Finance guru: New Fifa rules could give Man City extra £30m per year to spend on transfers
The £30million Man City spent on agents’ fees in 2020-21 could in future go towards the transfer budget as a result of new Fifa legislation.
That is the view of finance expert Doctor Dan Plumley, speaking exclusively to Football Insider about the imminent curbs on third-party profiteering.
Agents’ fees will be capped at 10 per cent of a total transfer fee from the beginning of 2022.
Representative payments will also be limited to three per cent of a player’s salary.
Fifa revealed on Tuesday (1 February) that they had held talks with elite agent bodies over the new regulations at a summit in Uruguay.
Official FA figures show that City spent £30.2m on agents’ fees in the 12 months up to February 2021, the last year accounted for.
Plumley suggests that one possible outcome of the new rules is that they would free up that sum to spend in other areas.
“If agents’ fees come down, there is the question of where the money goes,” the Sheffield Hallam University expert told Football Insider‘s Adam Williams.
“Does it go into a transfer deal at a different point? We just don’t know at the moment.
“But hypothetically, clubs have got to look where that money can be invested elsewhere.
“The clubs will be holding summits with agents as well, and they’ll also get round the table internally and collectively.
“There will be teams of legal experts going over the detail so they are fully aware of the knock-on effects.
“So as much as Fifa are getting ahead of the curve, the clubs will be doing the same thing in response to the new rules.
“There will be plenty more work for the lawyers. There will also be plenty more work in terms of City adapting their finances accordingly.”
City’s agent spend has remained at broadly steady levels over the last five years.
They shelled out approximately £130m on new signings for this season, with the bulk of that figure made up of the deal for Jack Grealish.
In other news, Grealish “looks a completely different footballer” since move to Man City.