[flintkingpin]

I have read this term a lot lately with the Ballack signing to Chelsea....and also now Sheva...

what does this mean?

I am a new soccer fan, but it has quickly become my top 2 sport.

but some of the lingo kills me, thanks for help on this one in paticular

[Toon³]

In football, the Bosman ruling is one that allows professional football players in the European Union to move freely to another club at the end of their term of contract with their present team.

Jean-Marc Bosman was a player in the 2nd division of the Belgian football league, whose contract had expired in 1990. He wanted to change teams and move to Dunkerque, a French team. However, Dunkerque didn't offer his Belgian club RFC Liège enough of a transfer fee, so Liège refused to let him go.

In the meantime, Bosman's wages were reduced as he was no longer a first-team player. He took his case to the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg and sued for restraint of trade. After a tough legal battle he won his case, and on December 15, 1995 the court gave him and all other EU football players the right to a free transfer at the end of their contracts, with the provision that they were transferring from one EU Federation to another. Previous to that, professional clubs were able to prevent players from joining another club even if their contracts had expired. In addition to this, a player can sign a pre-contract with another club for a free transfer if the players' contract with their existing club has 6 months or less remaining. The Bosman ruling can be compared to the Curt Flood case in baseball, which led to the elimination of the reserve clause and the advent of free agency.

The Bosman ruling also prohibited domestic football leagues in EU member states, and also UEFA, from imposing quotas on foreign players to the extent that they discriminated against nationals of EU states. At that time, many leagues placed quotas restricting the number of non-nationals allowed on member teams. Also, UEFA had a rule that prohibited teams in its competitions, namely the Champions League, Cup Winners' Cup and UEFA Cup, from naming more than three "foreign" players in their matchday squads. This had an especially negative impact on British teams, because both UEFA and FIFA consider England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales to be separate nations. As an example, Manchester United were forced to count their Welsh winger Ryan Giggs as a foreign player, despite the fact that Wales and England are both constituents of the UK, and comprise a single entity for purposes of conflict of laws. After the ruling, quotas could still be imposed, but could only be used to restrict the number of non-EU players on each team.

On April 21, 2005, UEFA 52 member federations unanimously approved a rule designed to increase the number of locally trained players. The measure is an attempt to reverse some of the effects of the Bosman ruling. UEFA's chief executive Lars-Christer Olsson was reported by CNN to have said that some of the major clubs in Europe like Chelsea and Barcelona were not happy with this rule, and that he didn't rule out the possibility of a court challenge.

[Menace2Sobriety]

Originally Posted by flintkingpin

I have read this term a lot lately with the Ballack signing to Chelsea....and also now Sheva...

what does this mean?

I am a new soccer fan, but it has quickly become my top 2 sport.

but some of the lingo kills me, thanks for help on this one in paticular

Essentially "free agent" in American sport lexicon.

[RichardL]

Originally Posted by Toon²

Jean-Marc Bosman was a player in the 2nd division of the Belgian football league, whose contract had expired in 1990. He wanted to change teams and move to Dunkerque, a French team. However, Dunkerque didn't offer his Belgian club RFC Liège enough of a transfer fee, so Liège refused to let him go.

In the meantime, Bosman's wages were reduced as he was no longer a first-team player. He took his case to the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg and sued for restraint of trade. After a tough legal battle he won his case, and on December 15, 1995 the court gave him and all other EU football players the right to a free transfer at the end of their contracts, with the provision that they were transferring from one EU Federation to another. Previous to that, professional clubs were able to prevent players from joining another club even if their contracts had expired. .

It should also be pointed out that the Belgian system was probably more restrictive than the ones used elsewhere. I think there was a calculated fee that had to be met by buying club, which was fine with two clubs of roughly equal stature, but in Bosman's case, he wanted to go to a smaller club.

The system in the UK meant that only players offered an improved contract weren't able to leave on a free, and if the clubs couldn't agree a fee themselves then the league would arbitrate and decide the fee - usually substantially lower than a normal transfer fee.

I think there was also a fixed £1 million maximum fee for international transfers of players who's contract had expired.

[flintkingpin]

damn...thank you very much for the in depth details...

[FiNeRaIn]

Beveren have 15 squad player's from the Ivory Coast...that is shocking.