In this article Frans de Weger and Arne Al will focus on the regulatory and legal issues for FIFA member associations deriving from the COVID-19 virus outbreak and provide an overview of FIFA’s amendments and temporary suspension of provisions of the FIFA RSTP, as detailed in FIFA Circular no. 1714. As FIFA has also declared the COVID-19 pandemic to be a force majeure event, the authors will also discuss the legal concept of force majeure in light of the relevant published case law of the leading form in international football: the FIFA Dispute Resolution Chamber and the FIFA Players’ Status Committee as well as the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
