From this Friday, all international transfers will have to go through Fifa's Transfer Matching System (TMS). The world governing body believes the system will prevent money laundering, protect minors and make transfers more transparent as clubs must declare if there is any third-party ownership - the issue that caused the Carlos Tevez controversy at West Ham.
The system will also shut down as soon as the transfer deadline is passed, preventing any confusion over whether paperwork was lodged in time.
And Mark Goddard, general manager of TMS, reckons that will deter clubs from leaving it late, just as Tottenham did on the last deadline day when they managed to agree and process a cut-price deal to sign Rafael van der Vaart from Real Madrid minutes before the window shut.
"It's no longer a good idea to play a game of chicken in the negotiations for transfers," he said.
"Over the last two-and-a-half years we have seen examples of big clubs like Real Madrid who last year came out very early in the transfer market and did their business in the first two weeks of the window.
"They avoided leaving it until the last minute as they didn't want to risk playing a game of chicken with a computer system which would say time has run out."
Goddard also explained that clubs risk sanctions ranging from fines to points deductions and transfer bans if they fail to be open about third-party ownership of players.
"For every single transfer it is mandatory for both clubs to declare that there are no third-party influences on this transfer," he added.
"That means we have an electronic record and if it appears that is not a truthful statement we can go back to the transfer in the system and remind the club or the association what they said on the record."
More than 30 details on each transfer have to be entered, such as information on the player, club details, all payments including the amount, timing and bank details, as well as agents involved and the payments to them.
Documentary evidence must also be uploaded onto the system, which will also keep track of individual players to ensure proper compensation payments for clubs that have trained young players only to see them move on.
"This is a historic moment for football," added Fifa president Sepp Blatter. "TMS is a relatively simple online system but it will have a tremendous impact on the international transfer of players.
"Thanks to TMS, football's authorities have more details available on each and every transfer. The most important thing is that it increases the transparency of individual transactions and helps us to tackle issues such as the fight against money laundering and the protection of minors in transfers."
