Understanding The "Transfer Window"
“Transfer windows” – what are they? Why are they so important? Do they apply to all players? With this blog, we hope to provide you with a clear understanding of all there is to know about transfer windows.
The term “transfer window” relates to a provision in the FIFA Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players (the FIFA “RSTP”) titled “Registration Periods.” Under Article 6.1 of the RSTP, “players may only be registered during one of the two annual registration periods fixed by the relevant association.” So, in simple terms, players can only be signed by clubs during 2 transfer windows.
Article 6.2 provides that the first transfer window may begin as early as on the first day after the day on which the competition period of the previous season ended, and at the latest on the first day of the new season. This first registration period must be at least 8 weeks long, but no longer than 12 weeks. The second registration period must occur in the middle of the season and must be between 4 and 8 weeks in length. The first and second registration periods, combined, cannot exceed 16 weeks.
Under Article 6.2, “all transfers, whether a national transfer or an international transfer, shall only occur within these registration periods,” subject to certain exceptions which we will discuss later.
So the baseline is that there are two registration periods – a longer period before/at the start of the season, and a shorter period in the middle of the season. Here are some registration periods for different countries:
Country | 1st Registration Period | 2nd Registration Period |
USA | 1/31/2023 - 4/24/2023 | 7/5/2023 – 8/2/2023 |
England | 6/14/2023 – 9/1/2023 | 1/1/2024 – 2/1/2024 |
France | 7/1/2023 – 9/1/2023 | 1/1/2024 – 2/1/2024 |
Germany | 7/1/2023 – 9/1/2023 | 1/1/2024 – 2/1/2024 |
Italy | 7/1/2023 – 9/1/2023 | 1/2/2024 – 2/1/2024 |
Netherlands | 6/13/2023 – 9/1/2023 | 1/2/2024 – 2/1/2024 |
Argentina | 6/9/2023 – 8/17/2023 | 1/25/2024 – 2/21/2024 |
Saudi Arabia | 7/1/2023 – 9/7/2023 | 1/1/2024 – 1/30/2024 |
So here is how the transfer window (aka “registration period”) works.
· If Real Madrid wants to transfer one of their contracted players to Manchester United, they can only do so when the transfer window for England is open. It does not matter if the transfer window in Spain is open; the window that needs to be open is the window of the country where the player is going to be transferred, which is England in this example.
· If Manchester United wants to transfer one of their contracted players to Real Madrid, they can only do so when the transfer window for Spain is open. Again, it does not matter if the window in England is open; the window that needs to be open is the window of the country where the player is going to be transferred, which is Spain in this example.
The first transfer window is normally longer than the second window, the reason being that the clubs use the first transfer window to prepare for the upcoming season by transferring players in and out of the club. The second window, the shorter window, is normally used by clubs to fill in holes in mid-season – whether that is due to injuries sustained during the first half of the season or under-performance of players during the first half of the season. If a club’s forward gets injured or is not scoring enough goals, for instance, a club may use the second transfer window to look to bring in a new forward.
So that is the baseline rule. However, with every rule, there are exceptions. And there are key exceptions that need to be understood – these exceptions (listed in Article 6.3 of the RSTP) allow clubs to “exceptionally register players outside a registration period” in limited circumstances. Here are the key exceptions to know:
Exception 1: If a player terminates his contract with a club due to just cause, he may seek to be registered with another club outside a transfer window. The FIFA General Secretariat determines whether to permit or deny the registration on this basis, and the former club does not need to consent to the registration with the new club.
Exception 2: This is related to Exception 1. If a club terminates a player contract without just cause, the player may seek to be registered with another club outside a transfer window. The FIFA General Secretariat determines whether to permit or deny the registration on this basis, and the former club does not need to consent to the registration with the new club.
Exception 3: If a professional’s contract has naturally expired or has been mutually terminated prior to the end of the transfer window applicable to the engaging (new) club, the player may be registered with the engaging club after the respective transfer window of the engaging club is closed.
This last exception is designed to protect unemployed professional players against their being prevented from pursuing their careers and/or earning an income by playing soccer because of the restrictions associated with registration periods. The aim is to ensure that if, for example, a professional player’s contract expires on June 30 and they are unable to find new employment when the registration period is open in July and August, but they eventually manage to find a club that wishes to sign them in September when the registration period is closed, they do not have to wait until the next registration period opens until they can earn an income.
Here is how Exception 3 works in practice, using Neymar as an example. A few weeks ago, Neymar was a player at PSG. There were reports that he wished to leave the club and perhaps play in MLS. However, the second (mid-season) transfer window for the USA/MLS expired on August 2, 2023. If Neymar wanted to be transferred to MLS, he would have had to transfer here on or before August 2, 2023. If he wanted to buy out his PSG contract so that he was not contracted to the club anymore, i.e., if the contract was “mutually terminated,” the contract needed to be mutually terminated on or before August 2, 2023 as well. If his contract was mutually terminated on or before August 2, 2023 - prior to the end of the MLS transfer window - he could have been registered with MLS after its transfer window closed on August 2, 2023. However, as we all know, Neymar was transferred to a club in Saudi Arabia before Saudi Arabia’s first transfer window closed on September 7, 2023.
According to FIFA, the rationale underlying this exception is that the professional must have sought employment unsuccessfully during a period in which they would normally be allowed to register for a new club. This is clearly emphasized in the wording of the exception, which states that “a professional whose contract has expired prior to the end of a registration period may be registered outside that registration period”. According to FIFA, the reason why an early termination of a professional’s contract by mutual agreement after the end of a registration period (rather than before) does not entitle the player to make use of the exception should be self-evident: applying the exception in these circumstances would render the whole system of registration periods redundant and have a direct impact on the sporting regularity (and integrity) of competitions.
FIFA has emphasized, however, that notwithstanding the above, soccer associations are not obliged to register a professional outside of an open registration period, even if the conditions for granting the exception are met, and no club may oblige the member association to which it is affiliated to do so. In practice, there are a variety of reasons for a member association to refuse to register a professional whose contract has expired prior to the end of its registration period outside of that registration period. The primary reason is to protect the sporting regularity (and integrity) of football competitions.
Another comment about Exception 3 - the exception explicitly refers to professionals only. Therefore, amateurs cannot register for a new club outside of a registration period, even if they will turn professional after registration. FIFA has explained that this distinction is made to reflect the fact that a professional is assumed to be relying on their earnings from football to make a living. If a professional cannot find new employment, they may struggle to support themselves. On the other hand, an amateur’s livelihood does not depend on income earned from playing football. It may very well be that they rely on income from football at a later date – for example if they are about to turn professional – but as long as they are registered as an amateur, they cannot be said to be making their living from playing football.
One final note – as you can see, the USA has a slightly different transfer window schedule than other countries. Their first transfer window is at the beginning of the calendar year while other countries have their second transfer window at the beginning of the calendar year. This is because the MLS schedule is different than most other countries. The MLS season generally runs from March through October of the same calendar year. The season for England, on the other hand, runs from August through May of the following calendar year.