08 Jun 2014 14:14:27
These may seem like silly questions but it's something I've always thought about and wondered if an Ed had Ed002 in particular in mind could clear them up for me.

1) How does the process of transfer listing a player work? Does the club alert other clubs that they are looking to sell a player, or is the player and their agent are told they are being listed and then they have to take the initiative in finding a new club?

2) What is the currency of football, the papers always give nice rounded of figures in £s but as most of Europe use the euro I always though that would be the currency use during the transfer process.

3) How do players and their agents become aware of interest other clubs may have in them and get an idea of the kind of contract that could get without violating the rules?

4) If a club is interested in signing a player how do they go about finding out if the player would be interested in joining them, and then brokering a deal? Do they simply ring the club a player is at and say we are interested in buying x how much will that cost?

Thanks in advance for any answers to these questions.

{Ed002's Note - (1) In some countries there is. Clubs will say that they are willing to listen to offers and agents will hawk players around - but most often enquires come from clubs via agents or direct whether a player is available or not. A list is maintained of all out of contract and released players. (2) Except for intra-UK transfers, euro is the main currency. South America used to always use US$ but the largest market, Brazil, has switch to euro. (3) Clubs and agents talk to each other - sometimes with intermediaries. (4) Clubs will typically informally ask an agent (a) if the player is going to be available, and (b) would the player consider a move to the club. There may be some broad discussion on the sort of deal that would be offered. If the answer is yes, it is then necessary for the club to approach the player's club to ask if they would be willing to sell and if they would grant permission to speak to a player's agent and possibly even the player about actually making a move. This will typically involve either broadly (through an offer) or actually agreeing a fee and responsibility for any significant costs (agents fees etc.). Once this has happened the club will be able to speak to the player's agent and perhaps the player himself to look at the package that will be involved. Many players are looked at and discussed at a high-level with agents and clubs; a subset of those have an offer placed; a subset of those involve discussions with the player's club; a subset of those involve discussions over terms, and; a subset of those go ahead.}

1.) 08 Jun 2014
Thanks for the reply, much appreciated :).