The Caceres rule, also known as the Anthony Caceres rule or Caceres Clause, is a transfer regulation imposed by

Football Australia Football Australia is the sports governing body, governing body of Soccer in Australia, soccer, futsal, and beach soccer within Australia, headquartered in Sydney. Although the first governing body of the sport was founded in 1911, Football Au ...

that prevents a player from being registered in an

A-League A-League Men, also known as the Isuzu UTE A-League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional soccer league in Australia and New Zealand and the highest level of the Australian soccer league system. Established in 2004 as the A-League by the ...

season if said player was purchased by a multi-club ownership/partnership (MCO) and loaned to an MCO related A-League club. This applies until the player's preceding A-League contract is completed or the expiry of the two transfer windows during the domestic season, including the window in which the player was purchased.

History

During the 2015–16 season of the

, on 15 January 2016,

Anthony Caceres Anthony Richard Caceres (; born 29 September 1992) is an Australian soccer player who plays as a central midfielder for Sydney FC and the Australia men's national team. Career Central Coast Mariners Caceres made his A-League debut for the Cen ...

was signed by English club

Manchester City Manchester City Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in Manchester, England, that competes in the Premier League, the English football league system, top flight of Football in England, English footbal ...

for a

transfer fee In professional football, a transfer is the action taken whenever a player under contract moves between clubs. It refers to the transferring of a player's registration from one association football club to another. In general, the players can onl ...

of AU$300,000 from

Central Coast Mariners Central Coast Mariners Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in Gosford, on the Central Coast of New South Wales. It competes in the A-League Men, under licence from the Australian Professional Leagues (APL). The Mar ...

. Four days after his signing to City, Caceres was sent on loan to A-League rivals Melbourne City, who are under the same ownership as Manchester City, for the remainder of the season. The move sparked controversy as it was deemed a loophole to a rule which prohibits A-League clubs to request, offer or pay a transfer fee for a player in a national league club; Melbourne City would not have been able to sign Caceres without the influence of Manchester City.

Sydney FC Sydney Football Club, commonly known as Sydney FC, is a professional association football, soccer club based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. They compete in the top-tier men's league in Australia, the A-League Men. Established in 2004, ...

chief executive officer

Tony Pignata Tony Pignata is an Australian football administrator and current chief executive of Football Tasmania. His previous positions include chief executive of Football Federation Victoria, Perth Glory, Sydney FC and inaugural chief executive of Wellingt ...

criticised the move since it gave an advantage for clubs under a club-model despite it being within the competitions regulations. As a result, after a review of the transfer,

sent a memo to all participating A-League clubs about a rule change that prohibits players, who were purchased by a multi-club ownership, from being sent on loan to a sister club in the A-League until the player's preceding contract in the A-League is completed or the two domestic transfer windows have passed since the date of the signing. The clause was reviewed once more in August 2024 after the introduction of

Auckland FC Auckland Football Club, commonly known as Auckland FC, is a professional football club based in Auckland, New Zealand that competes in the A-League Men, the top flight of Australian soccer. Established on 14 March 2024, the club is under lic ...

, which shares a similar club model to Melbourne City, under owner Bill Foley. This was further called upon due to the loan signing of goalkeeper

Alex Paulsen Alexander Noah Paulsen (born 4 July 2002) is a New Zealand footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Premier League club AFC Bournemouth and the New Zealand national team. Born in Auckland, Paulsen joined the Wellington Phoenix in 2018. Initial ...

from

Bournemouth Bournemouth ( ) is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole unitary authority area, in the ceremonial county of Dorset, England. At the 2021 census, the built-up area had a population of 196,455, making it the largest ...

to sister club Auckland. Paulsen recently played for

Wellington Phoenix Wellington Phoenix Football Club is a professional football club based in Wellington, New Zealand. It competes in the Australian A-League Men, under licence from Football Federation Australia. Phoenix entered the competition in the 2007–08 ...

in the 2023–24 season before signing for Bournemouth for a transfer fee in June. Auckland's chief executive officer Nick Becker said that all clubs in the A-League agreed the 'Caceres rule' needed reviewing and potentially taken out for future seasons. However, Wellington Phoenix released a statement from general manager David Dome, asking for clarification on the loan signing despite supporting the adaption of the clause to allow Paulsen into the league.

References

{{A-League Men A-League Men rules and regulations Association football terminology