THE Dublin Fianna Fail MEP, Mr Niall Andrews, has urged the EU to take action on the transfer of soccer players.
The European Court of Justice decision on the Bosman case in December would starve clubs by depriving them of transfer fees, Mr Andrews said.
Irish football teams would lose hundreds of thousands of pounds in transfer fees because of the ruling, he predicted, adding that these fees were the backbone of a developing Irish soccer scene.
The court ruled that it was a breach of competition rules for a club disposing of a player to demand a transfer fee from the club receiving the player. Mr Andrews said the EU Council of Ministers should consider exempting soccer from the rules.