What is training compensation in football?

When it is due

Under FIFA's Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players, training compensation is due when a player registers as a professional for the first time, and when a professional moves between clubs of two different national associations before the end of the calendar year of his 23rd birthday. It is owed whether the move happens during his contract or at the end of it (article 20 and Annexe 4).

When it is not due

• The former club ended the player's contract without just cause.
• The player moves to a category 4 club, the lowest training category.
• A professional becomes an amateur again when he moves.
• Inside the EU and EEA, the former club did not offer him a new contract in writing at least 60 days before his contract ended, of at least equal value, unless it can justify its claim.

How it is calculated

National associations sort their clubs into up to four categories by how much they invest in training. FIFA publishes training costs for each category by confederation and updates them every year.

For a first professional contract, the amount is the new club's training cost multiplied by the years of training, in principle from the calendar year of the player's 12th birthday to that of his 21st. The years from 12 to 15 are always charged at the category 4 rate, so the figure for very young players stays reasonable. On later moves, only the years spent with the former club count. Inside the EU and EEA, special averaging rules apply between categories.

Who pays and when

The new club pays. On a first professional registration it pays every club that trained the player from age 12, pro rata to his time with each, within 30 days. Many payments now go through the FIFA Clearing House.