FIFA 2025 Legal Handbook

FIFA has recently published the 2025 edition of its Legal Handbook, an essential reference document for the football community. First released in 2020, this handbook brings together the latest regulations, statutory documents, and circulars from the governing body of world football, making it a vital resource for all involved in the sport.

Scope and Importance of the 2025 Legal Handbook

The FIFA Legal Handbook is a comprehensive tool designed to provide clarity and guidance to football organizations, players, coaches, and administrators. Compiling the most up-to-date rules and regulations ensures that all football community members remain aligned with FIFA’s latest policies. This annual publication reflects FIFA’s commitment to promoting integrity, fairness, and transparency in football governance.

This annual publication reflects FIFA’s commitment to promoting ethics, integrity, good governance, and respect for human rights. It ensures that all stakeholders clearly understand their rights and obligations, promoting fair play and compliance with international standards.

The 2025 edition aims to:

• Provide a clear and up-to-date regulatory framework to guarantee the proper conduct of competitions;
• Harmonise practices and procedures at the international level;
• Strengthen the protection of the rights and obligations of the various stakeholders.

Contents of the 2025 Legal Handbook

The 2025 edition covers an extensive range of FIFA’s governing documents, including:

• FIFA Statutes: The fundamental regulations that define FIFA’s role, mission, and organization.
• Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players (2024 edition): Updated guidelines on player transfers, including new provisions for female players and coaches.
• FIFA Code of Ethics (2023 edition) and Disciplinary Code (2023 edition): Rules on maintaining integrity and fairness within football.
• FIFA Anti-Doping Regulations: Standards for doping control and prevention in football.
• FIFA Football Agent Regulations (2023 edition): Governing agents’ conduct to ensure fair representation and professionalism.
• Circulars and guidelines: Key clarifications on transfers, contracts, and FIFA policies.

These documents are essential for ensuring that football activities comply with FIFA's global standards.

Key Updates and Developments in 2025

Compared to the 2024 edition, the 2025 version introduces several important changes:

• Strengthened protection for female players and coaches, including improved recognition of contractual and family-related rights.
• Adjustments to international transfer rules, especially regarding registration periods and dispute resolution.
• Clearer agent obligations aligned with the new regulatory framework.
• Closer alignment of anti-doping provisions with international standards.
• More harmonised and reinforced disciplinary procedures.

Utility for the Football Community

The Legal Handbook offers invaluable support for football administrators, legal professionals, and organizations. By ensuring clarity and consistency in the application of regulations, the handbook helps to safeguard the integrity of football matches and the governance of clubs, leagues, and national associations.

Additionally, this handbook serves as a critical resource for managing legal disputes, maintaining compliance with FIFA's ethical standards, and navigating the complexities of player transfers, contracts, and arbitration.

Link to the FIFA Exam

The FIFA exam, especially for those seeking certification as football agents or involved in the regulatory aspects of the game, is partially based on the content of the Legal Handbook. However, it’s important to note that FIFA may reference earlier editions of this document for the exam. As a result, only official communications from FIFA regarding the exam’s requirements should be considered authoritative during preparation. We therefore invite you to consult the FIFA exam subjects available on our study materials page.

Useful resources

• Download the FIFA 2025 Legal Handbook in PDF by clicking here
• 10 tips for passing the FIFA exam