Children as young as 10 are being "frozen out of the football academy system because of exorbitant compensation fees placed over their heads by controversial youth development rules," according to Sam Dean of the London TELEGRAPH. In a series of cases, children and teenagers are "finding themselves effectively trapped at Football League clubs against their will or forced into non-League youth football" because it would cost other teams thousands of pounds "just to register them to their academy." In one example, the compensation fee has been "held over the player’s head despite the player not being allowed to train or play for the club, creating a situation where the youngster is unable to sign for another team, who balk at the compensation fee, but cannot return to the original academy either." Under the youth development rules of the Elite Player Performance Plan, which was voted in by League clubs in '11 to "help clubs produce more home-grown players, there is a fixed compensation scheme that puts a price on young players’ heads if they sign one of two forms." If a player has signed a YD10 form, any new club is "liable to pay compensation if they were to register that player to their academy." If the player has signed a YD7 form, "no compensation is due." In a string of cases, families have "agreed to YD10 forms despite it not being made clear what the consequences of that action would be for their child." A legal expert said that there is insufficient notice given to parents who are "agreeing to some extremely onerous contractual terms." The fixed fee depends on the time the player has spent at the club, the age of the player and the "category" of the academy. While elite clubs are "generally able to pay large fees for teenagers, many lower league teams cannot afford to pay thousands of pounds for senior players, let alone youngsters." Under FIFA regulations on int'l transfers, compensation is "due for a player only when they sign their first professional contract," or each time the professional is transferred "until the end of the season of his 23rd birthday." Under the Elite Player Performance Plan Youth Development rules, however, that compensation "is due as soon as the player registers for a new academy" (TELEGRAPH, 12/21).
