A-LEAGUE clubs will soon be permitted to sign two international players outside of the salary cap, with Football Federation Australia considering a major change to the marquee structure.

The current rule states that one of the two marquee spots available must be filled by an Australian player, but it’s becoming increasingly difficult for clubs to find Australian footballers who fit the “marquee” status.

At the same time, it’s understood FFA has noted with some concern as football superstars Didier Drogba, Andrea Pirlo and Frank Lampard, all briefly linked with moves to the A-League, have instead opted to sign for Major League Soccer clubs in the United States.

Nothing has been set in stone as yet, but discussions have been ongoing and it’s believed most A-League clubs would support the change.

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It allows some flexibility, as they would be able to fill their marquee spots with either two Australian players, two international players, or one of each.

The only question mark regards the timing of the change, which is expected to be announced before the start of the season. It would benefit some clubs, such as the Western Sydney Wanderers who have signed Federico Piovaccari as their international marquee, but are without an Australian marquee after losing Matthew Spiranovic and would now be able to bring in another foreign player outside of the salary cap.

There would be no such luxury for city rivals Sydney FC, who have already filled both marquee spots — Alex Brosque is the Australian marquee and Slovakian Filip Holosko has filled the international spot — and were forced to fit the returning Milos Dimitrijevic under the salary cap.

While the change would certainly benefit Sydney, Melbourne City and Melbourne Victory in the long-run by allowing them to splash out on the best possible talent, it’s likely to have very little impact on cash-strapped clubs Newcastle Jets and the Central Coast Mariners, who are unlikely to be in positions to sign marquee players anyway.

Still, it’s believed they support the initiative as it would benefit the A-League as a whole to have more international stars playing in it.

While FFA wouldn’t elaborate on the issue, they did confirm the change has been spoken about.

“As part of our annual end of season review of the A-League that incorporates all stakeholders, FFA is considering the current rules around marquee players,” an FFA spokesperson said.

Interestingly, FFA is free to implement new structures as it sees fit as there is no Collective Bargaining Agreement in place. The previous one expired on June 30 and the FFA and players union remain locked in negotiations regarding a new CBA.