FIFPro, the state of its finances, and how will it deal with a new rival global players' union?

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Thursday’s launch in Spanish capital Madrid saw players’ unions from Brazil, Mexico and Switzerland also represented, and it comes at a time when FIFPro, the global union formed in the 1960s that represents over 60,000 footballers, is locked in a row with FIFA, the sport’s worldwide governing body, regarding player welfare. The European branch of FIFPro filed a complaint against FIFA in 2024, citing what it perceives as a lack of consultation over the game’s international calendar. In a subsequent back-and-forth between the two parties, FIFA accused FIFPro of a lack of transparency and challenged the union to publish “their statutes and full financial reports”. FIFPro, which is registered as a company in the Netherlands, has since published its statutes online, but its financial accounts are listed on the KVK, the Dutch equivalent of the United Kingdom’s Companies House, and, as is standard practice in that country, cannot be viewed without paying a small fee. They show that FIFPro is in a healthy financial state and has an extensive property portfolio — totalling more than 500 properties in the Netherlands — worth over $50million (£36.9m). So, amid this dispute with FIFA and with the arrival of a new global players’ union trying to muscle its way onto the scene, The Athletic breaks down the key questions… A 45-year-old former striker for Real Madrid, who made four senior appearances for the Bernabeu giants in the early 2000s, Aganzo’s playing career spanned 16 years and saw him turn out over 300 times for clubs in Spain, Israel and Greece before going on to become a football executive. He has headed the AFE since 2017 and was elected FIFPro president in 2021, only to be asked to stand down in March 2024 as two letters were signed by more than 50 member unions after Aganzo met FIFA president Gianni Infantino late the previous year without authority from the executive board. After being ousted from FIFPro, Aganzo severed AFE’s ties with the union in February this year, citing a lack of transparency, and set about establishing a rival global organisation. He was invited by FIFA to meetings in New York and the Moroccan capital Rabat, where they announced a consensus on player welfare had been reached. FIFPro was not in attendance, and insists it had not been invited — a claim disputed by FIFA. At Thursday’s launch, Aganzo told the assembled media pack, as reported by Reuters, that protecting players’ interests is at the heart of the AIF’s intentions. “We represent over 30,000 footballers, and we come here with a new model aimed at safeguarding players’ rights and facilitating direct communication with all international bodies,” Aganzo said. “We are in contact with 15 to 20 unions already who were very aware of this moment and waiting for this announcement to make their move and join our initiative.” Such is FIFPro’s position and standing from a players’ union perspective, where it has a mandate from 70 national player associations, the AIF has a long way to go before it could even be considered a direct rival. And to coincide with Thursday’s launch, FIFPro issued a statement that was extremely dismissive in tone. “The concept announced in Madrid by its current president appears nothing more than a speculative attempt to boost his own standing through a group which lacks the fundamental legitimacy to represent professional footballers globally,” it reads. “The evidence shows his concept is driven by personal motives rather than a mandate from players around the world.” The organisation added that the AIF’s “approach to player representation is not in the best interests of professional footballers” and accused Aganzo of aligning himself with groups expelled from FIFPro and linking the AIF to governing bodies. On Thursday, Aganzo dismissed the notion that the AIF had been backed by Infantino, only saying that “direct dialogue” with the sport’s worldwide governing body was crucial. As evidenced by a series of provocative statements issued by both parties over the past two years, there is certainly no love lost between FIFA and FIFPro, and the establishment of the AIF is unlikely to bring them closer together. FIFA has previously accused FIFPro of “blackmail”, and accused its leadership of “not really caring about players” and instead choosing “a path of public confrontation driven by artificial PR battles”. FIFPro has responded, particularly around the player welfare meeting put on by FIFA in Rabat last year, and said that the game’s governing body “continues to hide its unilateral governance structure of professional football behind so-called stakeholder consultation”, adding it is a “deeply flawed process”. The public back and forth between the two organisations suggests plenty of mediation will be required if they are to form a consensus going forward. A FIFA spokesperson responded to the creation of the AIF, saying: “As a general principle, FIFA remains committed to open and constructive engagement with football stakeholders that uphold core principles, including representativeness.” This has been a particular gripe of FIFA’s, as its statement issued in July proved. It is something FIFPro has attempted to address: under Alex Phillips, who was appointed its secretary general in late 2024, the union has now uploaded its statutes online and is giving consideration to publishing a summary of its financial accounts. Although its yearly financial statements are already available via the KVK’s website, they are a spider’s web in the sense that there are more than a dozen companies affiliated with FIFPro. This makes painting a clear picture of their finances — and it is worth noting they are fully compliant with standard practice in the Netherlands — incredibly difficult. However, The Athletic has delved into the accounts and they reveal the organisation, which is a not-for-profit company (meaning the money generated goes back to player unions), is in rude health from a business standpoint. For example, its property empire, which largely consists of apartment buildings that generated profits of over $8million last year, has a total market value north of $50m. FIFPRO, which has to answer to its member unions, chooses to invest in real estate as opposed to stocks and shares to ensure they have the financial means to remain independent and effectively save money for a rainy day. The largest portion of FIFPro’s income — just shy of $70million in 2025 — comes via royalties it receives from selling players’ non-exclusive name, image and likeness rights on behalf of member unions to video-game companies such as Electronic Arts and Konami. Because the rights are non-exclusive, players can still do their own deals with such firms and 90 per cent of the overall figure is returned to member unions, with FIFPro retaining 10 per cent — $6.8million — in 2025 to help with its operational costs. Each member union will have a separate agreement with its players regarding what it receives from the sale of their image rights. FIFPro generated just over $20million in 2025, with the biggest chunks of that figure coming from the commission they receive for negotiating image rights and from those rental properties. At Thursday’s launch, Aganzo pointed to being “in contact with 15 to 20 unions” over joining his new initiative, so all eyes will be on whether they do so. If several member unions decide to sever ties with FIFPro to join the AIF, it will undoubtedly raise eyebrows and could be viewed as a real threat to FIFPro’s authority and standing. It is far too soon to know whether that will be the case, but the spotlight will certainly be on Aganzo’s AIF in the coming weeks as it seeks to capitalise on any momentum it may have gained from that launch event in Madrid. Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms