, 109 member associations had open transfer windows during each of these three months on average, while the average over the twelve months stands at 51 transfer windows open per month. Figure 16: Number of transfer windows open and number of international transfers in 2014 by month Number of transfers Number of open windows worldwide 3,000 2, ,500 2,677 2, , ,500 1,588 1, , Jan 14 Feb 14 Mar 14 Apr 14 May 14 Jun 14 Jul 14 Aug 14 Sep 14 Oct 14 Nov 14 Dec 14 Number of transfers (left-hand side) Number of open transfer windows worldwide (right-hand side)

37 35 Unsurprisingly in 2014, the two days of the year recording the most international transfers were the last two days of the European summer and winter transfer windows, with 397 international transfers recorded on 1 September 2014 and 338 transfers recorded on 31 January These two days were also the days with the most number of transfer windows closing. On 31 January 2014, a total of 45 football associations closed their transfer windows worldwide, while on 1 September 2014, 26 associations were on the last day of their transfer windows. 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary How and when do member associations decide of the opening dates for their transfer windows: what does the regulation say? Article 5.1, paragraph 1, Annexe 3: FIFA Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players: The start and the end dates of both registration periods [ ] shall be entered in TMS at least 12 months before they come into force. Under exceptional circumstances, associations may amend or modify their registration period dates up until they commence. Once the registration period has begun no alteration of dates will be possible.

38 TRANSFER TYPES Out of contract players remain by far the most sought after worldwide, representing 68% of all international transfers in Return from loan: an international transfer type given the delivery of an International Transfer Certificate (ITC) Throughout its publications, FIFA TMS considers return from loan as an international transfer type given that, in line with the current FIFA regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players, an ITC is delivered during the return from loan process; with the player changing the association for which he will play. FIFA TMS specifies four general types of transfers leading to player movements between two countries clubs: Sign player out of contract (also out of contract ): this refers to players signing for a new club who are not under professional contract to another club. Typically, these transfers do not involve a transfer agreement or fees paid between clubs. Sign player from another club (also permanent ): this refers to players moving to a new club while still under contract with their prior club. These transfers are based on a termination of the player s prior employment contract that is agreed between the player, the former club, and the new club, as the player moves into a permanent employment contract with his new club. Sign on loan (also loan ): this refers to players being lent to a new club for a defined period of time while still remaining in a running contract with their prior club. As such, a player s employment contract with a new club in a loan transfer is of a temporary nature. Return from this loan: refers to players moving back to their prior clubs after a loan arrangement has ended. In 2014, as in previous years, the most prominent type of international transfers was to engage players out of contract. These represented 68% (or 8,874) of all international transfers occurring during the year, a slight reduction compared to the share these transfers represented in 2011 (70%). Despite this proportional decrease, it is worth pointing out that the actual number of players engaged out of contract has continuously increased in absolute value since 2011; increasing from 8,280 in 2011 to 8,874 in 2014.

39 37 As shown in figure 17, return from loan transfers grew faster than the overall market between 2011 and 2014 with the share of this contract type increasing from 7% to 9% over the last four years. Figure 17: Type of international transfers between 2011 and % 8% 10 % 11% 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary 13% 12% 70% 69% % 8% 10% 9% 14% 13% 67% 68% Loan Out of contract Return from loan Permanent

40 38 Some differences among confederations with regard to the types of transfers used in UEFA engaged the least number of players out of contract and the most on loan and on a permanent contract. While the share of each transfer type did not change much over the last four years worldwide, figure 18 shows that there are significant disparities among the different confederations. In 2014, UEFA was actually the confederation with the lowest share of players engaged out of contract ; 62% of the region s incoming international transfers, or more than 7 percentage points below any other confederation. The lower share of out of contract transfers was compensated by a greater use of all other transfer types by European clubs. In particular, the shares of players transferred on loans (15% of the total) and on a permanent contract (14%) were respectively 2 and 3 percentage points above the average for all confederations worldwide. Figure 18 therefore highlights recruiting patterns specific to each confederation with regards to transfer types. Figure 18: Most common incoming transfer types by confederation in % 15% 15% 4% 12% 6% 9% 10% 9% UEFA 62% CONMEBOL 69% CONCACAF 75% 4% 7% 10% 5% 8% 4% AFC 79% CAF 83% OFC 100% Engage out of contract Return from loan Engage permanently Engage on loan

41 39 Strong ties exist between the timing of the transfers and the transfer types. Engage players out of contract outside of a transfer window: what does the regulation say? Article 6, paragraph 1: FIFA Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players: Players may only be registered during one of the two annual registration periods fixed by the relevant association. As an exception to this rule, a professional whose contract has expired prior to the end of a registration period may be registered outside that registration period [ ]. As shown in figure 19, the percentage of international transfers out of contract is lower during the three months with the greatest activity of the year: January, July and August. During these three months, players engaged out of contract represented on average 63% of the total number of international transfers, while this percentage climbed to 76% on average for the 9 other months of the year. This reflects a specific recruiting pattern linked to the time of year. Indeed, when most transfer windows are open, clubs generally tend to recruit more players permanently or on loan (particularly in the case of clubs from the UEFA, see figure 18). 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary Figure 19: Share of transfers by type of contracts depending the month of the year in % 8% 6% 4% 13% 13% 13% 12% 10% 5% 6% 6% 11% 63% 5% 75% 3% 82% 2% 84% 13% 67% 20% 59% 19% 58% 4% 68% 1% 76% 2% 86% 6% 77% 4% 79% 16% 12% 9% 10% 7% 8% 10% 16% 13% 7% 11% 10% Jan 14 Feb 14 Mar 14 Apr 14 May 14 Jun 14 Jul 14 Aug 14 Sep 14 Oct 14 Nov 14 Dec 14 Engage out of contract Return from loan Engage permanently Engage on loan

42 40 CASE STUDY 2: FIFA WORLD CUP EFFECT IN ACTION The success of certain teams in the 2014 FIFA World Cup led to an increase in international transfers. Player recruitment is a sophisticated business these days. Clubs send scouts all over the world to look for the stars of tomorrow. There are multimedia platforms designed to help clubs profile specific skill-sets. Many clubs employ data analysts to identify transfer targets and devise strategies to develop young players. One club, in the English Premier League, employs eleven such analysts. The FIFA World Cup is also seen as a scouting opportunity, even if its relatively short span can make it hard to assess players. A player can appear in at most three games if his team is eliminated at the group stage, and up to seven if it reaches the semi-final stage. Coaches have warned against the dangers of engaging players based on the unique environment of a major tournament. For instance, former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson wrote in his autobiography: I was always wary of buying players on the back of good tournament performances sometimes players get themselves motivated and prepared for FIFA World Cups and UEFA European Championships and after that there can be a levelling off. And yet, there was a clear World Cup effect on the 2014 international transfer market. Figure 20 shows that, for teams that reached the 2014 FIFA World Cup quarter-finals or beyond, there was an 18% increase in the volume of players of those nationalities engaged compared to the previous year. In terms of value, while the comparison with 2013 was down 36% before the 2014 FIFA World Cup, after the tournament, the value of players of the quarter-finalist nationalities increased by 27% compared with Taking into account all the 32 participating teams in the 2014 FIFA World Cup, there was a small change in the volume of transfers (+7%), but the value rose by 25%, higher than the overall market inflation of 19%. Expect an increase now in the average price of Costa Rican footballers, even those who did not play here, predicted the Financial Times in an article published during the 2014 FIFA World Cup. A FIFA World Cup can make an entire nationality fashionable. Those words were prescient: after Costa Rica reached the quarterfinal for the first time in its history, the total value of transfers involving Costa Rican players did indeed increase from USD 1 million (29 players) in 2013 to almost USD 10 million (38 players). The image and respect we earned at the 2014 FIFA World Cup, going alongside our players natural talent to meet the demands of top-level clubs, helped this increase, explained Henry Duarte Molina, technical director at the Costa Rican football federation.

43 41 After the World Cup our players no longer migrated to medium-level leagues but to top-level leagues, which generated more profitable contracts. That in turn allowed traditional clubs in Costa Rica to have more budget to work with in their infrastructure and to invest in better preparation, which can be shown by the fact that three Costa Rican clubs reached the CONCACAF Champions League quarter-finals ahead of traditional clubs from Mexico and USA. Duarte explained that the benefit to Costa Rica is firstly sporting: national team players gain more experience by playing against better players, and higher-ranked international opponents now enjoy the prestige of facing the Costa Rica team. Secondly, there is a social benefit too. Football is now an opportunity for our disadvantaged youth to leave their villages and have an opportunity to study, to gain scholarships and enter university, and to learn new languages. The improvement in sporting development comes with this improved social and cultural development, and that's very important. It wasn t only Costa Rican players who benefited from good performances at the tournament. The club champions of Europe, Real Madrid CF, engaged three players who had successful tournaments at the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Toni Kroos played for winning team Germany, James Rodriguez scored six goals for Colombia and won the FIFA Golden Boot award, while Costa Rica s goalkeeper Keylor Navas was nominated for FIFA s Golden Glove prize for the best goalkeeper. We have incorporated three of the best players at the World Cup, Real Madrid CF president Florentino Perez declared at the club s Annual General Meeting. Ecuador was one of many markets that saw a growth in value of players transferred, if not volume, year on year. In 2013, the total value of its players (24) engaged in the international transfer market was USD 15.8 million. In 2014, fewer Ecuadorean players were engaged (20) but for almost twice the value, USD 29.9 million, even though the country was eliminated at the group stage. It will be great as long as he gets out there and produces what we ve seen him produce in the World Cup, West Ham United FC coach Sam Allardyce said of Enner Valencia, who scored two goals for Ecuador in the tournament. Other countries saw large increases in value of their players after the FIFA 2014 World Cup, which some managers admitted to viewing as a scouting opportunity. The total transfer sum paid to engage players of Bosnia-Herzegovina nationality, for example, increased by 244%, partly due to Everton FC engaging midfielder Mohamed Besic after the tournament. The way he played against top players in the World Cup they were really good games to evaluate the value of 'Mo' and the potential he has as a player at such a young age, said Everton FC manager Roberto Martinez. We live in a globalised world where networks, technology and information are only a click away. But playing at a FIFA World Cup remains a benchmark by which a player s likely future performances are gauged. 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary

44 42 Figure 20: FIFA World Cup timing effect 33 Quarter-finalists Nationality Before end World Cup (1 Jan - 12 Jul) Number of transfers Total transfer fee After end World Cup (13 Jul - 31 Dec) Number of transfers Total transfer fee Before end World Cup (1 Jan - 12 Jul) Number of transfers Total transfer fee After end World Cup (13 Jul - 31 Dec) Number of transfers Total transfer fee Argentina million million million million Belgium million million million million Brazil 1, million million million million Colombia million million million million Costa Rica 50 1 million 29 1 million 25 1 million million France million million million million Germany million million million million Netherlands million million million million Total for quarterfinalists Total for other 24 nationalities Total for all nationalities worldwide 2, million 1, million 6,752 1,752 million 1, million 1, million 5,964 2,227 million 1, million 2, million 6,778 1,414 million 1,913 1,199 million 1, million 6,312 2,649 million % change between 2014 and 2013 Before end World Cup (1 Jan - 12 Jul) After end World Cup (13 Jul - 31 Dec) Number of transfers Total transfer fee Number of transfers Total transfer fee Quarter-finalists -10% -36% +18% +27% Other 24 nationalities +2% -7% -2% +23% All nationalities worldwide 0% -19% +6% +19% WC nationalities -4% -26% +7% +25% Figure 20: All amounts are given in US dollars. 33 Quarter refers -finalists to the 8 countries that reached the 2014 FIFA World Cup quarter finals (Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, France, Germany, Netherlands); Other 24 nationalities refers to the countries that participated to the 2014 FIFA World Cup but were eliminated before the quarter-finals; All nationalities refers to all the countries worldwide, including those that took part to the 2014 FIFA World Cup and those that did not participate; World Cup nationalities refers to the 32 countries participating to the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

45 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary

46 02 TRANSFER FEES 2.1 Overall spend 2.2 Type of transfer fees 2.3 Spending and receipts 2.4 Money flows

47

48 OVERALL SPEND Market spending on international transfers sets a new record high in 2014 at USD 4.06 billion. Total spending worldwide on international transfers reached a new record high with USD 4.06 billion spent in For the first time, it is above USD 4 billion and represents a 2.1% increase compared to 2013 (USD 3.98 billion). In addition, in 2014, the number of transfers involving transfer fees accounted for 13.3% (1,737 transfers) of the total of 13,090 international transfers recorded during the year. This represents a decrease of 2.5% when compared to 2013 (1,782 transfers). The slight increase in terms of total transfer spending during 2014 coupled with the decrease in the number of international transfers involving fees resulted in an increase of about 6% of the average fee per transfer from 2013 to 2014 (from USD 2.23 million to USD 2.34 million). However, following the trend highlighted in 2012 and 2013, a small number of big-money transfers skewed this average upwards. The median transfer fee of USD 395,077 in 2014 was higher than in 2013 (USD 300,000) but still significantly below the average fee per transfer. Figure 21: Total and average transfer fees between 2011 and 2014 in USD billion in USD million billion billion billion billion Total transfer free (left-hand axis) Average transfer free (right-hand axis)

49 TYPE OF TRANSFER FEES Conditional transfer fees remained the fastest growing type of transfer fees in 2014, increasing by 12% year-over-year. In 2014, of the USD 4.06 billion spent, the majority (USD 3.38 billion or 83.2% of the total) came from fixed transfer fees. An additional USD 617 million (15.2%) came from conditional transfer fees, while solidarity contribution represented USD 43 million (1.0%) and training compensation USD 22 million (0.6%). 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary Figure 22: Type of transfer fees between 2011 and % 0.7% 0.5% 0.6% 17 million 18 million 21 million 22 million 1.3% 1.2% 1.4% 1.0% 38 million 31 million 56 million 43 million 10.8% 11.2% 13.8% 15.2% 313 million 305 million 549 million 617 million 87.3% 2,528 million 86.9% 2,365 million 84.3% 3,353 million 83.2% 3,381 million Fixed transfer fees Conditional transfer fees Solidarity contribution Training compensation Figure 22: All amounts are given in US dollars.

50 48 Among the international transfers involving a transfer fee (1,737 transfers), there has been a shift from the use of fixed transfer fees towards conditional transfer fees over the last four years. Indeed, while the overall fixed transfer fee increased by 11% on average between 2011 and 2014 (from USD 2.53 billion to USD 3.38 billion), its share in the total transfer spending slowly but steadily decreased, from 87.3% in 2011 to 83.2% in 2014 (figure 22). This reflected the faster growth in conditional transfer fees during the same time, growing at an average rate of 32% per year; or an increase from USD 313 million in 2011 to USD 617 million in Given that conditional transfer fees are usually linked to performance, this reflects an attempt from the clubs to reduce the inherent risks related to the transfer of a player. The solidarity contribution decreased substantially in 2014, to USD 43 million, down from USD 56 million the year before (-24% year-over-year). Between 2011 and 2014, the overall trend for the solidarity contribution remained oriented upward, with an average yearly growth of 4%. However, given the rapid growth in the total transfer fees between 2011 and 2014 (13% on average per year), the share of the solidarity contribution in percentage of the total transfer fees decreased from 1.3% in 2011 to 1.0% in The training compensation slightly increased between 2013 and 2014 from USD 21 million to USD 22 million, or a year-over-year increase of 6%. Since 2011, this compensation grew at an average pace of 10% per year during the period (increasing from USD 17 million in 2011). Training compensation and Solidarity contribution defined by FIFA s Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players (2012, Annexe 4 and Annexe 5, respectively): Training compensation shall be paid to the player s training club(s): (1) when a player signs his first contract as a professional, and (2) each time a professional is transferred until the end of the season of his 23rd birthday. Solidarity contribution: if a professional player moves before the expiry of his contract, 5% of any compensation (not including training compensation) paid to his former club shall be distributed between the clubs that contributed to his education and training.

51 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary

52 SPENDING AND RECEIPTS SPENDING AND RECEIPTS AT CONFEDERATION LEVEL UEFA accounted for 87% of the worldwide spending in International transfers between two European clubs represented as much as 78% of all transfers spending worldwide. In 2014, UEFA clubs accounted for 87% (USD 3.52 billion) of the total market spend; slightly decreasing when compared to 2013 (90%; USD 3.58 billion). International transfers involving two European clubs (transfers within the confederation) accounted for 78% (USD 3.18 billion) of worldwide transfers fee in 2014, increasing from USD 3.02 billion (or 76%) in On the contrary, spending by UEFA clubs on players coming from other confederations dropped significantly in 2014, to USD 337 million from USD 558 million in 2013 (-40%), highlighting the higher spending within European countries. Figure 23: Total incoming and outgoing transfers by confederation in 2014 Number of transfers 2014 releasing CAF engaging CAF CONCACAF CONMEBOL OFC AFC UEFA Total releasing 5 million (-68%) 0 million (+75%) CONCACAF million (+171%) CONMEBOL 0 million (-100%) 47 million (+33%) 9 million (+35%) 33 million (-12%) million (-25%) -- 2 million (-88%) million (+80%) 23 million (+4%) 57 million (-5%) 239 million (-47%) 32 million (-26%) 79 million (-5%) 402 million (-29%) % of total releasing OFC million 1 million 0% AFC UEFA Total engaging % of total engaging 0 million (-100%) 4 million (-34%) 9 million (-59%) 49 million (+143%) 109 million (+82%) -- 7 million (-59%) 95 million (+22%) 143 million (+4%) million (+52%) million (+69%) million (+56%) 18 million (-33%) 3,179 million (+5%) 3,516 million (-2%) 0% 3% 4% 0% 7% 87% 61 million (-9%) 3,488 million (+8%) 4,063 million (+2%) 1% 2% 10% 1% 86% Figure 23: All amounts are given in US dollars. Amounts appearing as 0 million are numbers between 0 and USD 0.5 million.

53 51 On the receipts side (income from international transfers), on top of the international transfers occurring within the confederation borders (USD 3.18 billion), UEFA clubs recorded in 2014 USD 309 million of receipts from the transfer of players to other confederations. This represented a significant increase from USD 199 million in 2013 (+55%). In 2014, AFC clubs continues to substantially increase their spending on the international transfer market; recording an all-time high at USD 286 million, up 56% from last year s spend of USD 183 million. This growth in spending is largely driven by a few countries in the confederation, namely China and Qatar. Indeed, the total value of incoming international transfers in China more than tripled from USD 28 million in 2013 to USD 101 million in 2014, while in Qatar it doubled from USD 45 million to USD 90 million. Meanwhile, the volume of players engaged increased only slightly in each country. 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary Figure 24: Transfer spending and receipts for the UEFA confederation between 2011 and ,019 3,179 2,187 1, UEFA engaging from other confederations UEFA releasing to other confederations Transfers within UEFA Figure 24: All amounts are given in USD million.

54 52 In Qatar, the increase in value is down to one club in particular: Doha-based Al Arabi. The country s most successful team in the 1990s have reportedly spent close to USD 40 million in a bid to return to their former glories, placing them in the top ten of football s biggest net spenders 34 worldwide. The Chinese Super League, meanwhile, is emerging as a net importer of overseas talent as its premier football league continues to evolve and mature. 35 The success of Guangzhou Evergrande, which won China s first ever AFC Champions League title in 2013, helped raise the profile of the Chinese game. 36 This has led to an increase in sponsorship and private investment and therefore greater ability to attract overseas stars. 37 Of particular note is the increased spending by Chinese clubs on players from South Korea s K-League, which helps explain why total transfer value received by South Korean clubs went from USD 10 million in 2013 to USD USD 18 million in a rise of nearly 80 per cent. 38 In addition, when compared to UEFA, AFC clubs recorded most of their spending with other confederations rather than within their own. Indeed, in 2014, international transfers between two Asian clubs represented only 12% of the region s total spend. Figure 25: Transfer spending and receipts for the AFC confederation between 2011 and AFC engaging from other confederations AFC releasing to other confederations Transfers within AFC Figure 25: All amounts are given in USD million. 34 Qatari clubs outspends Manchester City and Atletico Madrid in the transfer 35 A China deficit that keeps the ball rolling, FinanceAsia.com, October 9, Guangzhou s title a big boost for Chinese football but more work left to be done, The National, November 10, Sponsors spend big on Chinese Super League, South China Morning Post, February 26, Big-spending Chinese clubs raid K-League talent, South China Morning Post, January 6, 2014

55 53 The third highest level of spending at confederation level refers to clubs from the CONMEBOL. They have spent USD 143 million on the international transfer market in 2014, slightly increasing from USD 138 million in However, unlike UEFA and AFC clubs, the spending from South American clubs remained below its peak recorded in 2012 (at USD 148 million). In 2014, international transfers receipts by CONMEBOL clubs have decreased for the first time in three years, dropping to USD 402 million from USD 568 million in 2013 (-29% year-over-year). This is almost entirely driven by the decrease in revenue received from other confederations, which represents nearly all of CONMEBOL s receipts (92% in 2014). 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary Figure 26: Transfer spending and receipts for the CONMEBOL confederation between 2011 and CONMEBOL engaging from other confederations CONMEBOL releasing to other confederations Transfers within CONMEBOL Figure 26: All amounts are given in USD million.

56 54 North American countries spent USD 109 million in 2014; 81% more than in 2013 (USD 60 million). In line with a higher number of incoming transfers (as shown in case study 1), countries of the CONCACAF spent significantly more on the international transfer market in Their spending reached USD 109 million during 2014, or 81% more than during 2013 (USD 60 million). The CONCACAF growth in spending has been steady between 2011 and 2014, increasing by more than five times over the four-year period. Figure 27: Transfer spending and receipts for the CONCACAF confederation between 2011 and CONCACAF engaging from other confederations CONCACAF releasing to other confederations Transfers within CONCACAF Figure 27: All amounts are given in USD million.

57 55 African countries spending plummeted by 59% between 2013 and 2014; decreasing from USD 22 million in 2013 to USD 9 million in International transfer fees involving CAF countries decreased substantially in This drop followed a steady growth between 2011 and 2013 which was largely driven by transfers within the confederation. In 2014, spending from CAF clubs plummeted by 59% (yearover-year) to USD 9 million. Similarly, while transfer receipts had increased between 2011 and 2013 for the confederation, they went down 26% to USD 32 million in Figure 28: Transfer spending and receipts for the CAF confederation between 2011 and Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary CAF engaging from other confederations CAF releasing to other confederations Transfers within CAF Figure 28: All amounts are given in USD million.

58 SPENDING AND RECEIPTS AT COUNTRY LEVEL Record high in spending by England in the international transfer market; USD 1.17 billion spent in English clubs were the biggest spenders in 2014 with a record high of USD 1.17 billion spent. The remarkable disparity in spending among different countries is not only shown by the fact that this is more than a quarter of the total spending worldwide, but also by the fact that the second biggest spender, Spain, engaged players for a total USD 700 million, and the third, Germany, for USD 327 million. Interestingly, China has now broken through the top 10, with total spending by its clubs exceeding the USD 100 million mark thanks to an increase of 161% when compared to Figure 29: Top 10 countries in terms of spending in 2014 Country Total spending Change from 2013 % of total England 1,168 million +245 million 28.7% Spain 700 million +323 million 17.2% Germany 327 million +74 million 8.1% Italy 306 million -200 million 7.5% France 222 million -199 million 5.5% Portugal 146 million +30 million 3.6% Turkey 111 million -85 million 2.7% Brazil 107 million +21 million 2.6% Russia 102 million -126 million 2.5% China PR 101 million +73 million 2.5% In 2014, 145 countries were involved in an international transfer to engage a player from another country. The top 10 countries by spending accounted for 81% (USD 3.3 billion) of the total spending in They all spent at least USD 100 million on the international transfer market during the year. At the same time 61 countries spent between USD 100,000 and USD 100 million and 74 countries spent less than USD 100,000 each during the entire year. Of these 74 countries, 48 countries engaged players on the international transfer market but did not spend any money. These countries largely focused on transferring players out of contract and completed 1,195 incoming transfers, or 9% of the total international transfer activity. Figure 29: All amounts are given in US dollars.

59 57 Figure 30: Transfer fees spenders concentration in 2014 Top segment Middle segment Top 10 engaging countries Middle 20 engaging countries Overall market size: USD 4.06 billion in total transfer fees cover 81% = USD 3.29 billion of the total market size cover 17% of the total market size = USD 703 million 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary Bottom segment Bottom 115 engaging countries cover 2% = USD 71 million of the total market size

60 58 In 2014, Spain recorded a new high at USD 667 million in international transfers receipts for a single country. Spanish clubs recorded a new high in receipts in 2014, at USD 667 million. This represented a significant bump when compared to the previous peak recorded by a country over the last few years (previous record at USD 584 million, 2013, Spain). England occupies the second place with USD 523 million while the podium is completed by Portugal with USD 435 million. As highlighted in the Market Activity section of this report, the drop in outgoing transfers for Brazil in 2014 led to a substantial hit in the country s total receipts. Between 2013 and 2014, the country s receipts decreased from USD 340 million to USD 221 million (-35% year-over-year). Figure 31: Top 10 countries in terms of receipts in 2014 Country Total receipts Change from 2013 % of total Spain 667 million +83 million 16.4% England 523 million +204 million 12.9% Portugal 435 million +103 million 10.7% France 316 million +10 million 7.8% Italy 285 million -181 million 7.0% Brazil 221 million -119 million 5.4% Netherlands 170 million -12 million 4.2% Germany 160 million +11 million 3.9% Ukraine 112 million -106 million 2.8% Belgium 109 million +44 million 2.7% Echoing the high concentration of international transfers spending, the level of receipts is substantially skewed by a few countries. Indeed, the top 10 countries received more than 73% of the total transfer fees in 2014, while 60 countries (34% of the 174 countries involved in outgoing international transfers in 2014) only released players free of payment. Figure 31: All amounts are given in US dollars.

61 59 Figure 32: Transfer fees recipients concentration in 2014 Top segment Middle segment Top 10 countries Middle 20 countries Overall market size: USD 4.06 billion in total transfer fees cover 74% = USD 3 billion of the total market size cover 21% of the total market size = USD 847 million 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary Bottom segment Bottom 144 engaging countries cover 5% = USD 219 million of the total market size

62 NET SPENDING/ NET RECEIPTS Key role of Portugal as an entry door to the European market for numerous Latin Americans. An additional representation of the international transfer market can be obtained by looking at the net receipts/ spending, which is obtained by subtracting the money spent on transfer fees by a country from the money that same country received. If the balance is negative, the country is a net spender, and on the contrary if it is positive, the country is a net receiver. Figure 33: Top 10 countries by net spending in 2014 Country Net Balance 2014 Net Balance 2013 England -645 million -604 million Germany -168 million -105 million Qatar -89 million -30 million China PR -89 million -17 million Cyprus -77 million +2 million Turkey -62 million -160 million United Arab Emirates -39 million -41 million Saudi Arabia -34 million -36 million Spain -33 million +207 million Canada -23 million -1 million In 2014, England has the biggest negative balance with a net spend of USD 645 million. The second biggest net spender is Germany (USD 168 million), followed by Qatar and China (both with USD 89 million). Unlike England and Germany, Qatar and China are in such position because their clubs are engaging players for high transfer fees (USD 90 million and USD 101 million, respectively), while they have very limited receipts (USD 1 million and USD 12 million, respectively). With regard to positive transfer fees balances (figure 34), Portugal tops the list, its clubs having received USD 289 million more than they spent. This is a recurring trend for Portugal, as the country has been running positive balances for years, mostly reflecting the Portuguese clubs strategy of engaging young players from abroad and selling them at a substantial premium once they have proven themselves. Figure 33: All amounts are given in US dollars.

63 61 Portugal s role as an entrepôt in the international transfer market has grown significantly over the past few years. Indeed, in 2014, Portuguese clubs released players for a total value of USD 435 million, nearly double the USD 221 million received by the world s traditional leading exporter Brazil, and more than twice the level of receipts recorded in 2011 (USD 197 million). The country of just 10 million people acquired this role by positioning itself as an entry-point for Latin American players moving to Europe. 39 The Portuguese league offers young Latin Americans experience of the European way of life and playing style, and lets them showcase themselves to the biggest European clubs. Of significant note: four footballers involved in some of Europe s biggest transfers in 2014 James Rodriguez, Angel di Maria, Radamel Falcao and Diego Costa all moved from Latin America to Europe through Portugal. Portuguese clubs spend only a minor share of the money they take in from the release of players. In 2014 they spent USD 146 million to engage players, just 35% of the sum they received that same year from releases. Other beneficiaries of transfers from Portugal are individuals who own a stake in the players transfer values. Portugal permits third-party ownership (TPO) of rights in players. TPO is a common practice in Portugal, and the value of the players under TPO practice is between approximately 27% and 36% of the market value of the players in the Portuguese league, reported the consultancy KPMG in Other countries with a positive net balance are the Netherlands (USD 136 million), Brazil (USD 113 million) and Ukraine (USD 106 million). In addition, France is one of the very few countries that experienced a significant change in their net balance, going from a heavily negative one in 2013, to the fifth largest net receipts in This turnaround can be partially attributed to the recent shift in the transfer market activity of two of the country s biggest clubs, Paris Saint Germain and AS Monaco. This swift change between 2013 and 2014 is further described at the end of this chapter. Figure 34: Top 10 countries by net receipts in 2014 Country Net Balance 2014 Net Balance 2013 Portugal +289 million +215 million Netherlands +136 million +122 million Brazil +113 million +253 million Ukraine +106 million +25 million France +94 million -114 million Belgium +59 million +17 million Switzerland +55 million +22 million Argentina +52 million +35 million Greece +38 million -2 million Sweden +27 million +15 million Figure 34: All amounts are given in US dollars. 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary 39 Jorge Mendes, power broker behind football s elite, Financial Times, Project TPO, KPMG,

64 MONEY FLOWS English clubs spent a total of USD 452 million to recruit players from Spanish clubs in 2014; 92% more than in This subsequently led to a rise in international transfer spending from Spanish clubs. Transfer streams based on transfer fees are dominated by England and Spain. One of these two countries is present on at least one side of 9 out of the top 10 major streams. The Spain-England nexus has become the most lucrative in the international transfer market in The number of players moving from Spain to England rose from 47 in 2013 to 62 in However, the leap in value was even more significant, up from USD 235 million to USD 452 million (+92%). In terms of total transfer fees, the flows from Spain to England and vice versa were the biggest in the international transfer market in English spending, long the highest in the world, rose further in The Premier League s lucrative new television deals, worth about USD 8.75 billion for the period, have boosted clubs revenues. 41 Two English clubs in particular concentrated much of their 2014 spending in Spain: Chelsea FC engaged three players from La Liga champion Atletico de Madrid while Manchester United FC, under new coach Louis van Gaal, engaged three players from La Liga at a reported value of USD 240 million New Pr emier League TV deal promises 100 million prize money for next season s title winners, Daily Telegraph, May 21, Premier League clubs spend record 835m in summer transfer window with Manchester United biggest spenders, Daily Telegraph, September 2, 2014

65 63 The biggest Spanish clubs released key players to English clubs in order to engage super-talents of their own. FC Barcelona released Cesc Fabregas and Alexis Sanchez while Real Madrid CF released Angel di Maria. That made it possible for the Spanish giants to be responsible for two of the largest reported transfers of 2014: Luis Suarez (Liverpool FC to FC Barcelona) and James Rodriguez (AS Monaco to Real Madrid CF). Those who have brought people here have also had to take in money, wrote the Spanish sports newspaper Marca. 43 La Liga has been stripped of some of its best players. The Premier League has gone fishing in our championship with its cheque-book out. Spanish clubs spent more than ever before in the English market, USD 201 million, continuing a dynamic upward trend since Gareth Bale, the Welshman who capped his first season in Spain with a goal for Real Madrid CF in the UEFA Champions League final, suggested that while there were more players in the Spain-to-England transfer stream, the elite talents were moving the other way. The Premier League is a great league but we are attracting the best players to La Liga, he said Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary Figure 35: 2014 transfer streams in value Country releasing Country engaging Total transfer fees Number of transfers Spain England 452 million 62 England Spain 201 million 35 Portugal England 172 million 14 France Spain 143 million 15 England France 113 million 28 France England 100 million 29 Portugal Cyprus 81 million 14 Italy England 79 million 45 Germany Spain 78 million 9 Netherlands England 77 million 31 Figure 35: All amounts are given in US dollars. 43 Un mer cado en el que mandan los de Marca, siempre, August 28, Gareth Bale: James Rodriguez confirms La Liga world s best, BBC.co.uk, July 23, 2014

66 64 CASE STUDY 3: NOTICEABLE SHIFT IN FRENCH MARKET Differing reasons behind the dramatic shift in French clubs spending in the international transfer market in 2014, including the UEFA Financial Fair Play rules and France s relatively high taxes and social charges. French spending in the transfer market plunged by nearly half in 2014, dropping to USD 222 million from USD 421 million in The decline was particularly notable as it bucked the trend of the rising global market. French football has been hit by a double whammy: the biggest spending clubs by UEFA s increased oversight of their finances under the Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules and all clubs by France s relatively high taxes and social charges. French football is in a difficult moment, says Jean Claude Blanc, director-general of Paris Saint-Germain. 46 PSG spent a total of USD 538 million engaging players in the international market in the period , after its takeover by Qatar Sports Investment. 47 That made it the highest-spending club in France, and one of the highest-spending worldwide. However, during the summer 2014 transfer market, the Parisians spent heavily on only one player: the engagement of David Luiz from Chelsea for a reported sum of USD 67 million, a world record for a defender Big 5 T ransfer Window Analysis: Summer FIFA 2014, TMS, September Telephone interview, Can Paris Saint-Germain become the world s richest sports club? Financial Times, David Luiz seals record move from Chelsea to PSG, Reuters, In an interview with FIFA TMS conducted on November 14, 2014 Blanc said PSG s spending decreased this summer for two reasons. The first is that we have built a team that is competitive. We are not in a moment in a life of this squad that we need to renew a large chunk of it. We have many young players, such as Marquinhos and Lucas. Now we aim to target only one or two players. The second reason: the settlement we have had to make with UEFA over FFP has limited our spending to one new player, at a maximum net cost of EUR 60 million. When we look at what Manchester United FC and Liverpool FC have done [in the transfer market] this summer, we see that FFP has set a very impactful limit on PSG. 49

67 65 PSG was one of nine European clubs that agreed a settlement with UEFA in May 2014 under the FFP rules, which aim to stop clubs spending more than their revenues. 50 Blanc said the settlement would limit PSG s investments in players through the 2015/2016 season. He added that PSG s reduced spending had in turn impacted other French clubs. If we don t buy a player from Olympique Lyonnais, Olympique de Marseille or Lille, they won t have that income from us, and they won t buy from clubs lower down the chain. 51 The new FFP rules have also contributed to the sharp reduction in AS Monaco s spending. The Monegasque club, which competes in the French league, spent a reported total of USD 202 million on engaging players in 2012 and 2013, after the takeover in 2011 by the Russian billionaire Dmitry Rybolovlev. 52 However, in 2014, Monaco spent only USD 5 million to engage players, while receiving close to USD 150 million for releasing players. The most notable departures were James Rodriguez to Real Madrid, and Radamel Falcao to Manchester United on loan. Monaco reduced its spending in part to avoid sanctions under the FFP rules, says the club s vice-president Vadim Vasyliev. 53 Moreover, the club suffered a blow from French clubs angry that Monaco being based in a principality without income tax would escape the country s much heavier tax burden. Monaco agreed to pay the French clubs EUR 50 million in compensation, but nonetheless seven clubs decided to take the matter to France s Council of State. 54 PSG and Monaco between them were responsible for the bulk of French spending from 2011 onwards. Their partial withdrawal from the market explains most of the French plunge in spending. However, the country s other clubs have financial problems of their own. One major cause of financial difficulty for French clubs is their heavy tax burden, with a marginal income tax rate of 75 per cent on salaries over 1 million, 55 imposed by France s current government. 56 Frédéric Thiriez, president of the French League of Professional Football (LFP), said in December 2013 that leaving aside the wealth of PSG and Monaco, the 38 other clubs have reduced their budgets drastically with an 8% fall in salary costs last year. 57 The 75% tax has reduced clubs transfer budgets, said PSG s Blanc. That is why in France we had mobilization by all clubs which failed to try to stop the 75% tax from being passed. Moreover, he added, the French state levies high social charges on salaries. All French clubs are suffering because of the tax and social charges, he said. The cost of having a player in France is now higher than in other European countries. Consequently, many players preferred to leave the French league Manchester City hit with 60 million UEFA financial fair play fine, Financial Times, In an interview with FIFA TMS conducted on November 14, Russian billionaire Dmitry Rybolovlev takes over Monaco, BBC.com, December 23, A Monaco, la fin du mirage Rybolovlev?, Les Echos, September 16, Ibid. 55 Football: un mercato rigoreux comme l hiver, Le Monde, December 31, Hollande orders employers to pay 75% tax, Financial Times, March 29, Football: un mercato rigoreux comme l hiver, Le Monde, December 31, In an interview with FIFA TMS conducted on November 14, Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary

68 66 Indeed, the social charges for a player earning a salary of EUR 600,000 are five times higher in France than in England, 15 times higher than in Germany, and 66 times higher than in Spain, according to the French Union of Professional Clubs (UCPF). For that same player, the difference between employers contributions in France vis-a-vis other European countries is similarly large- and is larger still for players earning over EUR 1 million, due to the 75% tax. 59 French football is experiencing a major financial crisis, with the exception of Monaco and Paris St Germain, said Vincent Labrune, president of Olympique Marseille, in December He said his club could no longer pay the salaries conforming to European standards that players demand. Marseille, he added, still intended to release higher-earning players such as the striker André-Pierre Gignac after his contract expires in June One club particularly affected by financial straits is Lyon, French champions every season from 2002 through The 75% tax cost Lyon more than EUR 6 million over the 2013/2014 season, said president Jean- Michel Aulas in the club s annual report. He said Lyon was reducing its personnel costs, while aiming to boost its future economic performance by building a new stadium and investing in its youth academy. 62 Having the best academy in France, perhaps in Europe, is one of the keys to long-term success, he said. 63 If French clubs remain net releasers in the international transfer market, their challenge will be to compete in European competitions against higher-spending foreign clubs. France currently occupies the sixth place, only narrowly ahead of Russia, on UEFA s country ranking that measures the performances of clubs in Europe. 64 Nevertheless, French football has recently had one piece of good news, the 75% tax has been scrapped in early Dur, dur, d être un club de foot francais, L Equipe, November 21, L OM n a pas les moyens d investir au mercato, Le Monde, December 9, Vincent Labrune: Pour Bielsa, j assume tout, Journal du Dimanche, October 26, Document de Référence 2013/2014, OL Groupe, Aulas: l OL mise sur la formation, Europe 1, October 11, Country coefficients 2014/2015, UEFA.com, last checked on November 18, Valls says French 75% tax won t exist in 2015, Bloomberg Businessweek, October 6, 2014

69 NEW 67 CLUB LEVEL INFORMATION For the first time, FIFA TMS is able to provide international transfer information at club level in its reports, with a league comparison for French Ligue 1, Spanish Liga, Italian Serie A and English Premier League. The information included in FIFA TMS reports is based on data provided directly by clubs and associations in TMS. This data is then aggregated at member association level and anonymised in accordance with Swiss privacy law and FIFA TMS s data protection policies. Throughout 2014, FIFA TMS worked on a number of additional initiatives developed within the scope of its FIFA-mandate to further increase the transparency of the international football transfer market. As a result, FIFA TMS now aims at publishing club level data in its reports, hence allowing the football community to benefit from access to more detailed information and providing football stakeholders with the opportunity to compare transfer trends among clubs. In order to achieve this goal, FIFA TMS has started the club data release declaration process in May 2014; asking clubs to authorise the publication of international transfer data at club level. When the authorisation is granted by the club, FIFA TMS has the possibility to disclose transfer market information at club level in its reports. Adhering to stringent Swiss data protection law, FIFA TMS will not publish any data at individual transaction level nor information that may allow the identification of individual transfers. 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary Currently, a significant and growing number of clubs have signed the club data release declaration (2,232 professional clubs worldwide as of 31 December 2014; or 36% of the total). FIFA TMS is extremely thankful for their cooperation towards the achievement of the transparency objectives of FIFA and FIFA TMS. Going forward, FIFA TMS will continue working together with professional football clubs in order to achieve its goal of providing better information to the football community and the public.

70 68 Figure 36: Number of international transfers for the clubs of the Ligue 1, Liga, Serie A and Premier League in 2013 and 2014 Ligue 1 The following clubs have not signed the club data release declaration yet: LOSC Lille, Stade Rennais FC Number of incoming transfers Number of outgoing transfers SM Caen FC Lorient Bretagne RC Lens EA Guingamp Stade de Reims Olympique Lyonnais Paris St Germain FC Montpellier HSC OGC Nice Olympique de Marseille Average AS Saint Etienne Toulouse FC FC Girondins de Bordeaux Evian Thonon Gaillard FC FC Nantes SC Bastia FC Metz AS Monaco FC La Liga The following clubs have not signed the club data release declaration yet: Athletic Club, Real Madrid CF, Sevilla FC, Valencia FC Number of incoming transfers Number of outgoing transfers Atletico Madrid Malaga CF Granada CF Rayo Vallecano Cordoba CF FC Barcelona Average RC Deportivo de la Coruna Villarreal FC Getafe CF UD Almeria Elche CF RCD Espanyol de Barcelona SD Eibar Real Sociedad RC Celta de Vigo Levante UD Figure 36 introduces the total number of international transfers recorded by clubs currently members of the French Ligue 1, Spanish Liga, Italian Serie A and English Premier League (during the season 2014/15), over the last two calendar years. Data has been aggregated for both years and is presented with a breakdown between incoming and outgoing transfers. Clubs are ranked by number of incoming transfers.

71 69 Serie A FC Inter Milan ACF Fiorentina Juventus FC Parma FC Premier League SS Lazio AC Milan US Palermo Average Genoa Cricket FC 11 Hellas Verona FC The following clubs have not signed the club data release declaration yet: Atalanta BC, Empoli FC, SSC Napoli, AS Roma, US Sassuolo Calcio, Udinese Calcio Number of incoming transfers Number of outgoing transfers Torino FC AC Chievo Verona The following clubs have not signed the club data release declaration yet: UC Sampdoria Arsenal FC, Chelsea FC, Everton FC, Hull City FC, Liverpool FC, Manchester City FC, Manchester United FC, Tottenham Hotspur FC, West Ham United FC Cagliari Calcio 4 AC Cesena 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary Number of incoming transfers Number of outgoing transfers Average Queens Park Rangers FC Sunderland AFC Swansea City FC Southampton FC West Bromwich Albion FC Newcastle United FC Stoke City FC Aston Villa FC Burnley FC Leicester City FC Crystal Palace FC The clubs identified in the graph are those that have signed the FIFA TMS club data release declaration as of 31 December Clubs that have not signed are listed on the right hand-side of each graph. For each league, the average refers to the average number of incoming and outgoing transfers for the 20 clubs of that league.

72 70 Figure 37: International transfer spending and receipts for the clubs of the Ligue 1, Liga, Serie A and Premier League in 2013 and Ligue 1 The following clubs have not signed the club data release declaration yet: LOSC Lille, Stade Rennais FC Spending Receipts SM Caen Olympique Lyonnais FC Lorient Bretagne RC Lens OGC Nice SC Bastia FC Metz FC Nantes Evian Thonon Gaillard FC Montpellier HSC AS Saint Etienne EA Guingamp FC Girondins de Bordeaux Stade de Reims Toulouse FC Olympique de Marseille Average AS Monaco FC Paris St Germain FC Figure 37: All amounts are given in USD million. Amounts appearing as 0 million are numbers between 0 and USD 0.5 million. 229 La Liga The following clubs have not signed the club data release declaration yet: Athletic Club, Real Madrid CF, Sevilla FC, Valencia FC Spending Receipts Average Atletico Madrid FC Barcelona Villarreal FC Granada CF Malaga CF Real Sociedad Elche CF RC Celta de Vigo Rayo Vallecano Cordoba CF Getafe CF RCD Espanyol de Barcelona UD Almeria Levante UD SD Eibar RC Deportivo de la Coruna Figure 37: All amounts are given in USD million. Amounts appearing as 0 million are numbers between 0 and USD 0.5 million. Figure 37 introduces the total transfer spending and receipts by clubs currently members of the French Ligue 1, Spanish Liga, Italian Serie A and English Premier League (during the season 2014/15), over the last two calendar years. Data has been aggregated for both years and is presented with a breakdown between transfer spending and transfer receipts. Clubs are ranked by transfer spending.

73 71 Serie A ACF Fiorentina 28 Juventus FC AC Milan FC Inter Milan Average SS Lazio Hellas Verona FC Torino FC US Palermo Genoa Cricket FC Figure 37: All amounts are given in USD million. Amounts appearing as 0 million are numbers between 0 and USD 0.5 million The following clubs have not signed the club data release declaration yet: Atalanta BC, Empoli FC, SSC Napoli, AS Roma, US Sassuolo Calcio, Udinese Calcio 15 5 Spending Cagliari Calcio Parma FC 8 Receipts 15 UC Sampdoria 3 2 AC Chievo Verona AC Cesena Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary Premier League The following clubs have not signed the club data release declaration yet: Arsenal FC, Chelsea FC, Everton FC, Hull City FC, Liverpool FC, Manchester City FC, Manchester United FC, Tottenham Hotspur FC, West Ham United FC 139 Spending Receipts Average Southampton FC Swansea City FC Newcastle United FC Sunderland AFC Aston Villa FC Queens Park Rangers FC Stoke City FC West Bromwich Albion FC Crystal Palace FC Burnley FC Leicester City FC Figure 37: All amounts are given in USD million. Amounts appearing as 0 million are numbers between 0 and USD 0.5 million. The clubs identified in the graph are those that have signed the FIFA TMS club data release declaration as of 31 December Clubs that have not signed are listed on the right hand-side of each graph. For each league, the average refers to the average transfer fees for the 20 clubs of the league.

74 03 PLAYER CHARACTERISTICS 3.1 Player age 3.2 Player nationality 3.3 Minor applications in the Transfer Matching System

75

76 PLAYER AGE For international transfers involving fees, players between 22 and 24 years old were the most sought after while players aged 27 were the most expensive to engage. In 2014, the average age of players transferred internationally was 25 years and 6 months. This represents an increase of 5 months when compared to the average of 2013 (25 years and 1 month). The oldest professional player transferred was 44 years while the youngest was 15 years old. As shown in figure 38, the most sought after players are aged 24 and 25. The professional players under-21 accounted for 16% of the total number of international transfers (13,090), while players aged 33 and above represented 4% of the total. Figure 38: Age distribution of professional players in international transfers in 2014 in USD million Under Over 36 Age of players Number of transfers with fees Number of transfers with no fees Average transfer fee for transfers with fees (right-hand side)

77 75 For transfers involving fees, the players aged between 22 and 24 were the most sought after during In addition, players aged 27 were the most expensive players engaged during the year, with an average transfer fee per player of USD 4.2 million, substantially above the average for all players (USD 2.3 million) and that of 24-year-olds (USD 3.2 million), second in that list. As shown in figure 39, UEFA is (after OFC, which has a very limited number of transfers) the confederation whose clubs have engaged players with the lowest average age, 24 years and 1 month. On the other hand, clubs of the AFC have engaged players with the highest average age, 27 years old. In terms of outgoing transfers, CAF has released the players with the lowest average age (23 years and 7 months), a trend heightened when considering the transfers towards UEFA (21 years and 7 months) and CONCACAF (20 years and 10 months). This exodus of young talents also applies to CONMEBOL countries; they released players aged on average 23 years and 6 months to UEFA, while players going in the opposite direction (UEFA to CONMEBOL) were aged on average 24 years and 8 months. 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary Figure 39: Average age of players transferred by confederation Number of transfers 2014 engaging releasing CAF CONCACAF CONMEBOL OFC AFC UEFA All regions releasing CAF N/A CONCACAF N/A CONMEBOL N/A OFC N/A 29.0 N/A N/A AFC UEFA All regions engaging Figure 39: Not Applicable (N/A) have been added for transfer streams with no international transfer.

78 76 The age of the players engaged by Indian club has increased significantly over the last few years, from 24 years old in 2011 to 29 years in At country level, and for streams with more than 10 transfers registered during the year, the youngest incoming players moved to Wales, with an average age of 22 years and 4 months, while India was the country engaging the oldest players on average in 2014; 28 years and 10 months. The Indian league is attracting a growing number of players from traditional footballing heartlands in UEFA and CONMEBOL, including Brazil, France and Spain. While the total number of players arriving in India has not changed, the geographic pattern of their moves has. Figure 40: Countries with highest and lowest average age of incoming players in 2014 Country engaging Highest average age Number of transfers India Iran Qatar Indonesia Uzbekistan Namibia Malaysia Syria Australia Thailand Country engaging Lowest average age Number of transfers Wales Mauritius Ghana Kenya Côte d'ivoire Italy Mozambique Netherlands England Portugal

79 77 We can put this down to the launch of the inaugural Indian Super League in and its controlled player rosters. 67 The rule is that each of the eight clubs must sign at least one marquee foreign player plus seven other foreigners, five of them via the foreign player draft. This has been the main driver for the average age of incoming players going up significantly: from 24 years in India in 2011 to 29 years and 1 month in the ISL in The eight marquee players (one signed by each franchise) range from 33 to 44 in age. The average age of the incoming foreigners would be even higher than 28 years and 10 months if not for an arrangement involving Brazilian Serie A club Atletico Paranaense that brought five of their players to the ISL, all of them aged 22 or under. 68 To reflect the relatively short duration of the ISL, from October to December, including end-of-season play-offs, 36 of the 77 incoming overseas players have been signed on contracts of between three and five months long. With regard to outgoing transfers, CAF countries trusted the top of the list, with 8 out of the top 10 countries releasing the youngest players. 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary Figure 41: Countries with highest and lowest average age of outgoing players in 2014 Country releasing Highest average age Number of transfers Indonesia China PR Vietnam Malaysia Oman Iran Guatemala Angola Bahrain Saudi Arabia Country releasing Lowest average age Number of transfers Northern Ireland Guinea Congo Ghana Gambia Senegal Côte d'ivoire Nigeria Burkina Faso Cameroon Indian Super League the first step to India becoming a global football power say organisers, Daily Telegraph, October 10, ISL draft kicks off on Monday, Times of India, July 20, Atletico Paranaense will have athletes in the new indian football league, the Indian Super League, India Brazil Chamber of Commerce, June 5, 2014

80 PLAYER NATIONALITY Brazilian players remained the most transferred players worldwide in 2014, despite a 7% decrease from 2013 level. In 2014, players of Brazilian nationality remained by far the most transferred. Brazilian players were involved in 1,493 international transfers or 11% of the total. Nevertheless, while keeping the top spot, Brazilians were involved in fewer transfers than the year before (decrease of 7% vs. 2013: 1,606 transfers). Argentinians are the second most represented nationality in international transfers with 801 in 2014, followed by players from the United Kingdom (England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales) with 596 transfers. French and Spanish players completed the top 5 of the top transferred nationalities. Figure 42: Top nationalities transferred internationally in 2014 and growth year-over-year 1,493-7% 801 transfers +12% transfers % transfers % transfers % % % % % % Brazil Argentina United Kingdom France Spain Colombia Uruguay Serbia Nigeria Portugal

81 79 The difference between the transfer fees spent to engage Brazilian and Spanish players has decreased significantly in With regard to the nationalities involving the highest transfer fees; Brazilian players remained the top nationality with USD 468 million spent worldwide to engage them. Although they still occupy the first position, the drop from last year was significant. In 2013, transfers of Brazilian nationals had generated a total of USD 699 million. In second position are Spanish players, whose transfers accounted for USD 427 million in 2014, 51% more than the previous year (USD 284 million). Argentinian players complete this top 3, with USD 410 million spent to recruit players of this nationality. 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary Figure 43: Nationalities with highest transfer fees involved in international transfers in 2014 and growth year-over-year % % % % % % % % % % Brazil Spain Argentina France Colombia Belgium Serbia Uruguay Netherlands United Kingdom Figure 43: All amounts are given in USD million.

82 MINOR APPLICATIONS IN THE TRANSFER MATCHING SYSTEM Steady growth in applications between 2011 and 2013, stabilising in Under article 19 paragraph 1 of the RSTP, international transfers of players are only permitted if the player is over the age of 18. However, there are three exceptions to this rule, listed under article 19 paragraph 2, which can be summarised as follows: For the first time in the Global Transfer Market report, this section will provide information regarding the minor applications recorded in the international transfer matching system (ITMS). A minor is defined as a player who has not yet reached the age of Please note that this section refers both to professional minors and minors with amateur status. 70 Under article 19 of the FIFA Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players (RSTP), the regulations apply to minors for: 1. International transfer : a minor of any nationality who has previously been registered with a club in one association is registered with a club in a new association. 2. First registration : a minor who has never previously been registered with a club and is not a national of the country in which he wishes to be registered for the first time. 69 Definitions, FIFA, Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players ( RSTP ). Please note that the text in this report generalises certain technical definitions. As a result, in case of discrepancy to the relevant provisions, the RSTP will always prevail. 70 Art. 2.2, RSTP 71 Annexe 2 of the RSTP explains the minor application process in greater detail. a) The parents of the player moved to the new country for reasons not linked to football; b) The player is over 16 and is moving within the territory of the EU/EEA; or c) Both player and club are within 50km of their common borders and the distance between the two is less than 100km. Where a first registration is applied for, the association may also apply under a fourth title (which is a jurisprudential possibility) in addition to the three exceptions summarised above: d) The player has lived continuously at least for the last five years in the country of intended registration prior to the request. To engage a minor, the new association must first submit a minor application to the Sub-Committee of the FIFA Players Status Committee through ITMS, explaining which exception they wish to have applied. 71 If the Sub- Committee approves the application, the parties can proceed with the required steps for the international transfer or first registration. The Sub-Committee may alternatively find that the stated exception does not apply and so reject the minor application. See Figure 44 for a breakdown of these figures.

83 81 This section analyses the minor applications submitted in ITMS. Of the 209 FIFA member associations, 21 associations have a Limited Exemption, meaning that they are exempt from entering minor applications for amateur minors who are to be first registered for/ internationally transferred to purely amateur clubs. 72 However, any association that is granted a Limited Minor Exemption (LME) must ensure respect of art. 19 of the RSTP for all minor players it registers under the exemption and upload in the ITMS every six months a LME report which sets out key information about the player as well as which exception of article 19 paragraph 2 applies to that player. In 2014, 1,793 minor applications were submitted, a slight decrease in comparison to the 1,844 recorded in 2013 (-3%). The majority of these applications concerned the engagement of minor players who would hold amateur status at the new club (89%), while only 11% of them were filed to transfer a minor who would hold professional status at the new club. Figure 44: Number of minor applications between 2011 and Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary Accordingly, the applications for these particular amateur minors at these 21 associations will not be included in the next two pages , , ,603 1, Amateurs Professionals 72 A pur ely amateur club is a club which does not have a single professional player registered for it.

84 82 Out of 1,793 applications, 186 (10%) were rejected in 2014 (1,607 accepted). The main reason for an application to be filed was that the minor s parents were moving for reasons not linked to football. In fact, among all applications accepted in 2014, 42% (670) were supported by this explanation. Figure 45: Minor applications between 2011 and 2014 and reason for accepting/ rejecting the application In 2014, Spain was the country that engaged the highest number of minors. 400 minor applications were submitted, and 352 were accepted. This is only one less than in 2013 and a much higher number than any other association worldwide. The second country by number of applications is Portugal with a total of 188 applications in 2014 (168 accepted), substantially below the 258 applications submitted by Portuguese clubs in Completing the top 3 is Hungary, with 144 minor applications submitted in 2014 (136 accepted) Rejected Accepted Rejected Accepted Rejected Accepted Rejected Accepted Player is registering for the first time and has lived continuously for the last five years in the country of intended registration prior to the request Both player and club are within 50km of their common borders and the distance between the two is less than 100km Figure 46: Top 10 engaging associations of minors in 2014 Association engaging Accepted Rejected Accepted Rejected Spain Portugal Hungary England Germany Netherlands Luxembourg Belgium Italy Slovenia The player is over 16 and is moving within the territory of the EU/EEA The parents of the player moved for reasons not linked to football

85 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary

86 04 INTERMEDIARY 4.1 Overall activity 4.2 Club intermediary commissions 4.3 Top spenders of club intermediary commissions

87

88 OVERALL ACTIVITY After two years of decline between 2011 and 2013, the number of transfers with at least one intermediary involved increased in 2014, representing 21% of all international transfers. Clubs and players intermediaries involvement has grown in comparison with last year. In fact, 21.0% of the transfers completed in 2014 involved at least one intermediary, increasing from 19.5% in This represents a change when compared to the trend recorded between 2011 and 2013, when the number of transfers with an intermediary involved dropped from 23.5% of all international transfers in 2011 to 19.5% in Figure 47: Number of transfers with and without an intermediary involvement between 2011 and , % 9, % 2, % 9, % 2, % 10, % 2, % 10, % Number of transfers without any intermediary involved Number of transfers with an intermediary involved

89 87 Figure 48: Share of transfers with club, player and any intermediary 1 involvement by confederation in % 19.1% UEFA 25.5% 4.4% 17.5% AFC 19.3% 0.6% 17.9% CONCACAF 18.2% 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary 1.2% 5.6% 6.4% 0.5% 3.6% 3.8% Share of transfers with club intermediary Share of transfers with player intermediary Share of transfers with any intermediary CAF CONMEBOL 1 Any intermediary refers to transfers involving at least one intermediary, regardless of whether it is a club or player intermediary. As shown in figure 48, the involvement of intermediaries is greater for international transfers linked to UEFA countries than for any other confederation worldwide. Indeed, in 2014, club and player intermediaries were involved in 25.5% of all international transfers involving the UEFA confederation while this involvement ranged from 3.8% for CONMEBOL countries to 19.3% for AFC countries.

90 88 In addition, as shown in figure 49, for the UEFA confederation, the involvement of intermediaries in international transfers has constantly increased between 2011 and Figure 49: Club and player intermediary involvement in UEFA transfers between 2011 and ,890 1,133 1,517 1,253 1,636 1,278 1,696 1, Transfers with club intermediary Transfers with player intermediary Transfers with any intermediary

91 CLUB INTERMEDIARY COMMISSIONS Club intermediary commissions remained oriented upward over the last three years, increasing by 27% on average between 2011 and Club intermediary commissions steadily increased over the period, rising from USD 131 million in 2011 to USD 236 million in 2014 (27% per year on average). More recently, between 2013 and 2014, club intermediary commissions rose by USD 18 million (increase of 8% year-over-year). Club intermediary: what does the regulation say? Article 4, Annexe 3: FIFA Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players: Clubs must provide the following compulsory data when creating instructions, as applicable: [ ] Club agent s name, type and commission [ ]. While commissions paid to club intermediaries have to be declared in the transfer matching system (TMS), payments made to player intermediaries are not reported in TMS. 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary Figure 50: Club intermediary commissions between 2011 and 2014 in USD million 3,979 4,063 4,000 2,896 2,720 3,500 3,000 2, , , , ,000 1,500 1, Total transfer fees Total transfer fees with intermediaries involved Intermediary commission

92 TOP SPENDERS OF CLUB INTERMEDIARY COMMISSIONS English clubs paid 29% of all club intermediary commissions spent for international transfers in Given that UEFA concentrates most of the international transfer fees, the countries of the confederation were logically key participants in paying commissions to club intermediaries. In fact, all of the 10 countries appearing among the top spenders by club intermediary commission worldwide in 2014 (figure 51), are part of the UEFA confederation. This highlights the importance of the European market from an intermediary perspective. Within the confederation, England was by far the single most important spender in club intermediary commissions. This partly reflected the importance of the country in the international transfer market in terms of spending as the country represented 29% of the total market spend in 2014 (USD 1.17 billion). In terms of commissions paid to club intermediaries, English clubs paid a total of USD 87 million in 2014 (37% of the total club intermediary commissions paid worldwide), an increase of USD 12 million when compared to Other countries with high levels of intermediary commissions paid are Italy (USD 36 million), Germany (USD 35 million), Portugal (USD 25 million) and Spain (USD 13 million).

93 Figure 51: Top 10 spenders in club intermediary commissions in CONCACAF CONMEBOL Norway Denmark England Wales Belgium Germany Italy Portugal Spain CAF UEFA Russia AFC Top 10 countries of biggest spenders of club intermediary commissions OFC 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary Country engaging Intermediary commission in 2014 Intermediary commission in 2013 Number of transfers with club intermediary involved in 2014 Number of transfers with club intermediary involved in 2013 England 87 million 75 million Italy 36 million 44 million Germany 35 million 9 million Portugal 25 million 23 million Spain 13 million 24 million Wales 10 million 5 million Denmark 5 million 1 million Russia 4 million 10 million Belgium 2 million 1 million Norway 2 million 2 million Total 236 million 218 million Figure 51 Intermediary commissions are given in US dollars.

94 92 Intermediary commissions paid by German clubs for incoming transfers increased sharply between 2013 and 2014 from USD 9 million to USD 33 million. There was a significant rise in the value of incoming international transfers in Germany in While the number of incoming transfers increased slightly from 352 to 356 transfers compared to the previous year, the overall transfer spending by German clubs rose by 29%, from USD 254 million in 2013 to USD 327 million in The increase was even greater in terms of intermediary involvement and intermediary commissions paid for incoming transfers. In 2014, there were 92 incoming transfers involving club intermediary in Germany (54 in 2013: +70%) while club intermediary commissions represented more than 10 % of the value of all incoming international transfers (4% in 2013). In value terms, club intermediary commissions paid for incoming transfers by German clubs increased from USD 9 million in 2013 to USD 33 million in 2014, 73 an increase of 267%. England is the only other market among Europe s Big 5 countries where there was an increase in commissions paid to intermediaries. The commissions in Italy (from USD 44 million in 2013 to USD 36 million in 2014) and France (USD 5 million in 2013 to USD 2 million in 2014) largely reflected the significant decreases in spending. In Spain the story was different with spending up by 86% from USD 377 million to USD 700 million between 2013 and 2014, though commissions paid to intermediaries dropped 46% from USD 24 million to USD 13 million. 73 Please note that this figure only includes club intermediary commissions paid by German clubs for incoming transfers. Club intermediary commissions for outgoing transfers are introduced in figure 52.

95 93 Figure 52: Incoming international transfers to Germany, transfer fees and intermediary involvement between 2011 and 2014 Year Number of incoming transfers Incoming transfers with club intermediary involved Total transfer spending Club Intermediary commissions (incoming transfers) Club Intermediary commissions (outgoing transfers) Total club intermediary commissions paid million 15 million 3 million 18 million million 10 million 2 million 12 million million 9 million 0 million 9 million million 33 million 2 million 35 million 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 2 Transfer fees 3 Player characteristics 4 Intermediary Figure 52 All amounts are given in US dollars. This is interesting because the Spain-Germany transfer nexus saw high-profile transfers in both directions 3 with a combined transfer spend of over USD 130 million. But while for these transfers the Spanish clubs spent more in terms of transfer fees, the German clubs spent nearly ten times as much on intermediary commissions. In recent years, German clubs have challenged the status of their Spanish counterparts in the later stages of the UEFA Champions Cup, with some memorable encounters between FC Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund with CF Real Madrid and FC Barcelona. In the year in which Germany won the 2014 FIFA World Cup, its clubs have targeted more international transfers and been more ambitious in their spending. 74 Mario Mandzukic joins Atletico Madrid from Bayern Munich, BBC.com, July 10, 2014; Toni Kroos joins Real Madrid from Bayern Munich for 20m, The Guardian, July 17, 2014; Xabi Alonso provides the tempo that makes Bayern s jazz flow, ESPNFC.com, October 22, 2014; Juan Bernat: Bayern s future star, Deutsche Welle, November 6, 2014

96 About FIFA TMS About FIFA TMS data General disclaimer List of figures per chapter Rules and assumptions

97

98 96 ABOUT FIFA TMS ABOUT FIFA TMS DATA In 2007, the 57th FIFA Congress voted to create an online system for male 11-a-side international football transfers as one of the recommendations of the FIFA Task Force For the Good of the Game. The objectives were to increase integrity and transparency in the market by making data available to football authorities on every transaction and to enforce rules on the protection of minors. The vision of FIFA TMS is to foster and sustain a transparent transfer market based on integrity, accountability, and innovation. The company has been collecting comprehensive information on the international transfer market since October 2010, with a full dataset available for the period going back to FIFA TMS collects data on the mobility patterns, nationalities, ages and positions of players, the types of contracts they enter into, the lengths of contracts, transfer fees (including conditional transfer fees), solidarity contribution and training compensation. Its mission is the following: Enable clubs to confirm the terms and conditions of player transfers F acilitate the transfer of player registrations between associations H elp safeguard the protection of minors Pr ovide information and decision making tools to key stakeholders T rain and support key stakeholders Monit or player transfer activities and investigate alleged breaches of the transfer regulations Enf orce adherence to the transfer regulations through a specific sanction system, presenting breaches of those transfer regulations and proposing sanctions to the competent FIFA bodies

99 97 GENERAL DISCLAIMER With regards to technical references possibly included in the present report, please be advised that in the event of any contradiction between the contents of this report and the actual text of the relevant regulations, the latter shall always prevail. Equally, the contents of this report may not alter existing jurisprudence of the competent decision-making bodies and is without prejudice to any decision which the said bodies might be called upon to pass in the future. All information contained herein is exclusively owned by FIFA and/or FIFA Transfer Matching System GmbH, except as otherwise provided herein. The reproduction of any such images, trademarks, text or any and all content (even partially) is strictly prohibited unless express prior approval is obtained from FIFA, FIFA Transfer Matching System GmbH and/or the author of such works (as the case may be). Any views expressed in this report do not necessarily reflect those of FIFA or FIFA Transfer Matching System GmbH.

100 98 LIST OF FIGURES PER CHAPTER 10 1 Market activity and mobility patterns 13 Figure 1: Overall market activity in Figure 2: International transfers worldwide between 2011 and Figure 3: Number of incoming transfers between 2011 and Figure 4: Incoming transfers in Indonesia between 2011 and Figure 5: Number of outgoing transfers between 2011 and Figure 6: Total incoming and outgoing transfers by confederation in Figure 7: Total incoming and outgoing transfers for the UEFA in Figure 8: Number of incoming transfers in Canada, Mexico and USA between 2011 and Figure 9: 10 most active countries in terms of incoming transfers in Figure 10: Top countries for incoming transfers at confederation level in Figure 11: 10 most active countries in terms of outgoing transfers in Figure 12: Top countries for outgoing transfers at confederation level in Figure 13: 10 most active countries on the international transfer market in 2014 (incoming and outgoing transfers together) 31 Figure 14: Top countries for international transfers at confederation level in 2014 (incoming and outgoing transfers together) 32 Figure 15: Top 25 transfer streams in 2014 at country level 34 Figure 16: Number of transfer windows open and number of international transfers in 2014 by month 37 Figure 17: Type of international transfers between 2011 and Figure 18: Most common incoming transfer types by confederation in Figure 19: Share of transfers by type of contracts depending the month of the year in Figure 20: FIFA World Cup timing effect 44 2 Transfer fees 46 Figure 21: Total and average transfer fees between 2011 and Figure 22: Type of transfer fees between 2011 and Figure 23: Total incoming and outgoing transfers by confederation in Figure 24: Transfer spending and receipts for the UEFA confederation between 2011 and Figure 25: Transfer spending and receipts for the AFC confederation between 2011 and Figure 26: Transfer spending and receipts for the CONMEBOL confederation between 2011 and Figure 27: Transfer spending and receipts for the CONCACAF confederation between 2011 and 2014

101 99 55 Figure 28: Transfer spending and receipts for the CAF confederation between 2011 and Figure 29: Top 10 countries in terms of spending in Figure 30: Transfer fees spenders concentration in Figure 31: Top 10 countries in terms of receipts in Figure 32: Transfer fees recipients concentration in Figure 33: Top 10 countries by net spending in Figure 34: Top 10 countries by net receipts in Figure 35: 2014 transfer streams in value 68 Figure 36: Number of international transfers for the clubs of the Ligue 1, Liga, Serie A and Premier League in 2013 and Figure 37: International transfer spending and receipts for the clubs of the Ligue 1, Liga, Serie A and Premier League in 2013 and Player characteristics 74 Figure 38: Age distribution of professional players in international transfers in Figure 39: Average age of players transferred by confederation 76 Figure 40: Countries with highest and lowest average age of incoming players in Figure 41: Countries with highest and lowest average age of outgoing players in Figure 42: Top nationalities transferred internationally in 2014 and growth year-over-year 79 Figure 43: Nationalities with highest transfer fees involved in international transfers in 2014 and growth year-over-year 81 Figure 44: Number of minor applications between 2011 and Figure 45: Minor applications between 2011 and 2014 and reason for accepting/ rejecting the application 82 Figure 46: Top 10 engaging associations of minors in Intermediary 86 Figure 47: Number of transfers with and without any intermediary involvement between 2011 and Figure 48: Share of transfers with club, player and any intermediary involvement by confederation in Figure 49: Club and player intermediary involvement in UEFA transfers between 2011 and Figure 50: Club intermediary commissions between 2011 and Figure 51: Top 10 spenders in club intermediary commissions in Figure 52: Incoming international transfers to Germany, transfer fees and intermediary involvement between 2011 and 2014

102 100 RULES AND ASSUMPTIONS The following sections provide information on the assumptions and applied procedures underlying this report. Glossary For a complete online glossary of the terms included in this report please visit fifatms.com/en/reports/glossary Source of data The information contained in this report is based on individual transaction data provided directly by football clubs in TMS. Data and analyses provided in Global Transfer Market 2015 only concern international transfers of professional male football players within the scope of 11-a-side football. The source of all data and information (unless explicitly indicated differently) is: FIFA Transfer Matching System GmbH Zollikerstrasse Zurich, Switzerland Methodological approach Transfer data has been analysed for all completed transfers between 1 January 2011 and 31 December All data has been extracted from TMS on 6 January All information on transfer fees and intermediary commissions is automatically converted into US dollars on the basis of conversion rates as of the day of the transfer s first registration in TMS. Transfers are allocated to a certain calendar year according to the date when they reach the status of ITC request in TMS, irrespective of the date of their first entry. Data protection The data contained in TMS and in this review is covered by Swiss data protection law. Those associations and clubs whose names appear in this report have expressly authorised FIFA TMS to disclose information concerning their transfers for reporting purposes. By 31 December 2014, FIFA TMS had received data release declarations from 204 member associations and 2,232 clubs.

103 FIFA TMS Customised Data TRANSFER KNOWLEDGE EQUALS SUCCESS.

104 FIFA TMS Customised Data A valuable informational tool. Customised Data is a valuable informational tool that facilitates and enhances the decision making process for football professionals in the international transfer market. Customised Data also provides insightful datasets for market research, in depth analysis and trend studies of the international football transfer market. FIFA TMS Customised Data Reliable data on international transfers. FIFA TMS gathers international transfer information directly from 209 member associations and over professional football clubs worldwide. Consequently, FIFA TMS benefits from first-hand data that is more complete, accurate and reliable than any other source in the market. The FIFA TMS database contains more than a million data points including information about mobility patterns, nationalities, age of players, types and lengths of contracts, transfer fees (including conditional transfer fees, solidarity contribution and training compensation) as well as intermediary involvement and commission. FIFA TMS Customised Data Tailored to your needs. FIFA TMS provides customised data at country, regional and/or global level that can be filtered according to client requirements. Data can be provided in multiple formats including tables, graphs and advanced visualisations. Depending on the format type requested, the user can work with the data using metric selectors and filters. This tool can also be used to filter analysis or aggregate data according to different time bands such as the last transfer window or season. Benefits of FIFA TMS Customised Data: Data: All international transfers of professional football players since 2011 Source: First-hand information gathered directly from 209 member associations and over professional football clubs Data selection: Possibility to choose from approximately 40 different variables FIFA TMS the ultimate partner for international football transfer data. For more information regarding FIFA TMS Customised Data, please contact: solutions@fifatms.com Learn more about FIFA TMS by visiting us at fifatms.com. FIFA TMS Zollikerstrasse Zurich T: +41 (0) Switzerland

105 FIFA TMS Domestic Transfer Matching System ENHANCE YOUR DOMESTIC TRANSFER MANAGEMENT.

106 DTMS The perfect match. FIFA TMS developed the Domestic Transfer Matching System (DTMS) following feedback from member associations and clubs expressing their desire to have a domestic version of the International Transfer Matching System (ITMS). DTMS and ITMS are fully integrated, granting member associations and their affiliated clubs access to both international and domestic transfers in one place, providing a complete picture of all professional player transfers. DTMS Facilitates domestic transfers. Modelled around the ITMS, which is used today by over 209 associations and clubs around the world for international player transfers, DTMS is designed to facilitate domestic transfers of professional football players. DTMS enables users to manage and monitor their domestic transfers, receive detailed transfer reports on a regular basis, communicate more efficiently with each other to speed up the approval process and store official documents safely for easy referral. DTMS Improves domestic transfer governance. Just as the ITMS framework enables greater transparency and adherence to international regulations, the DTMS does the same for member associations and their clubs on a domestic level. Through system based processes, member associations are able to increase club adherence to domestic regulations and improve monitoring levels that allow for greater involvement in transfer review and approval processes. Benefits of DTMS: Complete Picture: Manage and monitor all international and domestic professional player transfers in one place Reports: Enhance your domestic transfer strategy development Gover nance:improve club adherence to domestic regulations FIFA TMS the ultimate partner for domestic transfers. For more information regarding DTMS, please contact: solutions@fifatms.com Learn more about FIFA TMS by visiting us at fifatms.com. FIFA TMS Zollikerstrasse Zurich T: +41 (0) Switzerland

107 FIFA TMS Global Player Exchange CONNECTING THE GLOBAL FOOTBALL COMMUNITY.