Can a player under 18 transfer to a club abroad?

The five exceptions

Article 19 of FIFA's Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players allows an international transfer of a minor only when:

• The player's parents move to the new club's country for reasons not linked to football.
• The player is 16 or 17 and the move is within the EU or EEA, or between two associations in the same country.
• The player lives within 50 km of a national border, the new club is within 50 km of the same border, home and club are no more than 100 km apart, he keeps living at home, and both associations agree.
• The player has fled his country for humanitarian reasons without his parents and is allowed to stay in the new country. Recognised refugees can join professional or amateur clubs; asylum seekers only amateur clubs until 18.
• The player is a student on a temporary exchange without his parents, for up to a year, with a purely amateur club.

What the club must provide for 16 and 17 year olds

• Football training in line with the highest national standards.
• School or vocational education that would let him pursue another career.
• Proper care: a host family or club accommodation and a mentor at the club.
• Proof to its association that it meets these obligations.

Be careful

Families are sometimes promised a move abroad for a young player in return for money. A move that does not fit one of the exceptions cannot be registered. Check the rules before anyone travels.