January 11, 2023
Level co-founder Daniel Lowen launches The Agent Exam
Following the announcement that new FIFA Football Agent Regulations entered into force on 9 January 2023, Level co-founder Daniel Lowen this week launched new offering The Agent Exam, in response to the need for intermediaries and aspiring agents to pass the new FIFA exam.
On 9 January 2023, new FIFA Football Agent Regulations entered into force.
This significant shake-up for the football agent industry has been much awaited, and much debated; FIFA first announced it was looking to reform its intermediary regime over 4 years ago, which has since been the subject of heated discussion, but the decision was made at the FIFA Council’s December meeting in Doha to fully replace the football intermediary system from 1 October 2023, following a 9 month transition period.
There are several highly controversial aspects to FIFA’s new agent regime, which will form the basis of vehement legal challenges in multiple jurisdictions. But unless and until those legal challenges halt the implementation of the new Regulations, these are some of the key changes affecting player, coach and club representation from 1 October 2023:
- The reintroduction of the FIFA agent exam – anyone who didn’t pass the old exam (pre-2015) will now need to pass the new exam in order to work as a Football Agent
- A much-debated cap on commission: The cap places a hard limit on what a Football Agent can earn from a Transaction
- Restrictions on a club paying a Football Agent on a player’s behalf
- Restrictions on multiple representation
- New rules about approaches to, and signing contracts with, minors and also players who already have a rep contract with another agent
- Representation of managers / coaches will be regulated as well
- Payments to Football Agents will be in quarterly instalments through the newly-established FIFA Clearing House
- FIFA will publish information regarding a Football Agent’s clients and Transactions
- A new Agents Chamber of the Football Tribunal will be competent to resolve international disputes
- Transitional measures affecting representation contracts already in force as at 1 October 2023
In response to the need for intermediaries and aspiring agents to pass the new FIFA exam, Daniel Lowen, sports lawyer and co-founder at Level, this week launched a new offering: The Agent Exam.
The Agent Exam provides online learning materials (consisting of mock exam questions, answers and detailed explanations) and specialist tuition, to assist FIFA exam candidates seeking experienced, professional support in readying themselves for the exam. The first exam sitting will be on 19 April 2023, with the second on 20 September 2023.
Daniel Lowen has 18 years’ experience advising agents and intermediaries on the regulations to which they’re subject. He is recognised internationally for his expertise in football, ranked in Band 1 for Sport in the UK in Chambers & Partners 2023. He and his team at Level work with small agencies through to super agents, advising on everything from young players’ first contracts through to world record transfers. Over the summer 2022 transfer window alone, Level advised on over 140 player transfers, loans and new contracts, including many of the most high-profile, high-value transactions across the Premier League and internationally in what was a record-breaking transfer window.
Pre-2015, Daniel utilised his industry experience in preparing over 130 candidates for the old FIFA agent exam – more candidates than anyone else worldwide – with a pass rate of over 85%, compared to the industry average of 0%-35%.
Dan's service is absolutely first-rate and worth every penny. His knowledge and support were brilliant, his teaching exceptional and I would never have passed without his tuition. I cannot recommend him highly enough - if you're considering taking the exam, you'd be crazy not to enlist his help. The best money I've ever spent!
Mark (England) - Pre-2015 FIFA Agent Exam Candidate
The Agent Exam’s offering comprises:
ONLINE MATERIALS:
As this is a new FIFA exam, years’ worth of past papers aren’t available. The Agent Exam has produced 400 multiple-choice mock questions, split into 20 exams of 20 questions each, covering all of the key topics in the syllabus, written in the style candidates will face in the exam.
ONLINE MATERIALS AND 1 HOUR OF ONE-TO-ONE SUPPORT:
In addition to access to the online materials, candidates will also have an hour’s worth of support, in which to discuss the difficult or confusing topics. The 60 minutes can be used as and when support is required – in one go, or across several queries / sessions, by email, phone or Zoom.
BESPOKE TUITION:
Tuition can also be provided on a one-to-one basis or to a group (e.g. to all candidates within an agency), bespoke to the candidate’s or agency's needs.
Dan Lowen explains:
“The old FIFA agent exam was fiendishly difficult, with an incredibly low pass rate. We tutored more candidates than anyone else in the world, and were pleased to achieve a very strong pass rate across the 130 candidates we helped prepare for the exam.
The new exam is different, but we’re here to help once again and we’ve adapted our approach to preparing candidates accordingly. We believe that our market knowledge and experience of tutoring candidates for the exam will help our clients to prepare thoroughly and achieve success.
The stakes couldn’t be higher. Various legal challenges being brought against the new Regulations could halt their full implementation in under 9 months’ time. But if the Regulations do come into full force and effect on 1 October 2023, then unless you passed the old exam, you will need to pass this new FIFA exam if you want to represent players, coaches or clubs. So the reintroduction of the exam is a positive step for the industry, but candidates will need to pass it to forge, or continue, a career as a licensed football agent.”
