SFA and SPFL reported to watchdog over treatment of youth players

Futhermore, if the player is offered a professional contract and rejects it then any club which subsequently signs that player is liable to pay training compensation costs.

The 11 clubs in the CAS 'elite' classification are Aberdeen, Celtic, Dundee United, Hamilton Academical, Hearts, Hibs, Kilmarnock, Motherwell, Rangers, Queen's Park and St Mirren.

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According to the submission by the Children’s Commissioner and campaigning organisation RealGrassroots, these rules violate UK competition law and amount to economic exploitation of children.

In their submissions to the Competition and Markets Authority the rules, which also include a cap on how many players one club can recruit from another and prevent players and their parents from talking to other clubs represents "an anti-competitive ‘no poach’ deal" and can "hold youth players hostage".

The issue was first raised in front of the Scottish Parliament in 2010, and a decade later the Public Petitions Committee issued a series of recommendations.

The SFA has implemented some of those, but campaigners say they have not gone far enough.

Nick Hobbs, Head of Advice and Investigations at the Children and Young People’s Commissioner Scotland, said: “The rights of child footballers have been a deep concern for the office for many years now – it’s an issue that has spanned the work of three Children’s Commissioners, and the Scottish Parliament has made its views very clear on what is required of the SFA.   

“Going to the CMA was not a decision we took lightly; there was simply no other choice. We have tried to work with the SFA over many years, and they have been consistently reluctant to resolve this. They’ve made promises to us that do not seem to have been delivered. The rules have been scrutinised in the Scottish Parliament and the SFA has ignored the Parliament’s recommendations. They have made the odd concession but have persistently sought to kick the can down the road, so we have taken the only option we could.

"The CMA is the only body with the authority and the legal powers to make the SFA and SPFL change the rules."

This is not the first time that the legal system has been used to challenge rules within football.

In 1993 the Belgian footballer Jean-Marc Bosman sued the Belgian FA, his club RFC de Liege and UEFA having been denied a transfer at the end of his contract unless the team looking to sign him paid a transfer fee.

The midfielder argued this was a restriction on the European Union's free movement of workers and won his case before the European Court of Justice, allowing senior players to move for free following the end of their contracts.

More recently the ECJ ruled that UEFA and FIFA acted against competition law when they blocked the formation of the European Super League, a rival competition, and sanctioned the clubs involved in setting it up.

While accepting that, as governing bodies, the organisations had the right to seek prior approval for any new competition, it decided that FIFA and UEFA's procedures for authorising such competitions prevent the emergence of a competitor, or at least competing leagues outside their associations.

Lawyers acting for the complainants argue that this precedent shows competition law applies to football.

Kieran Gibbons, a player who came through the SFA’s Club Academy Scotland system, said: “Getting rid of these rules is a no-brainer. From 11-13 years old, I was, unbeknown to me, contracted to a senior club’s academy. The training facilities were not the best and didn’t even have changing rooms.  

“I was travelling a distance and had to come straight from school and had grown tired of this and when the time came to sign on for the following season I asked to leave. I had no other club and intended going back to my boys’ club. They were not happy but agreed, but held onto the registration retaining me which again I knew nothing about. 

“This came to light shortly afterwards when other senior clubs contacted me and invited me in for a trial. It was only when they enquired to sign me that they were informed of a £9,000 fee from the senior club I had just left. At that time no one was able or willing to pay that for a 13-year-old, who may or may not make it to professional level.”  

The CMA will now weigh up whether to open a formal investigation. It has the power to levy fines and order rule changes in cases where it's determined that competition rules have been broken.

An SFA spokesperson said: "We were pleased that the report published in 2020 by the public petitions committee acknowledged the significant progress made to protect children and young people involved in our game.

“Since the publication of the report, we have continued to evolve our policies and procedures in line with the FIFA statutes.

"Indeed, we have successfully amended the process of reimbursement of training costs based on input from the children’s commissioner, ensuring training compensation is only due when the player signs their first professional contract.”

The SPFL has been contacted for comment.