FIFA and the FIFPRO union agree on a cooperation deal covering transfers and player welfare

FIFA and the FIFPRO players' union said Wednesday they have agreed to a landmark cooperation agreement for major decisions including transfer rules and health and safety standards.

The agreement on a memorandum of understanding, which FIFA called “historic," was announced on the eve of the World Cup opener. It comes 10 months after the European Court of Justice ruled some decisions by international governing bodies, such as FIFA and the International Olympic Committee, can be challenged outside Switzerland.

The announcement also comes less than two months after a new international group representing soccer players — the Association of International Footballers, or AIF — was founded in Madrid in April to rival FIFPRO.

As part of the new agreement, FIFPRO was recognized by FIFA as the global representative for professional soccer players and lawsuits against FIFA will be dropped by FIFPRO, its division and member unions.

“This MoU marks a new era in FIFA’s relationship with FIFPRO,” FIFA President Gianni Infantino said. “Players shape the game we all love, and we must ensure their protection and well-being. That is why we have jointly created a sustainable pathway to ensure that decisions directly affecting them are based on a collective process anchored in social dialogue.”

The agreement was announced two days after FIFA said it reached a settlement in a lawsuit filed against it by former France midfielder Lassana Diarra in a case caused by the player missing the 2014-15 season in a dispute with Russian club Lokomotiv Moscow and FIFA.

The FIFA-FIFPRO deal, which runs through 2031, means that players, governing bodies, leagues and clubs will have to jointly agree on future decisions.

A Global Social Dialogue Platform will be established and chaired by FIFA to discuss rules on the transfer system and regulatory matters, as well as player welfare and occupational safety and health standards, including player rest and recovery, vacation, mandatory rest periods and retraining. Future changes will be subject to collective agreement. The platform will include representatives of the World Leagues Association and European Football Clubs.

FIFPRO will appoint representatives to FIFA's Football Tribunal, judicial bodies and several committees, while the union will have a non-voting observer on the FIFA Council. The parties will establish a minimum standards framework for women's national teams and work on allocation of prize money from FIFA senior competitions.

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FIFA President Gianni Infantino speaks during a news conference at the stadium in Mexico City, Wednesday, June 10, 2026, a day before the opening FIFA World Cup match between Mexico and South Africa. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo)

FIFA President Gianni Infantino speaks during a news conference at the stadium in Mexico City, Wednesday, June 10, 2026, a day before the opening FIFA World Cup match between Mexico and South Africa. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo)

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A Los Angeles jury on Wednesday ordered California socialite Rebecca Grossman to pay $21 million in punitive damages to the parents of two young brothers who died when her car struck them in a hit-and-run collision in 2020.

Former Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Scott Erickson must also pay $1.17 million in punitive damages.

That is in addition to the $176 million in damages for wrongful death and emotional distress that jurors ordered Grossman and Erickson to pay parents Nancy and Karim Iskander last week, after finding them negligent in the deaths of Mark, 11, and Jacob, 8.

“This verdict sends a clear message that everyone must be held accountable when their selfish actions put innocent lives at risk,” Brian Panish, the Iskander family's attorney, said in a statement Wednesday.

Erickson's attorney, Jeff Braun, said they respected the verdict.

“In the coming days, we will review the verdict with our client and discuss the appropriate path forward,” Braun said in a statement. “Today, however, our focus is on acknowledging the extraordinary loss the Iskander family has endured. We extend our sincere condolences to them and continue to keep them in our thoughts.”

Grossman's attorney, Esther Holm, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Grossman was sentenced in 2024 to serve 15 years to life in prison after being convicted of second-degree murder, gross vehicular manslaughter and hit-and-run driving in a separate criminal trial. She is a co-founder of the Grossman Burn Foundation and the wife of a prominent burn doctor.

The boys’ parents also filed lawsuits in civil court against both Grossman and Erickson, who was driving ahead of her when the Iskander brothers were killed. That trial began in April.

The deadly crash occurred on the evening of Sept. 29, 2020, in Westlake Village, a city on the western edge of Los Angeles County.

Panish, the Iskander family’s attorney, argued that Grossman and Erickson were both driving recklessly after drinking margaritas together. The two were dating at a time when Grossman and her husband were separated.

Panish said Grossman was driving 73 mph (117 kph) when her car struck the boys in a crosswalk on a road where the posted speed limit was 45 mph (72 kph).

He said Grossman was following Erickson, who was also speeding and narrowly missed the family.

Holm, Grossman's attorney, denied that her client was intoxicated. She said Grossman was distracted when she saw the boys’ mother dive out of the way of Erickson’s vehicle.

Braun, Erickson's attorney, called the boys’ deaths a tragedy but emphasized that the vehicle he was driving “made no contact with the children.”

FILE - Nancy Iskander, left, holding the hand of her husband, Karim, leaves Van Nuys Courthouse June 10, 2024, in Van Nuys, Calif., after attending the sentencing hearing in the murder trial of Rebecca Grossman, who is charged in the deaths of their two sons, Mark, 11, and Jacob, 8. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File)