Brighton fans to see how much agents earn from Albion's transfer deals under new Fifa rules

The world governing body has begun a third round of consultation on the new regulations, after admitting it had been a “mistake” by the old Fifa regime to deregulate agents in 2015.

Fifa found that in 2019, just under half a billion pounds was spent on commission fees worldwide.

The regulations will include a licensing system, character tests, commission caps and the publication by Fifa of the money agents receive from their clients – both players and clubs.

Agents will be consulted between now and the spring of 2021, and they will all receive the draft regulations and be asked for feedback.

The regulations will then go forward for Fifa Council approval between March and June next year before coming into force in September.

Fifa has acted to stop what it sees as “excessive and abusive” practices among agents.

Commission will be capped at three per cent of a player’s salary when representing a player, three per cent of a player’s salary when representing the buyer and six per cent when the same agent represents both the player and the buyer.

An agent representing a selling club can earn a maximum of 10 per cent of the transfer value.

Ultimately, Fifa intends that these commissions will not be paid directly from a client to an agent, but instead go through a clearing house system.

Asked why the only cap was on commission, Fifa’s director of football regulatory James Kitching said: “It’s a matter of perception.

“If I’m telling somebody, ‘I’ll take 10 per cent’ somebody might think that’s a small number and that’s fine.

“But if it’s 10 per cent of £20million, that changes the perception. We need to change the perception and the activity in the market.

“Many of the practices which we describe as excessive and abusive derive from the types of commission payments that we’re describing right now. What we’re trying to do is bring in basic service standards.

“I’m not saying large numbers automatically lead to abusive practices, but an agent who acts on your behalf has a fiduciary duty to act in your best interests. Sometimes big numbers may cause an agent to not act in the best interests of the client.”

FIFA believes its regulations will stand up to EU antitrust law, amid expected challenges over restraint of trade from agents.

The rules will also bar family members from acting for a player in transfer deals unless the family member is a licensed agent.