DECODING KOLPAK CONTRACT

Introduction 

The Kolpak contract stems from the Kolpak transactions. The Kolpak agreement means that players from countries that have an agreement with the EU can participate in any justice event in an EU country without being considered an overseas player. This allows them to sign contracts with English county sides without having to compete as foreign players.

When was the rule established?

Maros Kolpak, a Slovak handball player, petitioned the European Court of Justice, arguing that he should not be considered a non-EU player in the German handball league because he was a German resident and also a citizen of a country that had an Association Agreement (AA) with the EU. Kolpak contract with his German club was terminated because the club already had two non-EU players. As a result, the court ruled in his favour.

Players from such countries can play cricket in any EU country without being considered an overseas player. This essentially means that they can sign contracts with English county sides without being fielded as foreign players.

The Green Signal

South Africa is a signatory to the Cotonou Agreement with the EU. Because Zimbabwe and several Caribbean countries are signatories, their players are also eligible for Kolpak deals. No, The British Home Office ruled in 2009 that in order to sign a Kolpak contract, a player must either have a valid work permit in the UK for four years or have earned a certain number of international caps.

Claude Henderson, a South African international cricketer, was the first to sign Kolpak's deal. In 2004, he signed a contract with Leicestershire. He was a county player until his retirement in 2011.

Who exactly is Maros Kolpak?

He was a goalkeeper in Slovak handball. He appeared in 71 games for Slovakia.

He began his club career with HT Traten Presov before joining TSV Baden Ostringen in the German 2nd Bundesliga in 1997. He spent ten seasons with the club's successor, SG Kronau/Ostringen (now Rhein-Neckar Löwen), beginning in 2002. During this time, Kolpak ran into issues with the Deutscher Handballbund's Non-EU quota rules, which prevented him from playing in Germany.

As a result, he petitioned the European Court of Justice.

RULES AND RESTRICTION:

Rules and Restrictions on the Kolpak’s deal enforced by ECB are as follows –

1. A player must have a valid work permit for four years in the UK or have earned a specific number of caps in international cricket for their countries.

2. A player can not represent his country during the length of his agreement with the county club.

3. A player can play domestic cricket in his home country in the English offseason. The County cricket has to be the priority for the player signing Kolpak’s Deal.

4. The players over 18 years have to play 7 years (earlier it was 4 years) of county cricket and have to secure citizenship to qualify for England Cricket team selection.

5. The clubs putting Kolpak players in the team over English players will get £1,100 less from the ECB for county matches and £250 less for One-Day matches.

6. A player must not have represented his country for over twelve months before signing Kolpak’s Deal. This rule was removed after South African player Jacques Rudolph signed for Yorkshire.

However, these restrictions did not stop county clubs from signing foreign players under Kolpak. In 2008, a match between Northants and Leicestershire had half the players on the field from non-EU countries.

Since 2008, ECB changed its interpretation of the Cotonou agreement from the free movement of labor to the free trades of goods and services to put the influx of the players on a leash.

Impact of Brexit on Kolpak’s Deal?

On 31st January 2020, Britain exited from the EU. This forced ECB to announce to counties that the Kolpak players no longer be registered as non-overseas players in a post-European Union Britain from 2021 onwards.

On the other hand, South Africa director of cricket Graeme Smith issued a statement saying South Africa will welcome back former Kolpak players who are willing to take a part in domestic structure.

Final Words:

While Kolpak deal enabled many cricketers to continue playing and maintain financial stability, it posed the greatest threat to their home countries' ability to establish and maintain dominance in world cricket.

The Kolpak agreement has had such an impact that even after the ECB stated that Kolpak players will no longer be treated as non-internationals, many are still willing to take the risk of playing in England.

With Brexit, South African cricket may find an opportunity to bring back these players and strengthen their presence in international cricket.

Written by

Ozasvi Amol

LinkedIn

Akshay Singh Rawat

LinkedIn