How To Pass The FIFA Football Agent Exam - Book 1: How To Pass The FIFA Football Agent Exam, #1

By Patrick Poldervaart

Preparing for the football agents exam is a time-consuming endeavor. The aim of this series of books is to prepare you, teach you and train you how to pass the football agent exam. This series of books will also provide you with the practical elements and theoretical knowledge to help you gain an edge over other football agents in this highly competitive sector.

 

I passed the football agent exam in my first attempt in 2007 in the Netherlands. Since then, I have honed my approach into a method to help other aspiring agents pass the exam as well.

 

It is my goal and purpose to train and guide current intermediaries through the most important study material. I will try to accomplish this in the simplest way possible. However, as the FIFA regulations have been amended several times based on both CAS and FIFA jurisprudence, it is irrevocable to not mention certain landmark cases to explain the meaning of the articles and provisions.

 

Intermediaries who are already in the possession of a license, because they were already licensed players' agents before April 2015, can use this series of books as a handbook to refresh their knowledge and update their skills as the books will give you a comprehensive overview on all the essential material and updates from the past years. Students who aspire to build a career in the sports industry as a football agent can use this series of books as a first introduction to the most important regulations and jurisprudence.

 

About the writer

 

Patrick Poldervaart is a Rotterdam-based football agent currently working in Amsterdam for one of the leading agencies in the Netherlands. In 2007, Patrick was one of the youngest ever to pass the FIFA players' agent exam (without a resit-exam). 

 

In his more than a decade-long career as a football agent he has concluded more than 300 transfers and employment contracts. Patrick has provided legal assistance and advice to many football agents and clubs on the conclusion and finalization of (inter)national transfers. He ensures that football agents' practices, (international) procedures, transfer contracts, employment contracts and representation contracts are compliant with the latest (inter)national laws and regulations.

 

 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Patrick Poldervaart
• Release date: Feb 14, 2022
• ISBN: 9798201379285

Book preview

HOW TO PASS THE FIFA FOOTBALL AGENT EXAM

Book 1: Strategies, tips and

preparation for exam success

BY PATRICK POLDERVAART

Patrick Poldervaart is a Rotterdam-based football agent currently working in Breda for one of the leading agencies in the Netherlands. In 2007, Patrick was one of the youngest ever to pass the FIFA players’ agent exam¹ (without a resit-exam).

In his more than a decade-long career as a football agent, Patrick has concluded more than 300 transfers and employment contracts.² Patrick has provided legal assistance and advice to many football agents and clubs on the conclusion and finalisation of (inter)national transfers. He ensures that football agents’ practises, (international) procedures, transfer contracts, employment contracts and representation contracts are compliant with the latest (inter)national laws and regulations.

Copyright:

© 2021 Patrick Poldervaart

Paperback Book ISBN: 9798494611543

Ebook: ASIN: B09NT53JWH

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as expressly permitted by law, without the prior written permission of the writer.

You must not circulate this work in any other form, and you must impose this same condition on any acquirer.

Disclaimer:

The advice and opinions in this book are my own and are based on the experience I have gained over a decade as a football agent. The content of this book does not reflect the views of the official examiners, nor has it been endorsed by them.

The content of this series of books does not contain legal advice, nor is it a replacement for the relevant study material as provided by the FIFA and/or the national associations.

All decisions mentioned in this book are published on the CAS website, in the CAS Bulletin or on the FIFA website. All regulations mentioned and used in this book are publicly available on the FIFA website.

Contact:

I also provide personalised advice based on 1:1 coaching sessions in which we can go into more detail regarding the regulations to pull you to an even higher level in this industry. For any questions regarding the content of the books, webinars related to the regulations or possibilities for custom made personal 1:1 training or group training with more practice material, please contact the writer at:

Email: [e-mail]

Instagram: @patrickpoldervaart

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/patrickpoldervaart

Table of Contents

CHAPTER 1: Introduction

History

Build-up

CHAPTER 2: The necessary regulations

Introduction

Explaining the content

CHAPTER 3: General Multiple  Choice test strategies

Introduction

Test Taking Skills – Misreading the Question

Tips

Tricks

Strong statements

CHAPTER 4: The RAAC method

Introduction

Explaining the RAAC method

CHAPTER 5: Explaining the Regulation on the Status and Transfer of Players

Introduction

The Regulations article 1: The Introductory Provision

Explaining article 1

Scope of the regulations

Study tip

Practice part 1

Question 1

Explanation to question 1

The Regulations, articles 2 to 4: Status of Players

Explaining articles 2 to 4

Status of players: amateur and professional players

Reacquisition of amateur status

Termination of activity

Practice part 2

Question 2

Explanation to question 2

Question 3

Explanation to question 3

The Regulations articles 5 to 11: Registration of Players – part 1

Explaining articles 5 to 11

Registration

Example 1

Example 2

The exception rule

Example 3

The technical registration

Example 4

The Covid-19 exception rule

The Bridge Transfer

Registration periods

Player passport

Application for Registration

International Training Certificate

Example 5

Loan of professionals

Unregistered players

Study tip

Practice part 3

Question 4

Explanation to question 4

Question 5

The explanation to question 5

The Regulations articles 12 and 12bis: Registration of Players – part 2

Explaining articles 12 and 12bis

Enforcement of disciplinary sanctions

Overdue payables

Practice part 4

Question 6

The explanation to question 6

Question 7

The explanation to question 7

The Regulations, articles 13 to 17: Maintenance of contractual stability between professionals and clubs

Explaining articles 13 to 17

Introduction

Respect of contract

Breaching contract with or without just cause

Explaining the common grounds

Study tip

Sporting just cause

Restriction on terminating a contract during the season

Consequences of terminating a contract without just cause

Buy-out clause vs. Release clause

Explaining just cause

A table with examples of just cause and not just cause

Compensating a breach of contract

Calculating the payment of compensation when breaching a contract

The protected period

CAS jurisprudence related to article 17 para. 1 FIFA RSTP

Several and joint liability of a new club

Jurisprudence relating to article 17 para. 2 FIFA RSTP

Practice part 5

Question 8

Study tip

The Regulations article 18: Maintenance of contractual stability between professionals and clubs

Explaining article 18

The Role of the Intermediary

The length of a player contract

Example 6

Informing the player’s current club

Termination for medical reasons

Pre-contracts

Letter of invitation

Jurisprudence relating to article 18 para. 3 FIFA RSTP

Practice part 6

Question 9

The explanation to question 9

Question 10

The explanation to question 10

Question 11

The explanation to question 11

Question 12

The explanation to question 12

The regulations articles 18bis and 18ter: Third-party influence and ownership of Players’ economic rights

18bis Third-party influence on clubs

18ter Third-party ownership of players’ economic rights

Explaining articles 18bis and 18ter

What are third-party ownership and third-party influence

Players are not third parties

Club perspective

Players’ perspective

Is a TPO ban in the FIFA regulations lawful or unlawful

Facts of the RFC Seraing case

Jurisprudence related to article 18bis FIFA RSTP

Practice part 7

Question 13

The explanation to question 13

The Regulations article 18quater: Special provisions relating to female players

Explaining article 18quater

Practice part 8

Question 14

The explanation to question 14

Regulations article 19: International transfers of minors

Explaining articles 19 and 19bis FIFA RSTP

The introduction

Substantive provision article 19 para. 1

The individual exceptions

The EU/EEA problem noticed by CAS

General remarks on the provisions

Study tip

Registration and reporting of minors at academies

Study tip

The Regulations articles 20 and 21: Training compensation and solidarity mechanism

Explaining articles 20 and 21

Training compensation

Explaining the obligation to pay training compensation subject to the first professional contract

All clubs and the subsequent transfer

Practice part 9

Question 15

The explanation to question 15

Question 16

The explanation to question 16

Training compensation in women’s Football

Practice part 10

Question 17

The explanation to question 17

Solidarity compensation

Practice part 11

Question 18

The explanation to question 18

Question 19:

The explanation to question 19

Study tip

The Regulations, articles 22 to 25: Jurisdiction

Explaining articles 22 to 25

Competence of FIFA

Employment related disputes in the meaning of article 22 FIFA RSTP

Limitations on FIFA Jurisdiction

Study tip

Football Tribunals

Players’ Status Committee

Dispute Resolution Chamber

Dispute Resolution Chamber, according to article 47 para. 2 of the FIFA Statutes

Consequences for failure to pay relevant amounts in due time

24ter Implementation of decisions and confirmation letters

Jurisprudence related to article 24ter FIFA RSTP

Practice part 12

Question 20

Explanation to question 20

The Regulations articles 26 to 29: Final Provisions

Explaining articles 26 to 29

Transitional measures

Matters not provided for

Official languages

Enforcement

Practice part 13

Question 21

The explanation to question 21

Question 22

The explanation to question 22

CHAPTER 6: Final Examination test no. 1

Introduction

Question 1

Question 2

Question 3

Question 4

Question 5

Question 6

Question 7

Question 8

Question 9

Question 10

Question 11

Question 12

Question 13

Question 14

Question 15

CHAPTER 7: Answers final  Examination test no. 1

Answers to questions 1 to 15

CHAPTER 8: Explanation answers final Examination test no. 1 with the RAAC method

The explanation to question 1

The explanation to question 2

The explanation to question 3

The explanation to question 4

The explanation to question 5

The explanation to question 6

The explanation to question 7

The explanation to question 8

The explanation to question 9

The explanation to question 10

The explanation to question 11

The explanation to question 12

The explanation to question 13

The explanation to question 14

The explanation to question 15

CHAPTER 1

Introduction

In the past years, you have worked as an intermediary³ under the ‘Regulations on Working with Intermediaries’, as introduced by the Fédération Internationale de Football Association, hereafter ‘FIFA’, in April 2015. In contravention with the FIFA Players’ Agent Regulations 2008, FIFA decided to deregulate agents. This meant that players’ agents no longer needed a licence to provide professional services to either players or clubs. Regardless of their expertise, any person could be involved in football simply by filling in a registration form, paying a yearly fee to the relevant association and providing them with a statement of conduct.⁴

FIFA defines an Intermediary⁵ as:

A natural or legal person who, for a fee or free of charge, represents players and/or clubs in negotiations with a view to concluding an employment contract or represents clubs in negotiations with a view to concluding a transfer agreement.

However, the football industry has precise rules that require a good knowledge of national labour law, national regulations and international regulations and jurisprudence.

A football agent has to deal with the conflicting national legislature and national association rules in the national market. When he/she enters the international transfer market, it gets even more complex because of different national rules and legislation in the various countries. Do specific provisions in the national law prevail over the FIFA regulations or not? Are the national regulations from the association compliant with FIFA regulations or not? Do country A or B’s national regulations apply to the player in case of an international transfer? These are just a few questions that could arise when a football agent enters the international transfer market.

A study of the domestic labour law, national regulations and FIFA regulations were always recommended to the football agents who entered the field after April 2015 as an intermediary.

A few years after deregulation, FIFA announced the FIFA Reform Package, which is the reintroduction of a mandatory licensing system for agents in order to raise professional standards.

This means intermediaries will be obliged to pass the football agent exam to receive such a licence from the moment FIFA enforces the new Football Agent Regulations. Unlike the regulations before 2015, the mandatory licensing system will also apply to lawyers and direct family members of players.⁶

History

Before 2015, the number of participants who passed the exam was deficient. The examinations were held twice a year, in March and September.⁷ Overall, the participants found the level of difficulty of the questions extremely high, which often resulted in a low pass rate. A participant who failed the exam could apply to retake it on the next available date (6 months later). A participant who failed to pass the second attempt exam was not allowed to retake the examination until the following calendar year. A participant who failed to pass the third attempt was not allowed to retake the examination for another two years.⁸ This resulted in a situation wherein it could take an agent years to obtain the necessary licence.

The football agent exam is unknown territory for most participants. Participants were not prepared adequately to take the exam as it was a self study; of course, they were provided with all the necessary (national and international) regulations to study for the exam in the form of handouts, important circulars and some past exam questions. Nevertheless, participants were not taught how to study for and pass the exam itself. In my opinion, the level of difficulty was not the only factor resulting in a low pass rate. Especially if you did not have a legal background, the preparation for this exam was experienced as particularly difficult.

Preparing for the football agent exam is a long, time-consuming endeavour. This series of books aims to prepare you, teach you and train you on how to pass the football agent exam. They will also provide you with the practical elements and theoretical knowledge to gain a competitive advantage over other football agents in this extremely high-competitive sector.

I have studied for, taken and passed the football agent exam in my first attempt in 2007 in the Netherlands. I have honed my approach into a method for other agents to pass the exam.

My goal and purpose is to train and guide current intermediaries through the essential study material. I will try to accomplish this in the most straightforward way possible. However, as the FIFA regulations have been amended several times based on both the Court of Arbitration for Sport (hereafter ‘CAS’) and FIFA jurisprudence, it is irrevocable