FIFA: ownership of players by third parties to be banned after a transition period of 3 or 4 years

"We took the decision, a firm decision, that TPO (third party ownership of players' economic rights) should be banned. But it can not be banned immediately. There will be a transitional period," said Joseph Blatter, president of FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association), after the FIFA Executive Committee meeting in Zurich (SUI) on 25 and 26/9/2014.

"As with financial fair play, the ban (on TPO) can not be implemented immediately, and we are discussing about the number of transfer windows we have to keep in order for this ban to be implemented. So we are talking about 6 (3 years) or 8 (4 years). And we hope that by the next Executive Committee (in Marrakech, Morocco on 18 and 19/12/2014) the term to implement this ban will be precise and given to the Executive Committee for a final decision. At the latest, it will be in March," said Jérôme Valcke, the secretary general of FIFA.

The Working Group on the ownership of players by third parties, set up after the 64^th congress in Sao Paulo (Brazil) on 11/06/2014 and chaired by the Englishman Geoff Thompson, the chairman of…