The 14th Update | January'26
January 2025
Welcome back to the 14th Update, a Newsletter curated by 14 Sports Law, where the world of sports law unfolds with the rhythm of a well-struck penalty kick.
This edition places particular emphasis on important updates for aspiring Football Agents, alongside noteworthy regulatory and governance developments shaping the sports industry at the outset of 2026.
Our mission remains unwavering: to decode the complexities of sports law and present them to you in an engaging format. 14th Update is your passport to the latest developments in the arena of sports law, business, and technology.
As always, we invite you to share your thoughts, feedback, and questions with us at [info@14sportslaw.com].
We wish you a very happy and successful New Year, and as always- happy reading!
Best,
Luis Cassiano Neves
Founding Partner, 14 Sports Law
ISDE Barcelona welcomed Luis Cassiano Neves back to the classroom to engage with and mentor the next generation of sports industry professionals during his regular lectures.
Felipe Oyarzún Torres has joined as an intern at our Porto office, as part of his Master’s Degree in International Sports Law at ISDE Madrid.
The team at 14 Sports Law is operating at full throttle- supporting clubs, players, agents, and industry stakeholders as the winter nmarket moves into one of its most active phases.
The FIFA Agent Exam 2026 is here – Your path to becoming a FIFA-Licensed Agent
FIFA has officially announced the FIFA Agent Exam 2026, and this year’s framework leaves little room for error. With tighter procedural requirements and an expanded syllabus, early preparation is no longer optional, it is strategic.
Key Dates:
Applications open: 20 January 2026
Applications close: 6 March 2026
Deadline for changes & medical requests: 29 March 2026
Pre-Exam Readiness Check deadline: 14 April 2026
Exam dates: 28, 29 & 30 April 2026 (*Additional slots for 5, 6 & 7 May 2026, only if April slots are fully booked or required for other valid reasons)
Results: 4 June 2026
Review of results deadline: 7 June 2026
Things to keep in mind:
The Pre-Exam Readiness Check is mandatory. Candidates must complete it using the exact same location, laptop, smartphone, and internet connection intended for exam day. Miss the readiness check deadline, and the consequence is absolute: no exam, and your licence application will be rejected.
The exam remains open-book, online, and proctored, to be taken from home (no need to travel to the member association) and available in English, French, German, and Spanish (with the study materials available in English, French, and Spanish). However, time management is decisive. Technical adjustments, room changes, or discussions with the invigilator all count as exam time, and no extra time will be granted.
The official study materials now exceeds 1,000 pages. Success will not hinge on memorisation, but on knowing where to find the correct rule and how to apply it under time pressure, the defining skill in an open-book exam.
It is advisable for candidates to timely apply for the Exam, and not wait for the last day, because FIFA may come back with objections on your application, which will may entail gathering of additional documentation and information. To push this forward, register and apply quickly on the FIFA Agent Platform. Should you face any problems with navigating the application process, feel free to get in touch with us and our team will be happy to guide.
What’s coming next?
Since the introduction of the FIFA Agent Exam, our team has consistently mentored and trained aspiring agents, with our candidates achieving a global pass rate exceeding 90% across five exam cycles. Building on this experience, we will be launching a dedicated FIFA Agent Exam Preparation Course in March-April 2026.
The course will combine live, practitioner-led classes, 500+ practice questions, topic-wise assessments, access to a doubt-resolution hotline, and an exam simulation designed to mirror real testing conditions and prepare one for the D-Day. Aspiring agents are encouraged to watch this space closely as further details will be announced shortly.
The Business of Representation – Football Agent market hits record highs
FIFA has published its 2025 Report on Football Agents and the figures confirm a market at full throttle. In 2024, agent service fees reached an all-time high, with clubs in men’s professional football spending USD 1.37 billion (approx. EUR 1.17 billion), a 90% increase on the previous year and well beyond the record set in 2023. Women’s professional football mirrored this upward trend, with agent fees doubling to USD 6.2 million, underscoring the rapid commercialisation of the women’s game.
At the same time, FIFA processed more than 16,000 licence applications, yet the profession remains highly selective: only 7,745 candidates sat the exam, with a pass rate of approximately 18.2%. Coupled with 199 compliance-related complaints received in 2025, the report paints a clear picture- the football agent market is expanding, but regulatory scrutiny is tightening just as fast.
FIFA Revises the Clearing House Framework
FIFA has introduced the 2026 edition of the FIFA Clearing House Regulations, which entered into force on 1 January 2026. Since its launch, the FIFA Clearing House has facilitated the distribution of over USD 400 million in training rewards to nearly 3,000 training clubs worldwide, establishing itself as a central pillar of FIFA’s training rewards ecosystem.
The January 2026 amendments introduce a notable efficiency-driven reform. FIFA has observed that entitlements below EUR 100 account for 13.3% of all payments, yet represent only 0.05% of the total amounts distributed. To address this, Article 12.4 now provides that training reward entitlements below EUR 100 (or equivalent) shall be deemed discarded. Such amounts will no longer appear in Allocation Statements and will be automatically extinguished.
FIFA Football Tribunal: Procedural Changes effective 2026
FIFA has published a revised edition of the Procedural Rules Governing the Football Tribunal (2026 Ed.), which entered into force on 1 January 2026. The January amendments reflect a clear procedural shift: greater front-end scrutiny of claims, firmer expectations of party cooperation, and an expanded role for alternative dispute resolution within FIFA’s adjudicatory framework.
At the evidentiary level, Article 13.6 reinforces the duty of parties to cooperate in the establishment of facts and to respond in good faith to evidentiary requests, expressly allowing the drawing of adverse inferences where such cooperation is lacking. Procedurally, Article 19 significantly strengthens the role of the FIFA general secretariat, now empowered to filter cases at an early stage not only for jurisdictional defects or time-bar issues, but also where claims are manifestly inadmissible, before they proceed to a chamber.
The revised rules also expand the reach of mediation under Article 26, enabling not only the chairperson of the Football Tribunal, but also chamber chairpersons and the FIFA general secretariat, to invite parties to explore mediated solutions. Further, Article 29.1(f) et. seq. clarifies filing channels for regulatory applications, particularly requests to release players for representative-team duty, while the newly introduced Article 31 establishes a structured regime for eligibility and change-of-association requests, imposing a 15-day pre-window filing deadline via the FIFA Legal Portal.
WADA sets the Course for 2026 – and beyond
World Anti-Doping Agency has brought the 2026 Prohibited Substances and Methods List into force with effect from 1 January 2026. This latest edition refines guidance across key substance classes, revises the dosing interval for certain substances, tightens rules on blood manipulation, expressly prohibits the non-diagnostic use of carbon monoxide, and further clarifies the scope of gene and cell doping, including specific cell components. WADA has reiterated the principle of strict liability, urging athletes and support personnel to proactively verify medications and supplements.
At the same time, WADA has also approved the 2027 World Anti-Doping Code and International Standards, following adoption by its Foundation Board and Executive Committee at the World Conference on Doping in Sport held in Busan, Korea, in December 2025. The revised Code and Standards will enter into force on 1 January 2027, signalling the next phase of regulatory evolution in global anti-doping governance.
Key reforms include a tiered sanctioning model for non-Specified Substances, greater leniency and rehabilitation-focused outcomes for Substances of Abuse, and expanded mitigation avenues for Athletes, most notably through a broader concept of “Contaminated Source”, fixed sanctions for qualifying retroactive TUE cases, enhanced Substantial Assistance mechanisms, and incentives for early admission and acceptance of sanction. Collectively, these changes aim to improve fairness while preserving the deterrent effect of the anti-doping regime. Beyond sanctions, the 2027 Code strengthens governance, oversight, and athlete protections. It introduces an Independent Review Expert to enhance checks and balances, harmonises appeal deadlines, reinforces NADO operational independence, and expands safeguards for Minors, data protection, and human rights.
CAS Bulletin 2025/3-4 released
Court of Arbitration for Sport (“CAS”) has published CAS Bulletin 2025/3-4, a combined edition covering the September and December 2025 issues, which features 25 notable cases, including 14 football-related matters, alongside selected Swiss Federal Tribunal decisions of relevance to sports law. This comes in the wake of CAS recently launching its updated website and jurisprudence database. Check it out here!
Disclaimer: This Newsletter is the intellectual property of 14 Sports Law. Readers are strictly advised not to take any action based solely upon the information and analysis provided herein without seeking professional advice. The authors as well as 14 Sports Law explicitly disclaim any and all liability to anyone who has read this Newsletter, or otherwise, in respect of anything, and of consequences of anything done, or omitted to be done by any such person in reliance upon the contents herein. It is imperative that readers exercise caution and seek legal counsel before relying on the information presented in the Newsletter.