New FIFA rules could force Man United to release Rashford for free and pay him £30m

Manchester United face a stark financial risk over Marcus Rashford’s future after FIFA introduced new regulations that could force the club to release the forward for free — and pay him approximately £30m in the process.

Rashford, 28, completed a season-long loan at Barcelona, where he contributed 14 goals and 14 assists as the Catalan club won La Liga. Despite that form, Barcelona have confirmed they will not pursue a permanent deal, having instead signed Anthony Gordon from Newcastle for £70m. Rashford is therefore expected to return to Old Trafford once the Club World Cup concludes.

Under new manager Michael Carrick, United had been weighing their options over the England forward. But a significant regulatory change now limits the club’s room for manoeuvre. FIFA has signed a memorandum of understanding with players’ union FIFPro that allows any player banished from first-team training to lodge a breach-of-contract complaint and demand their release as a result. A successful complaint would also require the club to pay out the remaining balance of that player’s contract.

With two years left on Rashford’s reported £300,000-a-week deal at Old Trafford, that liability would total around £30m — a sum United can ill afford to surrender without a transfer fee in return.

The new rule directly targets the kind of tactic used by former United head coach Ruben Amorim, who placed Rashford in a so-called ‘bomb squad’ roughly 12 months ago — a group of players deemed surplus to requirements and made to train separately from the first-team squad. That approach ultimately succeeded in moving on Jadon Sancho, Alejandro Garnacho, and Antony, but FIFA’s intervention means repeating it now carries serious legal and financial consequences.

The regulation is designed to protect players from punitive isolation when a manager wants them out, with FIFA and FIFPro deeming the practice abusive by nature. For United, the practical effect is that Carrick may have little choice but to reintegrate Rashford into the squad unless a buyer can be found willing to meet the club’s valuation.