FIFA lift Barca transfer ban

Barcelona will be able to sign players this summer after FIFA announced the club’s transfer ban will be put on hold pending an appeal.

The Catalan club had been given a transfer ban for two windows for breaching rules on signing minors from overseas.

Barcelona have appealed and FIFA has announced the ban will be suspended until the disciplinary process is completed.

The Spanish champions were sanctioned by FIFA’s disciplinary committee on April 2 for breaking the rules in the case of 10 under-18 players and punished with a transfer embargo for two transfer windows and a fine of 450,000 Swiss francs (€305,000).

Barcelona currently have a trio of youth players from South Korea, including much sought-after 15-year-old striker Lee Seung Woo.

FIFA only allows youth transfers when one of three situations apply: the player’s parents have moved country for their own, non-related reasons; the move takes place within the European Union if a player is aged between 16 and 18; or the player’s home is less than 50 kilometres from the national border being crossed.