Players and the TMS-NRS integration

Introduction

When creating a transfer, a claim or a minor application in TMS, it is extremely important to select the correct player and to avoid duplicating players who are already in the TMS database or registered with Member Associations. The best way to identify a player is by using the FIFA ID.

The FIFA ID is the worldwide unique identifier given by the FIFA Connect System (FIFA Connect ID) to each club, Member Association and player. Each Member Association must assign each player a FIFA ID when a player is first registered in its National Registration System (NRS). Only electronically registered players identified with a FIFA ID are eligible to participate in organised football.

To ensure that player details remain synchronised between TMS and the relevant National Registration System, Member Associations must:

• ensure that all registered players have a FIFA ID;
• assign the correct FIFA ID in TMS through the player confirmation or player deduplication process;
• take over that FIFA ID in the NRS when registering a player to become the data owner;
• edit player details or merge duplicate players in their NRS and contact the TMS Helpdesk when required.

The FIFA ID registered in the system of the Member Association must also be reflected in the TMS profile of the player.

As part of the FIFA Connect ID-TMS integration process, TMS will try to assign a FIFA ID to all players in TMS as soon as they are involved in a transfer. In the process of assigning the FIFA ID to the player, one of three scenarios applies:

• Exact match: the player details in TMS exactly match the player data in FIFA Connect ID. In this case, the relevant FIFA ID is automatically assigned to the player in TMS.
• Possible duplicate(s): the player details in TMS closely match player data in FIFA Connect ID. In this case, the relevant Member Association must assign the FIFA ID to the player by resolving the player duplicates in TMS.
• No match: the player’s details in TMS do not match any player data in FIFA Connect ID. In this case, the player is created in Connect ID with a new FIFA ID, which is automatically assigned to the player in TMS.

Taking over a FIFA ID (data owner)

The data owner is the Member Association that controls the player record. This is determined based on the registration information submitted to the Connect system.

To become the data owner, Member Associations must register the player in their National Registration System and take over the player record. As only one registration for the Football discipline can be stored in the Connect ID system at a time, when a new registration is added for the same discipline, it replaces the previous one and the Member Association becomes the data owner.

Taking over the FIFA ID gives the Member Association control of the player record, helps prevent duplication across systems and supports accurate data and compliance with FIFA data standards.

For more information on taking over existing player records, see the technical guidance provided by the Connect ID team. For step-by-step guidance that applies in a specific National Registration System, Member Associations should contact their technical team or system administrator.

Players where TMS is the data owner

When FIFA IDs were created by Member Associations directly in TMS via the player deduplication menu, TMS was registered as the record data owner by default. This can be verified via the Audit Trail.

TMS should never remain the data owner of a player record. The Member Association that created the FIFA ID should therefore immediately take over the player’s registration in its National Registration System and become the data owner. Failure to do so may result in missing registration information in the player’s history and inaccurate player information.

Registering players (data holder)

A data holder is any Member Association that stores information about the player in its National Registration System, including current and inactive registrations.

Any player registered in the TMS Stakeholders database will have TMS as a data holder. Accordingly, when the player’s information is updated, TMS and every other Member Association that is a data holder for the player are notified automatically through Connect ID. These notifications are reviewed and synchronised in TMS.

How do I know if my Member Association is the data owner or data holder of a player record?

Users can verify the data owner or data holder by searching for the player’s FIFA ID in the Audit Trail in the Connect Admin Console which lists all the operations synchronised from the National Registration Systems of Member Associations to the Connect ID service.

When a Member Association takes over the FIFA ID in its National Registration System, an entry labelled “Registrations added” or “Registrations added forcefully” appears in the Audit Trail. The time of the operation will correspond to the moment that the ownership of the player record was changed.

Each Member Association registered as a data holder for a FIFA ID has access to the record details and Audit Trail logs in the Admin Console.