AFA Regulation Sparks Controversy, Lionel Messi and 6 Argentina Players Threatened

The Argentine Football Federation (AFA) has released a new policy that has sparked major debate. This rule could potentially impact the future call-ups of national team players, even for a name as big as Lionel Messi.

Reported by The Athletic, the new rule prohibits football athletes from receiving national team call-ups if they move abroad without first signing a professional contract with a domestic club.

Had this rule been implemented in the past, it would have impacted Lionel Messi. The Argentine megastar could have been ineligible for national team selection because he joined Barcelona's academy from Newell’s Old Boys at just 13 years old.

The AFA stated the regulation was created due to several cases related to the application of patria potestad, the law of parental authority in Argentina, which includes parents' rights to manage their children's assets.

In practice, patria potestad law allows parents to decide where their child signs a professional contract, without the prior consent of their club.

Consequently, the club that developed a player would only receive compensation in the form of a development fee, not a transfer fee, if the player leaves before signing a professional contract.

This AFA policy is designed to protect domestic clubs from losing young talent and provide incentives for academy player development.

The AFA took this step primarily to prevent Argentine players from going abroad before signing professional contracts with clubs.

TyC Sports reported that the case that accelerated the emergence of this regulation was Lucas Scarlato's move from River Plate to Parma.

Scarlato, currently 16, has represented the Argentine National Team up to the U16 level. However, he had never signed a professional contract with River Plate. To date, Scarlato has also never played for the senior Argentine national team.

River Plate, the club that raised Scarlato since he was six years old, accused the player's agent, Martin Ariel Guastadisegno, of seeking personal profit by persuading his client to move to Parma.

The impact of this new rule could be widespread. There are seven players in the Argentine national team squad since the September 2025 international break who were never contracted to Argentine clubs.

Besides Messi, other names include Emiliano Martínez (Aston Villa), Giuliano Simeone (Atletico Madrid), Emiliano Buendía (Bayer Leverkusen), Enzo Barrenechea (Benfica), Joaquín Panichelli (Strasbourg), and Valentín Carboni (Racing Club).

If this rule is strictly enforced, the AFA will face a major dilemma: protecting the interests of domestic clubs or maintaining flexibility in selecting the best players for the Albiceleste.