Players’ agent Roger Wittmann does not believe in the planned tightening of the loan rules in professional football by the world governing body FIFA. Especially not in the current situation with the restrictions imposed by the corona virus that have been in place for two years.
“I think that’s completely impractical. Every club that gets into trouble, especially in times of the pandemic, must be able to do what it wants,” Wittmann told the “Deutsche Presse-Agentur” before the end of the winter transfer window next Monday. Until then, any number of players may be awarded or loaned out.
That should change next season. From July 1, new rules are to come into force, according to which the duration of a loan must be at least the period between two registration periods – in Germany this could be for a half-series. Maximum loan and lending period: One year. Professionals who have already been loaned out may not be loaned out to third-party clubs, and a club will soon only be able to loan three players to a specific club during a season.
From the coming season, the total number of loans per season should be eight professionals each. From July 1, 2024, there will only be six. Players under the age of 21 and players that a club has trained itself are not covered by the rule.
“I have to honestly say that I have very little opinion of what FIFA is doing,” emphasized Wittmann. He doesn’t think it’s well thought out. The 61-year-old emphasized: “If someone wants to keep up in the game of the big ones, then they also start to get creative.”
However, he also considers figures such as those in Italy or England, with well over 30 players on loan, to be exaggerated and lacking in concept.