UEFA have called for a crackdown on the "trafficking" of young players after an investigation revealed conmen posing as talent scouts were tricking youngsters into handing over thousands of pounds.
European football's governing body is pressing for the transfer of all players under the age of 18 to be banned.
UEFA communications director William Gaillard said the evidence gathered about fraudulent scouts in Nigeria by a BBC investigation added further weight to the calls for the ban.
One man claimed he was authorised to sign players for Manchester United and asked for a £3,700 registration fee.
Gaillard told PA Sport: "Even legitimate scouting of young players causes us concern because this is basically the trafficking of 12 and 13-year-old boys from inside and outside Europe.
"From what we are told by non-governmental organisations, only one boy out of every 1,000 makes it as a professional footballer. The rest are just left on the street.
"On the edge of this human trafficking, there are another set of people who are not even connected with any club trying to make more money out of these boys."
The Football Association in London issued a warning against similar scams in Britain earlier this year.
The FA said in a statement: "The FA has been very proactive on this issue as soon as we were made aware of it by concerned parties, such as parents of young players and licensed football agents.
"The FA investigated the complaints and passed on our findings to the relevant law enforcement agencies, whom we continue to liaise with and assist in relation to these matters."
UEFA communications director William Gaillard said the evidence gathered about fraudulent scouts in Nigeria by a BBC investigation added further weight to the calls for the ban.
One man claimed he was authorised to sign players for Manchester United and asked for a £3,700 registration fee.
Gaillard told PA Sport: "Even legitimate scouting of young players causes us concern because this is basically the trafficking of 12 and 13-year-old boys from inside and outside Europe.
"From what we are told by non-governmental organisations, only one boy out of every 1,000 makes it as a professional footballer. The rest are just left on the street.
"On the edge of this human trafficking, there are another set of people who are not even connected with any club trying to make more money out of these boys."
The Football Association in London issued a warning against similar scams in Britain earlier this year.
The FA said in a statement: "The FA has been very proactive on this issue as soon as we were made aware of it by concerned parties, such as parents of young players and licensed football agents.
"The FA investigated the complaints and passed on our findings to the relevant law enforcement agencies, whom we continue to liaise with and assist in relation to these matters."
Copyright (c) Press Association
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