ACOLFUTPRO reaches historic agreement that will improve Colombian players’ working conditions

• Colombian player union agrees with Colombian Football Federation and Dimayor League measures that will improve players' working conditions

• "We’ve had the support of the government and a different attitude from the league and federation directors, as well as from club representatives," said ACOLFUTPRO Executive Director Carlos Gonzalez Puche

• Success delivers union’s long-standing demands on health, workload and contracts

After several months of negotiations, Colombian player union ACOLFUTPRO made official the agreement reached with the Colombian Football Federation (CFF) and Dimayor that will improve working conditions for professional footballers in the country.

The success delivers long-standing demands of the Colombian union, which has been mediated at the discussion table by the Colombian Ministry of Labour, which is committed to ensuring ACOLFUTPRO's demands to improve labour conditions in football are heard by the FCF and Dimayor.

"We’re very proud of the achievement," Carlos Gonzalez Puche, Executive Director of ACOLFUTPRO, told FIFPRO. "To be able to do this, we’ve had the support of the government and a different attitude – much friendlier – from the league and federation directors, as well as from the club representatives, who are sitting at the table. We have been able to move forward and agree on issues for the benefit of footballers."

The context of the country adds to the difficulties overcome to achieve the expected results: Colombia has only one and a half million union members out of an active population of 40 million.

"There is no trade union consciousness here. Colombia was the country where 80 percent of trade unionists were murdered," said Gonzalez Puche.

Advances for the health and workload of players

In 2025 the league championship’s end date will be 14 December; in 2024 the Dimayor League ended on 22 December, which means that footballers will have at least eight more days of rest.

"We also made it so that you can't play at times that affect your health," said Gonzalez Puche. Colombia has cities such as Barranquilla where there can be a combination of high temperatures and high humidity, which can lead to added health hazards for players depending on the kick-off time.

In addition, Dimayor and the FCF have committed to recommending to clubs the importance of giving footballers the weekly paid rest day.

More matches, better contracts for women’s players

Another of the main topics of discussion was the improvement of the conditions for women’s players compared to previous Liga Dimayor Femenina editions.

From 2025, there will be 16 teams participating instead of 15 as there were last year, and the agreed championship system means that the competition will be played from 21 February to 7 September, bringing the number of matches played to 158. "That's 30 percent more than before," said ACOLFUTPRO’s Executive Director.

Beyond the competitive improvement that the new format represents, the impact it will have on player contracts is very important: "They will be eight months long compared to the four months previously. It is double the length of the contract compared to last year," Gonzalez Puche pointed out.

In addition, it was agreed that no women's league matches would be scheduled on FIFA dates or during the Copa America, except for the first FIFA date, to be played in February.

Gonzalez Puche regretted not having achieved ‘the number of contracts per club to be more than 15’, but on balance he is satisfied: "I think we have won a good space for the women's league."

The role of ILO and FIFPRO

A major impediment for ACOLFUTPRO to be heard was the Colombian labour law, "a law that is obsolete" in the words of Gonzalez Puche. "It does not regulate bargaining by economic sector. The direct employers of the players are the clubs, with whom they should negotiate according to the law, but the FCF and Dimayor impose the working conditions."

Finding itself in a funnel and with the doors closed to any negotiation, the union decided in December 2021 to file a complaint with the International Labour Organisation (ILO) to force negotiations.

"We used the instruments that are available with the ILO, conventions 87, 98 and 154: right to act, right to collective bargaining and the right for a union to negotiate with one or more employers," explained Gonzalez Puche.

"It has been a process through which the state has operated as a mediator of interests. It is a totally atypical negotiation for the Colombian system, not only for football. There is no precedent of negotiation by economic sector in Colombia."

In the process, FIFPRO actively participated with representatives in Colombia in dialogue with the main stakeholders and then supported the presentation to the ILO, a sponsorship during these years with which Gonzalez Puche was very grateful.