EU status (football)

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EU status in association football is whether a football player is considered a citizen of the European Union (EU) for the purposes of labour law within domestic European football leagues. There are different rules for which players are eligible for EU status in different European leagues, and leagues have different rules on how many players from outside the EU may be registered. Players within European league systems who are not considered European citizens are known as "non-EU".

Contents

History

In the 1995 Bosman ruling, the conclusion of a case regarding freedom of transfers, restrictions on foreign EU players in EU national leagues were banned. [1] A previous 1992 ruling had determined that EU states could not distinguish between EU citizens born in an EU nation and those born abroad who had jus sanguinis citizenship. [2] The 2003 Kolpak ruling ruled in favour of EU status in sports applying also to EU-based citizens of nations which have an Association Agreement with the EU but are not members; the major effect of this was due to the Cotonou Agreement, which spurred European naturalisation of players from the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States. [3] [4] A major football market to recognise the Cotonou Agreement as EU qualifying is Spain; it was ratified in Spain when La Liga allowed teams to have only three non-EU players registered. [5]

Though the United Kingdom signed a Trade and Cooperation Agreement with the EU following Brexit, British players are not automatically considered EU qualified: [6] in 2023, British footballer Tosin Adarabioyo reportedly applied for a Nigerian passport so that he could transfer to an EU league, [7] while in 2022 dual-national England international Lucy Bronze was registered as Portuguese when moving to Barcelona. [8] Switzerland also has a series of agreements with the EU, but its players are not automatically considered EU qualified. [9] In EU leagues that do not recognise British and Swiss as EU, young players may be restricted on joining, and players who join will take an international squad spot. [6] [8] Spain considers Swiss players as EU players and, [9] since July 2023, Italy has treated both British and Swiss players as EU players. [10] [11]

The concern of EU status predominantly affects young players who may otherwise find it hard to meet visa requirements. [6]

Nationalities eligible for EU status

National citizenship providing EU status [12]
GroupNationEU statusNotes
Flag of Europe.svg European Union Flag of Austria.svg Austria Yes
Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Belgium
Flag of Bulgaria.svg Bulgaria
Flag of Croatia.svg Croatia
Flag of Cyprus.svg Cyprus
Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czech Republic
Flag of Denmark.svg Denmark Including e.g., Faroe Islanders and Greenlanders.
Flag of Estonia.svg Estonia
Flag of Finland.svg Finland
Flag of France.svg France Including Overseas France.
Flag of Germany.svg Germany
Flag of Greece.svg Greece
Flag of Hungary.svg Hungary
Flag of Ireland.svg Ireland Irish nationality law: Generational inheritance of Irish citizenship requires a person be born to (or adopted by) a parent or grandparent entitled to Irish citizenship, regardless of where they were born, as long as births outside Ireland are registered.
Flag of Italy.svg Italy Italian nationality law: Generational inheritance of Italian citizenship is, for most practical purposes, automatic and unlimited, regardless of where someone was born or if their ancestors in the generations since one was Italian-born ever claimed this citizenship.
Flag of Latvia.svg Latvia
Flag of Lithuania.svg Lithuania
Flag of Luxembourg.svg Luxembourg
Flag of Malta.svg Malta
Flag of the Netherlands.svg Netherlands
Flag of Poland.svg Poland
Flag of Portugal (official).svg Portugal
Flag of Romania.svg Romania
Flag of Slovakia.svg Slovakia
Flag of Slovenia.svg Slovenia
Flag of Spain.svg Spain
Flag of Sweden.svg Sweden
EAA or EUCU Flag of Andorra.svg Andorra Yes
Flag of Iceland.svg Iceland
Flag of Liechtenstein.svg Liechtenstein
Flag of Monaco.svg Monaco
Flag of Norway.svg Norway
Flag of San Marino.svg San Marino
Special agreementFlag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg  Switzerland Yes
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg United Kingdom, its Territories and Dependencies Ulster Banner.svg Northern Ireland Usually Irish nationality law: Since 2005, people born anywhere on the island of Ireland, including UK country Northern Ireland, are entitled to Irish citizenship if: at least one of their parents is British, or Irish, or entitled to live in Ireland; or: at least one of their parents was resident on the island of Ireland for three of the four years prior to their birth; or: they are not entitled to any other citizenship. Prior to 1999, people born in Northern Ireland were entitled to Irish citizenship by declaration. In the intervening years, people born in Northern Ireland were entitled to Irish citizenship by birth. Therefore, most people born in Northern Ireland are entitled to Irish nationality, and so eligible for EU status.
Flag of England.svg England MaybeSince 2023, the Italian Football Federation recognises British citizens as having EU status.
Flag of Gibraltar.svg Gibraltar
Flag of Scotland.svg Scotland
Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg Wales
Cotonou Agreement Flag of Angola.svg Angola MaybeAs of 2018, players in Europe under the Cotonou Agreement are recognised as EU eligible in Denmark, Finland, France, Hungary, Romania, and Spain.
Flag of Antigua and Barbuda.svg Antigua and Barbuda
Flag of the Bahamas.svg Bahamas
Flag of Barbados.svg Barbados
Flag of Belize.svg Belize
Flag of Benin.svg Benin
Flag of Botswana.svg Botswana
Flag of Burkina Faso.svg Burkina Faso
Flag of Burundi.svg Burundi
Flag of Cameroon.svg Cameroon
Flag of Cape Verde.svg Cape Verde
Flag of the Central African Republic.svg Central African Republic
Flag of Chad.svg Chad
Flag of the Comoros.svg Comoros
Flag of the Republic of the Congo.svg Congo
Flag of the Cook Islands.svg Cook Islands
Flag of Cuba.svg Cuba
Flag of Djibouti.svg Djibouti
Flag of Dominica.svg Dominica
Flag of the Dominican Republic.svg Dominican Republic
Flag of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.svg DR Congo
Flag of East Timor.svg East Timor
Flag of Equatorial Guinea.svg Equatorial Guinea
Flag of Eritrea.svg Eritrea
Flag of Eswatini.svg Eswatini
Flag of Ethiopia.svg Ethiopia
Flag of Fiji.svg Fiji
Flag of Gabon.svg Gabon
Flag of The Gambia.svg Gambia
Flag of Ghana.svg Ghana
Flag of Grenada.svg Grenada
Flag of Guinea.svg Guinea
Flag of Guinea-Bissau.svg Guinea-Bissau
Flag of Guyana.svg Guyana
Flag of Haiti.svg Haiti
Flag of Cote d'Ivoire.svg Ivory Coast
Flag of Jamaica.svg Jamaica
Flag of Kenya.svg Kenya
Flag of Lesotho.svg Lesotho
Flag of Liberia.svg Liberia
Flag of Madagascar.svg Madagascar
Flag of Malawi.svg Malawi
Flag of Mali.svg Mali
Flag of Mauritania.svg Mauritania
Flag of Mauritius.svg Mauritius
Flag of Mozambique.svg Mozambique
Flag of Namibia.svg Namibia
Flag of Niger.svg Niger
Flag of Nigeria.svg Nigeria
Flag of Papua New Guinea.svg Papua New Guinea
Flag of Rwanda.svg Rwanda
Flag of Saint Lucia.svg Saint Lucia
Flag of Saint Kitts and Nevis.svg Saint Kitts and Nevis
Flag of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.svg Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Flag of Samoa.svg Samoa
Flag of Sao Tome and Principe.svg São Tomé and Príncipe
Flag of Senegal.svg Senegal
Flag of Seychelles.svg Seychelles
Flag of Sierra Leone.svg Sierra Leone
Flag of the Solomon Islands.svg Solomon Islands
Flag of Somalia.svg Somalia
Flag of South Africa.svg South Africa
Flag of Sudan.svg Sudan
Flag of Tanzania.svg Tanzania
Flag of Togo (3-2).svg Togo
Flag of Tonga.svg Tonga
Flag of Trinidad and Tobago.svg Trinidad and Tobago
Flag of Tuvalu.svg Tuvalu
Flag of Uganda.svg Uganda
Flag of Vanuatu.svg Vanuatu
Flag of Zambia.svg Zambia
Flag of Zanzibar.svg Zanzibar
Flag of Zimbabwe.svg Zimbabwe
Euro-Mediterranean agreementFlag of Algeria.svg Algeria MaybeAs of 2018, Algerian, Moroccan and Tunisian players are recognised as EU eligible in Finland, Greece, and Spain.
Flag of Morocco.svg Morocco
Flag of Tunisia.svg Tunisia
Flag of Israel.svg Israel MaybeAs of 2018, Israelis are recognised as EU eligible in Germany and Hungary.
SAA Flag of Albania.svg Albania MaybeAs of 2018, Albanian, Bosnian-Herzegovinian and Serbian players are recognised as EU eligible in Greece and Spain.
Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina.svg Bosnia and Herzegovina
Flag of Serbia.svg Serbia
Flag of North Macedonia.svg North Macedonia MaybeAs of 2018, Macedonians are recognised as EU eligible in Hungary and Spain.
DCFTA Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia MaybeAs of 2018, Georgians, Moldovans and Ukrainians are recognised as EU eligible in Hungary and Spain.
Flag of Moldova.svg Moldova
Flag of Ukraine.svg Ukraine
Flag of Russia.svg Russia MaybeAs of 2018, Russian and Turkish players are recognised as EU eligible in Greece, Hungary and Spain.
Flag of Turkey.svg Turkiye
Flag of Kazakhstan.svg Kazakhstan MaybeAs of 2018, Kazakh players are recognised as EU eligible in Hungary.
Flag of Kyrgyzstan.svg Kyrgyzstan MaybeAs of 2018, the French Football Federation recognises Kyrgyz and Uzbek citizens as EU eligible.
Flag of Uzbekistan.svg Uzbekistan

National league restrictions

Various European leagues maintain rules related to EU status: as of 2008, Swedish teams may only have three non-EU players on the pitch, and German lower divisions could only have three non-EU players. The same year, clubs in Belarus' first division could register four non-EU players and have three on the pitch, while there were no restrictions in its second division. Conversely, clubs in Bulgaria's second division could not have any non-EU players; in its first division they could register five non-EU players and all could play. Italy's third division did not allow non-EU players, while its second division clubs could sign one and in the first division they could have five. Spain's third division did not allow non-EU players except those already registered in teams that were relegated; first division teams could have three players and second division teams could have two. [13]

In Finland, Iceland and the Czech Republic, there were no registration limits for professional non-EU players, but a club could only field three. Ukraine had no registration limits; its first division clubs could field seven non-EU players and its second division clubs could field three. In Slovakia and Croatia they could field four; Denmark could field only three, but treated Cotonou players as EU players. French first division clubs could sign four non-EU players, while its second and third divisions were limited to two; Romanian, Swiss, Israeli and Greek first division teams could have five non-EU players, and in their second divisions they could have three. Similarly, in Hungary clubs had no registration limits but first division teams could field five non-EU players, with second division teams able to play three. Russian clubs had no registration limits, with its first division teams able to field seven non-EU players, and the second division could field three. Turkish first division clubs could sign eight foreign players and field six, while its second division could only sign two foreign players under the age of 21. Norway allowed up to eleven non-Norwegian players of any origin, providing the club had at least two homegrown players in its remaining squad. In 2008, the Netherlands, Serbia, Poland, Portugal, the Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland, Wales, Scotland and England had no restrictions on non-EU players. [13] Following Brexit, all non-British players must meet requirements of a points-based system to play in British leagues. [14]

See also

References

  1. Norbäck, Pehr-Johan; Olsson, Martin; Persson, Lars (2021). "Talent development and labour market integration in European football" . The World Economy. 44 (2): 367–408. doi:10.1111/twec.13071. ISSN   1467-9701. S2CID   230601462.
  2. Moritz, Michael D. (2015). "The Value of Your Ancestors: Gaining 'Back-Door' Access to the European Union Through Birthright Citizenship". Duke Journal of Comparative & International Law . 26: 239–240.
  3. Martín, Alejandro (2022-08-30). "How many non-EU community players can there be in each LaLiga club; how many does each one have?". Diario AS. Retrieved 2023-11-06.
  4. https://westminsterresearch.westminster.ac.uk/download/875c1622cdebb31d8ea5930360bf62e4bbe28d7a13ea6b585cfa48208c56ca64/348568/IJHS%200716.pdf [ bare URL PDF ]
  5. Palmer, Martin (2007-10-07). "Spanish grant EU rights to African players". The Observer. ISSN   0029-7712 . Retrieved 2023-11-06.
  6. 1 2 3 "Brexitball: Exporting Young Talent". Analytics FC. 2022-06-06.
  7. "Kolpak ruling: Tottenham target applies for Nigerian passport amid interest from Monaco, Inter:: All Nigeria Soccer - The Complete Nigerian Football Portal". www.allnigeriasoccer.com. Retrieved 2023-11-06.
  8. 1 2 "FC Barcelona: El Barça, en cuadro y Bronze y Geyse, no inscritas todavía". Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). 29 August 2022. Retrieved 31 August 2022.
  9. 1 2 "How to get a Work Permit and Visa for Spain". InterNations. Retrieved 2023-10-08.
  10. Arta (2023-07-27). "Italian FA to Treat Football Players From UK & Switzerland Same as EU Citizens". SchengenVisaInfo.com. Retrieved 2023-10-08.
  11. "Official: FIGC to treat British and Swiss players as EU citizens". Football Italia. 26 July 2023.
  12. "Football Manager 2018 Years to Gain EU Nationality". FM Blog. Retrieved 2024-12-20.
  13. 1 2 "I. EUROPE" in Rivista di Diritto ed Economia dello Sport
  14. Association, The Football. "Plan agreed on entry requirements for overseas players in England post-Brexit in 2021". www.thefa.com. Retrieved 2023-11-06.