# What should a recruitment buyer do first?


**Before renewing soccer scouting software, require evidence that the supplier supports the club’s intended decisions, permissions and recordkeeping—not merely that its platform is available.** Our procurement recommendation is to prioritise three workstreams: January 2027 AI and transfer-rule readiness; current data-use and deletion controls; and changes to league calendars and player-acquisition workflows.

Two particularly important deadline corrections emerged from this review. **Colorado’s original 2024 AI framework has been replaced**, with the replacement taking effect on 1 January 2027. **The EU’s Annex III high-risk AI requirements now apply from 2 December 2027**, following legislation that entered into force on 27 July 2026; an August 2026 deadline is no longer the correct planning assumption for those requirements. ([coag.gov](https://coag.gov/ai/))

This report distinguishes **legislation and regulations**, **football governing-body and league requirements**, **technical standards**, and **supplier contract terms**. Recommendations below are procurement controls, not assertions that every club or scouting product falls within every rule. Club counsel should determine jurisdiction, contractual hierarchy, collective-bargaining implications and transaction-specific eligibility.