How do loans work in football?
A football loan moves a professional to another club for a fixed period agreed in writing. Under FIFA's rules a loan lasts from one window to the next at minimum and one year at most, the player signs a contract with the new club, and a club can have at most six professionals loaned out and six loaned in at once.
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The basic rules
FIFA's Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players set out loans in article 10:
- The two clubs sign a written loan agreement with its length and financial terms. The player may also sign it.
- The player and the new club sign a contract for the length of the loan, saying he is on loan.
- His contract with the former club is suspended for the loan, unless agreed otherwise in writing.
- A loan lasts at least from one registration period to the next and at most one year, ending within one of the former club's windows.
- It can be extended within those limits with the player's written consent.
- The new club cannot loan him on or sell him to a third club.
How many loans a club can have
| Limit | Maximum at any time in a season |
|---|---|
| Professionals loaned out | 6 |
| Professionals loaned in | 6 |
| Loaned out to one club | 3 |
| Loaned in from one club | 3 |
Players loaned before the end of the season in which they turn 21, who are club-trained at the former club, do not count toward the six. The limit of three per club applies to everyone.
If the loan ends early
If the contract with the new club is ended early, the player can go back to his former club, which must take him back straight away and pay him again under the suspended contract.
Loans below the top tier
Some leagues run on loans. In our analysis of Transfermarkt records, nearly half of Serie B's arrivals from other leagues over three seasons were loans. See our report on the transfer market below the top division.
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Questions people also ask
Can a loan last two seasons?
Not as one loan. The maximum is one year, though it can be extended within the limits with the player's written consent.
Does the player have to agree to a loan?
He signs a contract with the new club, so the move needs his agreement in practice, and any extension needs his written consent.