Post-Brexit Visa Requirements for Transfers

[HanoiVillan]

Since the discussion has come up in another thread, and the issue is more permanent than any one transfer window thread, I thought it would be a good idea to have an ongoing thread for discussion about the strengths and weaknesses of the new - and then ongoing - rules for visas for footballers, and non-playing staff, and also for updates about when they change.

I suspect, based on a look through some of the Jan 2021 transfer thread at people's wishlists, that a lot of fans have not quite grasped the significance of the change in rules yet, particularly around the transfer of players from 'smaller' European leagues like Sweden's or Norway's.

To very briefly sketch out some of the most important new rules:

• Players with British or Irish nationality are completely unaffected;
• Otverseas players need to qualify for a visa. There are two routes to qualification, the first of which is an 'auto-pass' and the second of which is something called a 'GBE' or 'Governing Body Exemption'. In practice, this means a player needs to score 15 points, which can be achieved via six qualifying criteria.
• 'Auto-pass' candidates are regular internationals for top countries, as decided by FIFA rankings. A player who has played in 30% or more of internationals in the prior 12 months for a FIFA top 10 team will gain an 'auto-pass'; you need 40% or more for a team ranked 11-20; 60% or more for a team ranked 20-30; 70% or more for a team ranked 31-50; international teams ranked 51 or lower (which currently includes eg Ghana, Greece, Finland and Ivory Coast) do not generate auto-passes no matter how many games a player has played in.
• The six qualifying criteria for a GBE (ie, for those players not qualifying via international appearances) are:
  • international appearances below the threshold
  • player's domestic minutes
  • player's continental minutes
  • final league position of player's last club
  • continental progression of player's last club
  • league quality of player's last club

The final of these, the league quality of player's last club, has attracted attention because playing in one of the top 3 'bands' alone achieves more than 50% of the points needed for a GBE. The league quality rankings are summarised in this chart:

People have noticed very quickly that this will make it much easier to sign players from Brazil, Argentina and Mexico (and Russia) than it has been previously. By contrast, it will be harder to sign from other European leagues. You might notice that the Allsvenskan is in band 6, for instance, which makes it almost impossible for a player in this league to get the requisite number of points for a GBE (a band 6 league scores a player 2 points for league quality).

You can find a full list of thresholds and points by looking at the first document at this link: https://www.thefa.com/football-rules-governance/policies/player-registration/points-based-system

Fortunately, a company has already looked at how many players are currently eligible per league:

Essentially every player in the other 'big 5' leagues is eligible. Eligibility from Latin America is hugely increased, with more than 200 players eligible in Brazil and Argentina, and nearly 100 in Mexico. By contrast, only 14 Ligue 2 players are eligible to play in England, and only 6 playing in Sweden.

There are further changes to signing youth players as well:

• Clubs cannot sign overseas players who are under 18 (so we won't be able to sign players like Sil Swinkels or Lamare Bogarde any more)
• The criteria are slightly easier for signing players in the 18-21 age bracket (so for instance, you can get credit for the level of the league you made your debut in which is similar to the points for appearances made for older players)
• Clubs will only be able to sign 3 U21 players in the January transfer window, and a maximum of 6 per season

------------------------------------------------------------------------

It's somewhat difficult to predict the impact of these changes, beyond the obvious like 'more Brazilians'. However, I will venture some predictions so I can look stupid later. First, it looks likely that League 1 and 2 teams will be largely shut out of the overseas player market (and National League and lower clubs are not allowed to sponsor overseas visas at all). I imagine it will be difficult for those clubs to pay competitive wages for many of these players (though it would be amusing if League 1 filled with budget Brazilians). Second, Premier League clubs will have to change their youth recruitment policies, and may well miss out on the most promising youth prospects who will move to other European teams, who now have an extra incentive to capture promising youth before they turn 18. Finally, and maybe this is quite obvious as well, the 'home grown talent' price premium will enter even further overdrive.

What are your thoughts and predictions?

[penguin]

I’m not sure we will see much of a difference although sure the impact will be felt more tellingly in the lower divisions - Perhaps an even bigger premium for English players?

Can certainly see more Premier League clubs establishing feeders clubs as a way to strategically fulfil the prerequisite requirements in order to get players permits.

[sharkyvilla]

I think the Scottish Premiership is lucky to be that high up the list  Overall I cautiously welcome opening up talent from South America especially, though it will probably end up benefiting the big clubs like everything else.  I assume they have no limits on how many foreign players you can have or a British quota?

[Villaphan04]

Yeah, I definitely think that there will be an influx of South Americans. 

 

as @TrentVilla mentioned in another thread and @penguinbelow, I think that we will see a lot of English club owners purchasing clubs in Europe to try and get around some of the youth player signings changes plus the general permit structure. 

2 hours ago, penguin said:

 

Can certainly see more Premier League clubs establishing feeders clubs as a way to strategically fulfil the prerequisite requirements in order to get players permits.

 

[OutByEaster?]

I think it'll strange to see the bigger English clubs link up with small teams in bigger leagues across Europe - with absolutely no interest in those clubs other than their academies. 

A smaller Belgium team that's not likely to be relegated for example would be ideal - you offer them a couple of million to completely revamp their academy, send over a couple of your own coaches and recruit kids from across Europe. Then you cream off the very best of that talent the moment they hit eighteen. The Belgium club gets a big academy investment but loses any stars that come through and the English club gets somewhere to buy players and sit them when they're under eighteen.

 

[HanoiVillan]

23 minutes ago, OutByEaster? said:

I think it'll strange to see the bigger English clubs link up with small teams in bigger leagues across Europe - with absolutely no interest in those clubs other than their academies. 

A smaller Belgium team that's not likely to be relegated for example would be ideal - you offer them a couple of million to completely revamp their academy, send over a couple of your own coaches and recruit kids from across Europe. Then you cream off the very best of that talent the moment they hit eighteen. The Belgium club gets a big academy investment but loses any stars that come through and the English club gets somewhere to buy players and sit them when they're under eighteen.

Yes. This is so clearly the logical way forward that a Premier League club is almost being negligent if it is *not* immediately trying to buy a Belgian or Portuguese team in the next few months.

[Zatman]

7 hours ago, HanoiVillan said:

Yes. This is so clearly the logical way forward that a Premier League club is almost being negligent if it is *not* immediately trying to buy a Belgian or Portuguese team in the next few months.

Probably why Sawiris was trying to invest in that Portuguese club a few months back

[villa4europe]

Belgian club for European talents, Portuguese club for South American talents, it makes a lot of sense 

RB Salzburg to RB Leipzig is the obvious one in Europe at the moment and the best player has transferred over today for a relative bargain, Salzburg have another 3 or 4 players that could move in the next couple of years, Salzburg were in the CL and winning their league too so it's not like they don't get the benefits as well

[HanoiVillan]

Already posted elsewhere, but worth noting here too - the first complaints are in:

Sam Allardyce: I’ve already lost three possible West Brom transfers to Brexit

'West Brom manager Sam Allardyce says he has already missed out on three new signings due to the impact of Brexit.

[...]

New rules that came into force from January 1 mean Premier League clubs will not be allowed to sign players from European Union countries without a work permit while foreign players under the age of 18 cannot be signed at all.

Allardyce, whose side are second from bottom with eight points from 17 games, said deals for three potential recruits had already fallen through as a result of the new rules.

"I have found three players already who were capable of coming here and they're not allowed. It's a shame," Allardyce said.

The criteria to sign players is based on a points system which considers the number of senior and youth international appearances, club appearances as well as the quality of the selling club, its league position and the league itself.

"Due to the new regulations in terms of the permit they were unable to come to this country, whereas (previously) they would have done. I have to look at that and think 'can he qualify?'" Allardyce added.

"That has made life a bit more difficult. It's not so much the pandemic, it's the change of rules because of Brexit. We'll do what we can... finding a player in this pandemic is going to be the hardest window I have ever worked in.'

more on link: https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/sam-allardyce-brexit-west-brom-transfer-news-b672379.html?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Twitter#Echobox=1609752118

Interesting to wonder whether this is actually true, or if these rules are going to become a new go-to excuse for clubs that don't want to spend.

[The_Steve]

On 01/01/2021 at 09:46, Zatman said:

Probably why Sawiris was trying to invest in that Portuguese club a few months back

And with FC Copenhagen in 2019.

[The_Rev]

2 hours ago, HanoiVillan said:

Already posted elsewhere, but worth noting here too - the first complaints are in:

Sam Allardyce: I’ve already lost three possible West Brom transfers to Brexit

'West Brom manager Sam Allardyce says he has already missed out on three new signings due to the impact of Brexit.

[...]

Couldn’t happen to a nicer bloke. 

[TheStagMan]

3 hours ago, HanoiVillan said:

Sam Allardyce: I’ve already lost three possible West Brom transfers due to West Brom being Shit

 

I fixed it for him

 

 

 

* edit * actually that's not fair. It is far far more than 3

Edited January 4, 2021 by TheStagMan

[MaVilla]

cool, this means we can find more Brazilian starlets like McGinnadinho, would be nice to sign a South American friend for Johnzinho McGinnadinho.

[villa4europe]

Man City have a Peruvian kid coming in May straight off to Lommel in the Belgian 2nd division, City group own them too 

They currently have 4 City players on loan, 3 of them non EU, and 1 from Montevideo City, another one of the city groups clubs 

[TheAuthority]

Forgive my ignorance @HanoiVillan - why was it more difficult to sign South & Latin American players before Brexit ?

[HanoiVillan]

6 minutes ago, TheAuthority said:

Forgive my ignorance @HanoiVillan - why was it more difficult to sign South & Latin American players before Brexit ?

The prior system weighted international caps, but not the strength of the league. As a result, non-EU regular internationals were not particularly difficult to sign. Now, however, it will be easy to sign a player who has never and would never turn out for Brazil, as long as they are a fairly regular player in a team in Brazil's top tier, because the strength of the league alone gives more than half of the points required, and regular appearances would add the rest. It's these average players who will be easier to sign, rather than the superstars.