THE landscape of Scottish football will change radically under a hard Brexit with a curtain set to come down on the era of the foreign player, industry figures have warned.
Scotland’s top clubs face the same pressures around overseas workers and plummeting exchange rates as other industries, while financial analysts have predicted that sterling’s devaluation has already increased the risk of a European player exodus.
The vice-president of the world players’ union said Brexit had thrown up the biggest period of uncertainty Scottish football has faced in generations, with the issue of work permits the biggest anticipated impact.
FifPro’s Tony Higgins said the door could be shut on clubs looking to attract raw talent from Europe, with new restrictions expected to mirror the strict regime in place for players coming to the UK from outside the EU.
Meanwhile, a leading figure at one of the “big four” accountancy giants has said that in the immediate term the transfer cost of overseas players priced in euros could soar given the low value of sterling, although those selling within the EU could benefit.
Philip Shepherd, sports and leisure partner at PwC, said: “The other exchange rate issue is that a number of overseas players would like to see their wages euro based, so will be arguing for an equalisation come contract renewal.
“This presents the risk of wage inflation or loss of key players.”
In today’s Herald, employment law specialists, pundits and former players spell out the ramifications of Brexit on the national game.
One agent warned that an inferior product on the pitch puts at risk big economic generators in cities and major provincial towns.
At present there are about 53 EU players in the Scottish League, of which nine turn out for the Scottish champions Celtic FC.
Mr Higgins said: “The bigger clubs, the SFA, SPFL, will all be searching through various channels for information to assess the implications.
“The type of access to the European market will be the big thing. It’s inevitable there will have to be some form of work permit application that currently exists for non-EU players applied to EU players. Clubs will face bureaucracy.
“There will be problems for clubs hoping to bring players in, develop them and then sell them. It certainly won’t be as easy to do that. It will place a great onus on clubs to ensure that players they sign are of quality or access won’t be allowed.
“A hard Brexit will ensure that clubs in Scotland will have to change their transfer policy in the years ahead.”
Presently those from outwith the EU are required to submit work permit applications, which requires them playing in a certain percentage of their county’s internationals in the last two years. Exemptions can be made for young exceptionally talented players or players who would add something to the game in Scotland not available locally.
But while clubs in the English Premiership would still be able to afford many players falling into this bracket, they would be expected to be largely out of the financial reach of their counterparts in Scotland.
SPFL chief executive Neil Doncaster said: “The SPFL could potentially be affected if limitations are imposed on freedom of trade or by the possibility of tariffs being introduced.
“We very much hope that these and any other uncertainties can be resolved quickly as part of the on-going Brexit process.”
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