FIFPRO and national union experts negotiate next generation labour guidelines for sports industry

• A FIFPRO delegation and national union delegates participated in the Meeting of Experts at the International Labour Organisation alongside World Players Association and UNI Global Union
• The meeting of experts between workers, employers and governments agreed on the second edition of ILO sectoral guidelines in the professional sports sector
• The guidelines focus on the application of the fundamental principles and rights at work including social dialogue, forced labour, occupational health and safety in the world of sport

Representatives of player and athlete unions, employers and governments negotiated and agreed in Geneva, Switzerland, the newest edition of ILO sectoral guidelines for sport – specifically the promotion of fundamental principles and rights at work and the prevention and elimination of violence and harassment for professional athletes. 

In accordance with established procedures, these guidelines will be submitted to the 358th Session (November 2026) of the Governing Body of the ILO for its consideration.

The meeting was part of the Global Dialogue Forum organised by the International Labour Organization (ILO). Participants gathered to negotiate updated guidelines on fundamental labour rights and protections for athletes across all sports.

For FIFPRO, which represents over 70,000 professional footballers worldwide, the newest edition of the guidelines builds on the Global Labour Agreement in the professional football sector agreed at the ILO in 2022 and represent a critical opportunity to strengthen the role of representative player unions to set labour standards in collective agreements and through social dialogue. 

Updating guidelines for modern sport

The expert meeting follows an earlier dialogue in 2020 that produced the first international points of consensus on decent work in sport. Since then, court decisions, growing demands for rights at work and attention on working conditions and quality jobs in the sports industry have pushed collective labour agreements and social dialogue at the heart of sport governance.

A FIFPRO delegation of experts and national union delegates joined athlete representatives from MLBPA, ELPA, EAPA, IRPA and others under the banner of the World Players Association. Together with UNI Global Union, they represent workers in the negotiations with employers and governments.

“The guidelines were first developed six years ago and we’re working with governments and employer organisations to update them,” said FIFPRO Secretary General Alex Phillips.

“Things have moved on in the last few years. There have been many court decisions which are going in favour of athletes, not just in football, not just in the European Union but in different places and in different forums.”

Increased dialogue 

The substance of the new guidelines reflects a growing recognition that sporting eco-systems must operate within recognised labour standards as sporting rules and regulations directly shape athletes’ working conditions in various ways. Key topics under discussion included the recognition of athletes as workers, the right to freedom of association and collective bargaining, and the relationship between labour standards and sports regulations.

For the first time, delegates also discussed occupational health and safety – including match scheduling and climate risks – as well as transfer rules, forced labour and other restrictions that can affect athletes’ freedom of employment and working conditions. Participants also raised new issues that have become central pillars for the sports sector such as violence and harassment, the use of athlete data, and artificial intelligence.

“Most professional footballers have short careers, short contracts and unstable working conditions,” said Phillips. “They can face many challenges, including contracts not being respected or a lack of protection at work. These guidelines should help improve labour standards for those players.” 

For Carlos Gonzalez Puche, the executive director of Colombian player union ACOLFUTPRO, the importance of the meeting goes beyond football.

“Here we are not only representing football – FIFPRO and national player union delegates helped to negotiate a document that can benefit professional athletes around the world.”

Puche also highlighted the role of international labour conventions in helping players secure collective bargaining rights in countries where those systems do not yet exist.

“Through ILO Conventions 87, 98 and 154, collective bargaining can be achieved,” he said. “In Colombia we have been able to do this. These standards can help open the door for other countries in South America and elsewhere so footballers can have better working conditions.”

Access the ILO Sectoral Guidelines 2026 HERE.