Soccer Agents Report 2025: Everything You Need to Know About Key Figures and the FIFA Agent Exam

The Soccer Agents Report 2025 provides an in-depth analysis of the global FIFA agent market. Key figures, trends in men’s and women’s soccer, evolution of the agent’s role and valuable insights for FIFA agent exam candidates: explore the essentials to understand and anticipate the challenges of the sector.

Last updated: 01/19/2026
Ilian Farza
Ilian Farza
Soccer Agents Report 2025: Everything You Need to Know About Key Figures and the FIFA Agent Exam

The year 2025 marked a watershed moment for player agent data across the global soccer landscape. From the number of candidates sitting for the licensing exam to the staggering total commission amounts flowing through the transfer market, the Soccer Agents Report 2025—published by FIFA—provides a comprehensive analysis of the year's pivotal trends. This report has become indispensable for FIFA exam candidates, licensed agents, and professional clubs seeking to navigate an increasingly complex player market. It serves as a reliable benchmark to anticipate market shifts, understand FIFA's regulatory expectations, and prepare for the demanding realities of modern player representation.

Let's dive into the official figures FIFA released in the Soccer Agents Report 2025 and explore the major updates reshaping the agent profession.

Manchester United player representing the Football Agents Report 2025

What is the Soccer Agents Report 2025

The Soccer Agents Report 2025 is an authoritative report published by FIFA, constructed from data compiled through the FIFA Agent Compliance Platform and international transfer management systems. The document synthesizes the evolving role of agents in professional soccer and consolidates global statistics covering:

  • FIFA-licensed player agents and their geographic distribution
  • Comprehensive data on the FIFA agent licensing exam, including pass rates and candidate demographics
  • Commission structures and payment flows to agents across all transfer categories
  • Structural and professional trends shaping the agent industry
  • Market segmentation across men's and women's professional soccer

Objectives and scope of the Soccer Agents Report 2025

FIFA designed this report with three core objectives: enhancing transparency within the agent market, equipping all stakeholders with current data-driven insights, and assessing the real-world impact of FIFA's reinforced regulatory framework on the player representation industry. The report functions as both a strategic tool for soccer organizations and an essential study resource for future agents.

Structure of the Soccer Agents Report 2025

The document is designed as an analytical tool for institutions, already licensed agents, and also candidates preparing for the FIFA exam.

Primary sections of the report

The Soccer Agents Report 2025 is structured to address multiple stakeholder needs:

  • Global overview of FIFA-licensed agents: A comprehensive analysis of licensing numbers and their distribution across continents and confederations
  • Regional statistical breakdowns by confederation: Enabling deeper understanding of agent market dynamics in different geographic regions
  • FIFA agent licensing exam data: Detailed candidate profiles, attempt numbers, pass rates, and performance analysis
  • Commission structures and transfer economics: A financial analysis of how the agent profession generates revenue and impacts club budgets
  • Women's soccer segment analysis: A dedicated section reflecting the dramatic growth of agent activity in the female professional game

All the FIFA agent exam figures for 2025

The FIFA agent licensing exam remains among the most rigorous and selective professional certifications in global sports. The Soccer Agents Report 2025 reveals striking statistics about exam difficulty and candidate performance:

  • 9,148 applications were submitted for the exam, but only 7,745 candidates actually took the test on exam days
  • 18% pass rate, which is 22 points lower than the previous year (40.4% pass rate in 2024), highlighting the difficulty of the exam
  • Approximately 1,394 candidates passed the exam and earned their FIFA agent license

The exam covers topics including:

  • FIFA Transfer Regulations: Deep familiarity with the Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players (RSTP), including provisions on contract registration, third-party ownership prohibitions, and transfer windows
  • Contract Management and Representation Agreements: Understanding representation agreements' legal structures, duration requirements, non-negotiable clauses, and conditions affecting validity and enforceability
  • Agent Compensation and Financial Regulations: Mastery of commission caps, mandatory fee disclosure requirements, financial flow documentation, and FIFA's anti-corruption measures
  • Multi-Party Relationships and Conflict Management: Navigating complex scenarios involving agents, players, clubs, and other representatives, with particular emphasis on identifying and managing conflicts of interest and preventing improper multiple representations

The data confirms that FIFA has deliberately elevated exam standards, reflecting the profession's increased complexity and FIFA's commitment to raising professional competency across the agent sector. Candidates planning to sit for the 2026 FIFA agent exam should begin structured preparation immediately, as the shortened preparation window combined with increased difficulty creates genuine competitive pressure.

Beyond examination statistics, the Soccer Agents Report 2025 quantifies the substantial economic footprint agents maintain in both professional and emerging segments of the sport.

Men’s Professional Soccer

In men’s soccer, agents remain central players in the international transfer market.

  • 3,010 international transfers involved at least one agent.
  • 1,559 agents provided agency services and received fees.
  • USD 1.37 billion in total agent fees—establishing a new all-time record and representing an extraordinary 90%+ increase compared to 2024, reflecting both increased transfer activity and higher-value player movements

Women’s Professional Soccer

The women's soccer segment demonstrates the most dynamic growth trajectory within agent representation:

  • 664 female players received representation in international transfers
  • 298 women's clubs engaged agents for transfer negotiations and player recruitment
  • USD 6.2 million in agent fees—more than doubling the previous year's figures, signaling accelerating professionalization and investment in the women's game

Comparison of Agent Activity: 2025 Snapshot

IndicatorMen’s soccerWomen’s soccer
Agent service fees (international transfers)USD 1.37 billionUSD 6.2 million
International transfers involving agents3,010Clubs: 298 / Players: 664

The evolving role of Player agents

The Soccer Agents Report 2025 illustrates through extensive empirical data that the player agent profession continues its transformation, accelerated by stricter FIFA regulations and increased market professionalization. Several transformative trends emerge clearly.

1. Heightened Regulatory Oversight and Transparency

FIFA has implemented mandatory disclosure requirements through the Transfer Matching System (TMS), requiring clubs to formally declare all agents involved in transactions and the exact commissions paid. This systematic tracking enables FIFA to identify non-compliant actors more effectively and maintain market integrity. The dramatic surge in reported commissions—reflected in the USD 1.37 billion figure—suggests that previously unreported or under-reported agent fees are now being captured in official systems, indicating FIFA's regulatory framework is working as intended.

2. Increased Professional Complexity and Compliance Burden

The modern player agent operates within an intricate ecosystem of legal, contractual, and regulatory requirements:

  • International transfer regulations now mandate comprehensive documentation, detailed compliance paperwork, and transparent reporting before players can be registered with new clubs
  • Mandatory professional development programs, including specialized modules on representing minor players and navigating child protection regulations
  • Dispute resolution frameworks requiring agents to manage contractual disagreements and represent clients through FIFA's dispute resolution mechanisms

3. Women's Soccer as a Growth Driver and Professional Frontier

As investment in women's professional soccer accelerates globally, agents have emerged as critical advocates for player development and contract fairness. The doubling of agent fees in women's soccer reflects growing player mobility, increased transfer spending by clubs, and the legitimization of professional representation for female athletes. Agents now function as essential partners in building sustainable women's soccer ecosystems.

Why the Soccer Agents Report 2025 Matters for FIFA Agent Exam Success

For candidates preparing to sit for the FIFA agent licensing exam, the Soccer Agents Report 2025 functions as more than market analysis—it serves as a strategic study guide. The report illuminates which regulatory areas FIFA emphasizes in its assessment, identifies emerging complexity candidates must understand, and reveals successful candidate profiles.

Exam candidates should structure their preparation around these strategic pillars highlighted by the report:

  • Deep mastery of FIFA regulatory frameworks, particularly RSTP and transfer documentation requirements
  • Comprehensive understanding of commission mechanics, fee caps, disclosure obligations, and anti-corruption safeguards
  • Real-world case study analysis, drawing examples from the actual transfer market to understand how regulations apply in practice
  • Women's soccer representation, reflecting the growth area FIFA clearly prioritizes

Download the Soccer Agents Report 2025 PDF

The Soccer Agents Report 2025 is a clear and concise resource for understanding how the agent market works, analyzing the main economic trends, and gaining a better grasp of the regulatory framework implemented by FIFA.

To download the Soccer Agents Report 2025 PDF, click here: Soccer Agents Report 2025

Looking Ahead: The 2026 FIFA Agent Exam

If you're considering becoming a FIFA agent in 2026, be aware that the increased difficulty of the exam reflects FIFA's determination to ensure that only truly qualified professionals operate in the player representation market. The 18% pass rate in 2025 should motivate future candidates to prepare in a systematic and diligent manner rather than relying on occasional studying. FIFA has announced that the next exam session will take place in 2026, but the registration opening dates and exam periods have not yet been publicly confirmed.

Conclusion: The Soccer Agents Report 2025 as Your Professional Guide

Whether you're an established agent managing complex player negotiations, a club executive evaluating agent partnerships, or a prospective candidate preparing for the FIFA licensing exam, the Soccer Agents Report 2025 provides essential insights into the modern player representation landscape. The report's data on exam performance, economic trends, and regulatory evolution offers a comprehensive roadmap for succeeding in this increasingly professionalized sector.

The soccer agent profession is no longer a loosely regulated side business—it's a complex, high-stakes profession requiring deep regulatory knowledge and professional integrity. The 2025 report captures this transformation in concrete data. Use it as your strategic reference point as you navigate or prepare to enter this dynamic field.