How long is the transfer market open?

The change in the transfer market

The transfer market regulates all player transfer activities, i.e. the change of a football player from the current club to another club.

• There are two different scenarios. On the one hand, a player who is still under contract could have another one for the coming season valid contract has to be put on the transfer market so that it can be bought by another club will.
• On the other hand, it is also possible that a player without a contract or a player whose contract is after the current season expires, is signed by another club on a free transfer by signing a new contract receives.
• In the second case, salaries and bonuses are often even higher than in the case of a transfer with transfer fees paid so that the respective football player also moves to the new club and not to another club signs.
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• These free transfers were not possible until a few years ago. Until the Bosman ruling in 1995, it was common practice to have to pay a transfer fee to the previous club even for a player who is or will be without a contract.


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• The professional soccer player Jean-Marc Bosman had sued the European Court of Justice (ECJ) against this practice because he was due to an excessively high transfer fee could not switch to another club and thereby violated his freedom of movement for workers saw.
• The ECJ approved Bosman, whereupon the ECJ banned all transfer requests for a football player to change within the EU when his contract has expired.

Provisions for how long the transfer market will be open

The rules for how long the transfer market is open are set by FIFA, the governing body of football.

• FIFA has stipulated that any transfer of a player under contract may only be carried out in two transfer periods.
• The transfer periods are limited by FIFA in its guidelines once to twelve weeks and once to four weeks.
• The four-week transfer period may take place within a current season, for example in the Winter break, during the twelve-week transfer time only between two seasons, i.e. in the summer break, may take place.
• When exactly these transfer periods are set is determined by the respective national football association.
• However, the majority of the football associations belonging to UEFA, i.e. the European football association, have agreed that the twelve-week transfer period from 1. July to 31st August and the four-week transfer time from 1. until 31. January is carried out.
• Since the transfer market is then open at the same time, this enables smooth transfers between the individual football associations, so that a transfer rarely fails due to different transfer times comes about.