Bosman ruling

Union Royale Belge des Sociétés de Football Association ASBL v Jean-Marc Bosman (1995) C-415/93 (known as the Bosman ruling) is a 1995 European Court of Justice decision concerning freedom of movement for workers, freedom of association, and direct effect of article 39 (now article 45 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union) of the Treaty of Rome. The case was an important decision on the free movement of labour and had a profound effect on the transfers of footballers —and by extension players of other professional sports— within the European Union (EU). The decision banned quota restrictions on foreign EU players within national leagues, and allowed players in the EU to move to another club at the end of a contract (free agency) without a transfer fee being paid and without the approval of the previous club. The ruling was made in a consolidation of three separate legal cases, all involving Belgian player Jean-Marc Bosman: Belgian Football Association v Jean-Marc Bosman R.F.C. de Liège v Jean-Marc Bosman and others UEFA v Jean-Marc Bosman