Player Quota

[PaPaGeorGeo]

FIFA set to back quota proposal


FIFA president Sepp Blatter is still keen to implement his 6+5 ruling

FIFA president Sepp Blatter expects his "six plus five" proposal on foreign players to be endorsed by the ruling body's congress later this week.

His plan would limit the number of foreign players in each team to five.

Blatter wants the rule in place by 2012 but is keen to work with the European Union and UEFA to make it a reality.

He said: "It's to make sure there is better balance and not only three or four teams in a league of 18 or 20 fighting to be champions."


MIHIR BOSE BLOG
Blatter also said that FIFA would work with other team sports to realise this objective

BBC sports editor Mihir Bose

FIFA's Executive Committee expressed its unanimous support for the "6+5 objectives" on Tuesday.

But as reported by BBC sports editor Mihir Bose last week, Blatter has backed off his initial intention to take on the European Union and its laws if necessary to force the plans through.

He did that partly as a result of discussions with Uefa chief executive Michel Platini while at the Champions League final week.

However, while in Sydney for FIFA's annual conference this week, Blatter suggested rules restricting the number of foreign players could still start in the 2010/11 season, with a minimum of four home-grown players being required in each team.

He added he expects it to grow to six, with a maximum of five foreigners, by 2012/13 - and claims the plan has the backing of key European delegates.

He pointed to the Premier League's dominance in this season's Champions League as an example of why the idea must be implemented - but again stressed FIFA would proceed "within the law".

He said: "As Newcastle manager Kevin Keegan recently said: 'I can only start my season to fight to be fifth or sixth or seventh. It is impossible for me to go into the final four'.

"At the end of the Champions League in Europe you have in the quarter-finals four teams of the same association (country); in the semi-finals three of these teams.

I'm convinced, now the confederations are in favour of such a proposed solution, it is a possibility

FIFA president Sepp Blatter

"Then in the final you are surprised that you have two teams of the same association? We want to bring some remedies and this is the six-plus-five rule's objective."

Blatter is convinced the proposal will be accepted when it is voted on by Fifa delegates later this week.

He said: "The executive committee unanimously supported the proposed resolution concerning the six-plus-five rule.

"We've had confirmation by all the confederations, including Europe, that everybody favours the objectives of the six-plus-five.

"I'm convinced, now the confederations are in favour of such a proposed solution, it is a possibility. But we should do it not with confrontation but in discussions to try and find a solution.

"We would start, step by step, with four plus seven in 2010 and then 2011 five (plus six), then 2012 six (plus five)."

"We've just seen Manchester United's starting 11 in Moscow with six players eligible for the English team on the pitch. And they won - not bad."

Should Manchester United win the Champions League again next year, they will travel to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for Fifa's Club World Cup.

The December tournament, featuring the champions of Europe, South America, Concacaf (North and Central America), Africa, Asia and Oceania, will be switched from Japan, where it will be held again this year, to the UAE in 2009 and 2010, before reverting to Japan in 2011 and 2012.

from the bbc



What a load of crap, The reason the top 4 are where they are is because of the money they have, take away the foreigners and they'll still have the money to buy the best English or "home nation" players. Leaving the rest of the league with the second rate players, which in England case with not much quality depth in the National squad will create a bigger gap between the top 3 and the rest of the league.

 

[kolee33]

This is good for league and teams with no anough money to buy good players...........

 

[pede54]

The proposal contravines one of the fundemental laws of the EEC, freedom of movement, and that there should be no discrimination of any kind based on a persons race.

Blatter does not stand a chance in hell with this. He needs to realise that there are more powerful bodies out there than his pathetic FIFA.

 

[farmboy]

proving once again that stupidity has no lower bound, its:


SUPER SEPP!

 

[PaPaGeorGeo]

This is good for league and teams with no anough money to buy good players...........

How so in england there is already and English Tax on english players, eg Bent costing the same amount as Thierry Henry

With demand for Top class English players increasing, the price is bound to increase again, hence creating a bigger gap between the top 4 and the rest

 

[Tom]

Pede has a good point.

I dont know, this isnt a bad idea, but Blatter is doing it for ALL the wrong reasons. You can't install a quota system just because the English sides are doing well, that's capitalism that has resulted in investment into football, to prevent those clubs (and their wealthy chairmen) from actually spending money, would actually be anti-business, it'd be anti-capitalism, and you'd probably see a lot of those chairman and owners pull out as they can no longer use cash to 'win' things. Or at least as much.

Also, it'd have a big effect on players from countries that have poor national leagues. Let's say you've got a 'decent' player who happens to come from Lithuania who currently plays as a substitute for someone like Arsenal. He would have two options, to drop down the current league, to play for a lesser team (but start), like at someone like West Ham. OR, he could go back to his country and play in a far inferior league.

Basically, it isn't freedom. Blatter would be getting rid of freedom just to make the game more "fair".

Having said that, it would indefinitely improve our national game, so there's that arguement too...

EDIT - Also, as Pete rightly outlines, it's COMPLETELY illegal from a human rights standpoint.

 

[Seán D]

It'll never happen. Step Ladder's anti-English regime is a farce. It is totally against the law and done out of spite following Enlish success.

 

[RobbieD_PL]

Well i think we're with the dichotomy of the national teams/clubs again. And of course which one is more important.

I remember when the EPL was seeking to introduce an extra match overseas, and I can't help but think that it's the same rationale thing here.

If it's the english league, wouldn't it be better to have a major proportion of the team as english? Maybe not the starting XI, but at least the squad.
But then again, you're restricting the choices available to teams' and leageus on the whole which isn't good. Instead of improving leagues and making them more competitive, you would be returning to the crap leagues theory, and what's worse is that you would be soldifying it on ethnic grounds... In the case of Lithuania, most of the teams have that ethnic majority in their squads anyway, coz no-one from the Western leagues feels the need to play there. So then it's probably not a whole lot to do with how many national players a team fields, nor even how much money a team might have to spend on local/foreign talent. It's the attraction of some leagues over the other which is the problem that needs to be solved.

So I think what blatter is trying to do is dilute the concentration of foreign players in certain legues to look at other alternatives. Sure a good Lithuanian player might not be on the pitch for Arsenal, but if he's good, it shouldn't really matter what team he's playing for, he can still try and make wonders with FBK Kaunas!

EDIT - I think that there's something similar with foreigners playing for supposedly better NT's. Sure it's freedom of movement, but it's meaning everyone is moving to those Western leagues/NT's. Rarely do you see an Italian, Spanish, French or German guy going East....

 

[treble41]

r, it's sorta happened. They voted 155-5 in favour of it apparently, dunno how long it'll take to implement and if it will really be implemented (this is FIFA after all).

But I'm not too concerned. Us bigger clubs will just buy up all the country's youth talent and 'non-foreigners' leaving smaller clubs even weaker since the foreign clubs couldn't afford most good foreign players and will now have less of their star national players as well. This idea will come back to haunt them if anything. Fools

 

[dimo]

if there is one thing i love about having a european union passport, it's freedom of movement. i cant see why a soccer player wouldnt be entitled to the same rights as workers. they are still workers(albeit they receive a bigger paycheck) so they should have the right to work wherever they want. as much as i would like to see more homegrown players on teams(inter and arsenal being examples) i just dont think you can take away rights based on the type of 'work' a person does. granted, this is just a european union argument. it doesnt really apply to players outside of it.

 

[Seán D]

r, it's sorta happened. They voted 155-5 in favour of it apparently, dunno how long it'll take to implement and if it will really be implemented (this is FIFA after all).

But I'm not too concerned. Us bigger clubs will just buy up all the country's youth talent and 'non-foreigners' leaving smaller clubs even weaker since the foreign clubs couldn't afford most good foreign players and will now have less of their star national players as well. This idea will come back to haunt them if anything. Fools

They can vote all they want...

The EU >>>>>>> FIFA
It is illegal. Will not happen.

 

[bertie]

The proposal contravines one of the fundemental laws of the EEC, freedom of movement, and that there should be no discrimination of any kind based on a persons race.

Blatter does not stand a chance in hell with this. He needs to realise that there are more powerful bodies out there than his pathetic FIFA.

Fifa is not an European organization

 

[farmboy]

no but it does have to abide by european and other nations' employment laws. and those laws say hiring processes can't discriminate based on race, sex, creed, or nationality, which is exactly what this rule would do.

 

[pede54]

Of course when it finally sinks into Blatters very small mind that this pipedream of his cannot be realised, he will then resort to the old tactic of looking for the first excuse (with the help of Platini, his good friend), to ban English clubs from Europe again at the first possible opportunity.

I thought Fifa were supposed to be AGAINST racism.

Like a lot of other very sad people, Blatter has a chip on his shoulder regarding the English. He has made himself look very foolish once again, persuing this fantasy of his.

Personally speaking, I would actually like to see less foreign players (the worst ones obviously), in the EPL. I would like to see a bigger quota of English players in all the clubs in the leagues, but due to EEC law it is a desire that is impossible to force upon the EPL.

So Blatter will have to live with that, which will not make him a happy chappie at all. Thats why all fans of EPL teams playing in Europe, must tread very carefully. Fifa/Uefa will be looking for an excuse to exclude us entirely once again.

 

[ShiftyPowers]

Blatter is an idiot. Platini already has informed him that it would be struck down in the EU Courts, which is patently obvious. If FIFA implements this policy, here's what will happen: Every team will immediately challenge the policy and petition a court for an injunction against the policy until a definitive ruling is made. So while the case is in trial, the policy will not be in effect. Then a decision will be made (against FIFA) and everything will go back to normal. Smart use of resources FIFA.

Pede: Nationality is not the same as race.

 

[pede54]

I know Shifty. I was just stretching the point to add a little humour.

 

[MikeyM]

It'll never happen. Step Ladder's anti-English regime is a farce. It is totally against the law and done out of spite following Enlish success.

Septic Bladder squeaks like this any time the English clubs do well. If this is a return to the old UCL "five foreigner rule" then it's plain stupid. Man Utd in 1994 were one of the best sides in Europe at that time and were hamstrung by that rule because it included "non English" players as foreigners as well. Great Britain is a strange case because "British" is seen as a nationality as well. Many English clubs have "British" players in their academies.

You might as well say that Welsh players and Scottish players can only play in their own leagues - this ruling could be the start of a landslide of new regulations.

 

[kramer11]

I wouldn't take any notice of Blatter, he simply can't do this because of European law. That's why you've heard no noises from clubs like Chelsea and Arsenal who would be severley affected by this, they just don't take poor old Sepp seriously because they know he doesn't have a legal leg to stand on.

I know UEFA's plan for homegrown players has a better chance of being accepted, but if any player challenged it for restraint of trade, they'd win in an instant, so it would be very dependant on everyone signing up to it.

 

[shokz]

Well it's typical of FIFA always trying to protect their own interests (international football) and trying to screw clubs and fans at the same time, especially those who pay alot to see quality.

 

[bertie]

Blatter is an idiot.

Good diagnostic!