European Football Union (UEFA) chief Aleksander Ceferin on Wednesday called for changes in the transfer system after record-breaking summer activities by big clubs and urged politicians to help them achieve it.
Ceferin told a UEFA congress that an overhaul was needed after Neymar moved from Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain for a world record 222 million euros (266 million dollars), and 3.93 billion euros were spent overall between June 1 and September 1, more than in the entire year 2016.
He named salary caps, a luxury tax, smaller squads, fewer loan deals and lower fees for agents among possible solutions.
"The momentum is there. I have every intention to do it. That's my goal," Ceferin said. "There is a whole arsenal to regulate the game in a better way."
German Chancellor Angela Merkel had been among European politicians to criticise the huge transfer fees in recent weeks, and Cefering said "let me say that we cannot agree more.
"But I cannot say that you have done much to help us set things straight so far. We are imaginative and committed, and we are just waiting for the green light from those who publicly condemn the current situation but have yet to enable us to put it right."
Gianni Infantino, president of the ruling body FIFA who was attending the congress as a guest, struck a similar note.
"It is time that that all of us tackle the transfer system for the future," Infantino said.
At the extraordinary congress, which lasted a mere 50 minutes, Russia regained its seat on the FIFA Council when Alexei Sorokin, chief executive of Russia's 2018 World Cup organizing committee, was elected as a UEFA member by acclamation on a term until 2018.
The place had been vacant since spring when Russian Deputy Prime Minister Vitaly Mutko was denied running again by then FIFA governance committee chief, Miguel Maduro, who cited conflict of interest in his ruling.
The congress also ratified two members from the European Club Association (ECA) to the UEFA executive committee, Juventus president Andrea Agnelli and Arsenal's Ivan Gazidis.
The executive committee was to meet later Wednesday, with issues including the election of the host cities for the 2019 Champions League and Europa League final.
