Sports – Business Immigration toolkit

If you want to work as a sportsperson, undertaking sporting activities in the UK, you will normally need an International Sportsperson visa. The individual in question will need to be sponsored on a short or long-term contract and have been endorsed by an appropriate UK sports governing body.

However, and before a professional football club (as an example) can consider bringing in a coach or player from overseas, it would need to obtain a sponsor licence. Only after this process is completed can a club even consider recruiting a player or coach from overseas.

Sponsor Licence Applications

Generally, most football clubs operating in the Premier League and the Championship in England and Scotland will have obtained a sponsor licence already. However, each licence type has its own specific requirements.

Following a successful application for a sponsor licence, a UK football club would then need to comply with the relevant UK Immigration Rules when looking to recruit a player or coach from the EU or elsewhere overseas.

Immigration Rules – Football Players and Coaches

In order to obtain a UK International Sportsperson visa you will need to have a valid Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) from a Home Office approved sponsor (i.e. the football club) for the job. The CoS will confirm information such as the details of the job and salary that has been offered, that the sportsperson is qualified to undertake the role.

The sportsperson will also need to have been endorsed by an appropriate UK Sports Governing body. In the case of professional football in the UK, it would be the Football Association or the Scottish Football Association. This is called a Governing Body Endorsement (GBE).

In addition, there are criteria set out in the Immigration Rules that an applicant must meet, including English language and financial requirements, amongst others.

Invariably though, the main areas to consider in any application to recruit a player or coach are the GBE requirements and the Elite Significant Contribution (ESC)

GBE: The basics

Let’s start with the basics:

• Post-Brexit, the Football Association’s GBE system has gradually been tweaked and refined. The points-based system, which effectively grants work permits for non-domestic players to play for clubs in England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland (each administered by their respective FAs with some differences), means that players wishing to move to these nations need to have played a certain number of international or domestic games at certain levels in order to qualify.
• Any overseas player who does not otherwise have a right to work in the UK without a visa must obtain a GBE to play in the Premier League or EFL.
• To obtain a GBE, broadly speaking, a player needs to either: (i) have played sufficiently regularly for a top-ranked national team; or (ii) accrue 15 points cumulatively across various different metrics.
• If a player does not pass either test, an Exceptions Panel is available in certain circumstances.
• PL and EFL clubs will be entitled to apply for GBEs for players who don’t meet the traditional criteria. This allows clubs to bypass the GBE restriction by being allocated slots for ESC (more on this below) players in their squads. The GBE requirements still apply, but clubs in the English football pyramid can employ a limited number of players who would have previously been unable to gain a work permit under GBE criteria, provided the FA agrees that these players meet the ESC criteria.
• The FA will, however, still need to be satisfied that the ESC player is an elite player who will make a significant contribution to the sport. As a minimum, this means the player must, in the preceding two years, have played a minimum number of matches at a certain level, such as five matches in a top league, or one match for a top-ranked national team in certain competitions.

Elite Significant Contribution

The FA introduced the Elite Significant Contribution (ESC) route, which became effective from 14 June 2023. This came about following criticism of the old GBE criteria, changes were implemented allowing clubs to bypass the GBE restriction by being allocated slots for Elite ESC players in their squads.

The GBE requirements still apply, but clubs in the English football pyramid will be allowed to employ a limited number of players who would have previously been unable to gain a work permit under GBE criteria, provided the FA agrees that these players meet the new ESC criteria.

Season 23/24 acted as a transitional period, the rules from 24/25 onwards are different, but the principle is the same – clubs must promote home-grown talent. However, the rules allow for clubs to convert their ESC players into non-ESC, freeing up slots for more players. This process can occur after a player has been at the club for 12 months. After the 12 months, if the player fulfils the GBE criteria or meets the 15-point threshold required to play they become a non-ESC.

Additionally, if a player plays in 25% or more of the club’s qualifying matches or the required percentage of available minutes, they can again be converted to a non-ESC player; this is separate to the 12-month rule and provides a different option for clubs to maintain their ESC slots. The number of minutes needed depends on the league the player plays in; players in lower leagues must play more minutes to become eligible for a GBE.

How Gilson Gray can help

We have experience in international and domestic regulation of football and on various matters involving stakeholders in the game.

We also advise football clubs, agents, and individual players and their families on all aspects of immigration to the UK. Our experience allows us to quickly assess eligibility and to spot issues before they develop into problems.

We are here to help with personal immigration matters including the International Sportsperson visa, Standard Partner/EEA Nationals & Family visas and more. We are also able to assist if you require any advice or help with obtaining a sponsor licence, maintaining a sponsor licence as well as complying with your sponsor duties.

Find out more about our Sport and Immigration services, get in touch with David.