New editions of FIFA's Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players and the FIFA Disciplinary Code take effect on 1 January 2027. Here is a breakdown of the key changes and what they mean for players in Kyrgyzstan.
What is changing and why it matters
The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) has approved updated editions of two foundational documents — the Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players (RSTP) and the Disciplinary Code. Both take effect on 1 January 2027.
These regulations are the legal framework that governs professional football worldwide: they set out how contracts are formed and terminated, how compensation for breach is calculated, what sanctions a club or player may face, and how dispute decisions are enforced. The changes touch the issues that matter most to a player — money, contract stability, and protection from club pressure. Below are the 12 key updates.
1. Liquidated damages: protection for mid-income players
For players with a fixed annual income up to USD 150,000, compensation for breach of contract must be at least the residual value of the contract, unless exceptional circumstances justify a lower amount. A clause setting compensation below the residual value will be deemed invalid.
In other cases, the parties may agree the amount of compensation (liquidated damages) in advance. But it can be reduced if excessive, and FIFA may disregard the clause where the agreed sum is manifestly unfair.
2. A penalty for termination — up to 6 salaries
Where there is bad-faith or abusive conduct, the party at fault may, in addition to the main compensation, be ordered to pay a penalty of up to six monthly salaries. The rule works both ways — in favour of the player and of the club.
3. What exactly counts as abusive conduct
For the first time, FIFA has expressly set out examples of clubs' abusive conduct: manipulating a player's registration as a pressure tool, excluding a player from team training, withholding a player's passport, and evicting a player. The list is non-exhaustive — a guide, not a closed set.
4. How termination compensation is calculated
The new edition clearly distinguishes the two approaches. A player may claim full compensation, where the main criterion is the residual value of the contract. A club may also claim full compensation, but its calculation takes other factors into account: the value of the player's services, lost transfer value, and the cost of finding a replacement.
5. Joint liability of the new club
If a player signs a new contract within 45 days of breaching the existing one, an inducement presumption applies: the new club is presumed to have induced the player to breach. This strengthens the liability of clubs that poach players under active contracts.
6. The protected period is now flexible: 1–4 years
Previously the protected period was 2 or 3 years (or full seasons). From 2027 it ranges from 1 to 4 years (or full seasons), depending on the player's age at signing. The scale is now more granular and better reflects age.
7. Sanctions for termination in the protected period — lighter for a first offence
Previously a club faced a ban on registering new players for terminating within the protected period. The range is now wider: a warning or a fine is also possible. The measure depends on how many times the club has offended — a first breach draws a lighter sanction than a repeat.
8. A player's right to a share of the transfer — 5%
If a player's fixed annual remuneration is below EUR 150,000 (or the equivalent), the club must pay the player 5% of the transfer fee on his transfer. A direct financial benefit for players on modest contracts.
9. Contracts with minors — up to 5 years
Clubs that train players under 18 may, subject to certain conditions, sign contracts with them for up to 5 years (the current maximum is 3). The condition: the player must have been registered with the club for 20 months or two consecutive competition periods before signing. No club may sign more than five such contracts (over 3 years) per season, and mandatory salary top-ups apply in the 4th and 5th years.
10. The ITC deadline is extended to 5 days
The deadline for issuing an International Transfer Certificate (ITC) has risen from 72 hours to 5 days. In addition, when issuing the ITC the former association may note that the former club retains the right to bring financial claims against the player and/or the new club.
11. Default interest — 8% per year
The standard interest rate in debt-recovery cases has risen from 5% to 8% per year. The parties may agree a different rate in the contract, and FIFA will follow their agreement by default, but may reduce it in exceptional circumstances.
12. Enforcement of NDRC decisions by FIFA
Perhaps the most significant procedural change. If a decision of a FIFA-recognised National Dispute Resolution Chamber (NDRC) is not enforced by the relevant national association within 60 days, the FIFA Disciplinary Committee automatically acquires jurisdiction to enforce it. The mechanism gives national-chamber decisions real enforcement power.
What this means for players in Kyrgyzstan
Most professional footballers in Kyrgyzstan fall under the income threshold for which the new protective mechanisms are designed. In practice, this means several things.
Players on contracts up to USD 150,000 are now protected by a minimum compensation standard — a club cannot write a reduced termination sum into the contract. The expressly listed forms of abusive conduct — withholding a passport, exclusion from training, pressure through registration — are exactly the situations players in the region most often face; there is now a direct reference to them in the regulations. The higher interest rate (8%) makes late wages costlier for a defaulting club, and the right to 5% of a transfer is a tangible benefit for players on modest contracts.
We would also highlight the mechanism for FIFA enforcement of national-chamber decisions: it raises the value of FIFA-recognised national dispute-resolution bodies and makes their decisions genuinely enforceable.
APFKR recommends that all players, football clubs, and their representatives familiarise themselves with the new editions in advance and take them into account when signing and extending contracts in 2027.