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The Licensing And Registration Of Sports Agents In Europe

Sacramento, California-based attorney and lobbyist, Joshua Golka, posts very infrequently on his “Golka’s Athlete Agent Regulation Blog”, but when he does put fingers to keyboard, he tends to offer up worthwhile nuggets of information.  One of his recent posts concerns the European Parliament’s call for the licensing and registration of sports agents.  The topic particularly interests me since I only recently concluded drafting a paper titled, Football v. Football: A Comparison of Agent Regulation in France’s Ligue 1 and the National Football League, which will be published in the 2012 issue of Pace University School of Law I.P., Sports and Entertainment Forum.

According to Golka, a new resolution passed by the European Parliament tasks the European Commission with implementing a system to license and regulate sports agents.  Golka scrapped the sections of the legislation dedicated specifically to the governing of sports agents:

AO. whereas the regulation of players’ agents requires concerted action between sports governing bodies and public authorities so that effective sanctions can be imposed against agents and/or intermediaries who break the rules;

75. Considers that the profession of sports agents should be a regulated professional activity, and subject to an adequate official qualification and that sports agents’ fiscal residence should be within EU territory in the interest of transparency; calls on the Commission to draw up and implement, in cooperation with the sports federations, players’ unions and agents’ associations, a European licensing and registration system accompanied by a code of conduct and a sanctioning mechanism;

76. Proposes the setting up by sports federations of a non-public European register of sports agents, in which agents would list the names of the players that they represent, so as to protect athletes, in particular those below the age of 18 so as to limit the risk of conflicts of interest; takes the view that the payment of agents’ fees for transfers should be made in a number of instalments throughout the duration of the contract, which is entered into by the sportsperson as a result of the transfer, with full payment being dependent on that contract being fulfilled;

77. Calls on Member States to supplement existing regulatory provisions governing players’ agents / intermediaries with deterrent sanctions and to implement these sanctions rigorously;

78. Calls on sports governing bodies to enhance transparency with regard to players’ agents’ activities and to cooperate with Member States’ authorities to eradicate corrupt practices.

By Darren Heitner

Darren Adam Heitner, Esq., is a preeminent sports attorney and the founder of Heitner Legal, P.L.L.C., a Fort Lauderdale-based law firm specializing in sports law, contract negotiations, intellectual property, and arbitration. He earned his Juris Doctor from the University of Florida Levin College of Law in 2010 and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, magna cum laude, from the University of Florida in 2007, where he was named Valedictorian of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Admitted to practice in the state bars of Florida, New York, and the District of Columbia, as well as multiple federal courts, Darren also serves as a certified arbitrator with the American Arbitration Association.

As an adjunct professor, Darren imparts his expertise through teaching Sports Law at the University of Florida Levin College of Law and Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) at the University of Miami School of Law in the Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law LL.M. program. His scholarly contributions include authoring several books published by the American Bar Association, such as How to Play the Game: What Every Sports Attorney Needs to Know, and numerous articles in prominent publications like Forbes, Inc. Magazine, and Above the Law. His thought leadership in NIL has earned him recognition as one of the foremost experts by The Wall Street Journal, USA TODAY, and On3, and he has been lauded as a “power player in NIL deals” by Action Network and a “top sports trademark attorney” by Sportico.

Darren’s passion for sports law led him to establish Sports Agent Blog on December 31, 2005, initially titled “I Want To Be A Sports Agent.” The platform, created as a New Year’s resolution, has grown into a cornerstone of the sports agency community, offering in-depth analysis of industry trends, legal disputes, and agent-player dynamics. His commitment to the field is further evidenced by his representation of numerous athletes and sports agents, as well as his prior role as an Adjunct Professor at Indiana University Bloomington, where he developed and taught a course on Sport Agency Management from 2011 to 2014.

Darren’s contributions have been recognized with prestigious honors, including the University of Florida’s 40 Under 40 Award, the University of Florida Levin College of Law’s Outstanding Young Alumnus Award, and designation as the best lawyer in Fort Lauderdale by Fort Lauderdale Magazine. He remains an active voice in the sports law community, sharing insights through his weekly NIL newsletter and his X posts, engaging a broad audience on legal developments in sports.

One reply on “The Licensing And Registration Of Sports Agents In Europe”

Does the possible requirement of a European fiscal residence mean that agents from the US will need a European straw man to do dealings across the ocean? Or is a fiscal residence not that hard to accomplish?

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