When famous soccer players come to mind, it is usually revered pioneers such as Pelé, Bobby Charlton and Diego Maradona.

Later came Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Samantha Kerr.

But who has heard of Jean-Marc Bosman?

A man who changed soccer forever

Anyone interested in association football (soccer) or sport in general should know about Bosman.

He is responsible for the European Court of Justice’s landmark December 1995 Bosman Ruling (often just called Bosman) that enabled players in Europe to move freely between clubs.

This rather obscure Belgian soccer player, who never represented his country at senior level, is arguably as or more important to the world game and some other sports such as basketball than much more gifted athletes.

Elements of the Bosman story echo the late-19th-century feudalism of the Netflix series The English Game. Akin to peasants unable to switch lords and ladies of the manor, professional soccer players in the late 20th century were still forcibly attached to clubs.

In 1990, Bosman was at the end of his contract with Belgian club RFC Liège and wanted to move to French club Dunkerque.

Sports can change dramatically in the blink of an eye. Sometimes, these moments create immediate shockwaves. Other times, it’s not until much later that their impact become obvious. This is the second story in a rolling series that explores key (and sometimes long forgotten) moments in sports history.

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But the clubs could not agree on the mandatory transfer fee and he remained at........

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