Editor's note: This report compiles all relevant news, events and materials on International and European Sports Law based on the daily coverage provided on our twitter feed @Sportslaw_asser. You are invited to complete this survey via the comments section below, feel free to add links to important cases, documents and articles we might have overlooked.

The Headlines

The European Court of Justice finds that rule of a sports association excluding nationals of other Member States from domestic amateur athletics championships may be contrary to EU law

On 13 June 2019, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) delivered a preliminary ruling at the request of the Amtsgericht Darmstadt (Local Court Darmstadt, Germany) filed in the course of the proceedings involving Mr Daniele Biffi, an Italian amateur athlete residing in Germany, and his athletics club TopFit based in Berlin, on the one hand, and the German athletics association Deutscher Leichtathletikverband, on the other. The case concerned a rule adopted by the German athletics association under which nationals of other Member States are not allowed to be awarded the title of national champion in senior amateur athletics events as they may only participate in such events outside/without classification. The ECJ’s task was to decide whether or not the rule in question adheres to EU law.

The ECJ took the view that the two justifications for the rule in question put forward by the German athletics association did not appear to be founded on objective considerations and called upon the Amtsgericht Darmstadt to look for other considerations that would pursue a legitimate objective. In its judgment, the ECJ analysed several important legal questions, including amongst others the applicability of EU law to amateur sport or the horizontal applicability of European citizenship rights (for detailed analysis of the judgment, please see our blog written by Thomas Terraz).

Milan not featuring in this season’s edition of Europa League following a settlement with UEFA

On 28 June 2019, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) rendered a consent award giving effect to a settlement agreement between UEFA and the Milan Football Club, under which the Italian club agreed to serve a one-year ban from participation in UEFA club competitions as a result of its breaches of UEFA’s financial fair play regulations over the 2015/2016/2017 and the 2016/2017/2018 monitoring periods, while the European football’s governing body agreed to set aside previous decisions of the Investigatory and Adjudicatory Chamber of its Club Financial Control Body which had found Milan guilty of the respective breaches.   

This was not the first intervention of the CAS related to Milan’s (non-)compliance with UEFA’s financial fair play regulations. In July 2018, the CAS annulled the decision of the Adjudicatory Chamber of the UEFA Club Financial Control Body of 19 June 2018 which was supposed to lead to the exclusion of the Italian club from UEFA club competitions for which it would otherwise qualify in the next two seasons (i.e. 2018/2019 and 2019/2020 seasons). Following such intervention of the CAS – which concerned the 2015/2016/2017 monitoring period – it may have appeared that Milan would eventually manage to escape a ban from participation in UEFA club competitions for breaches of UEFA’s financial fair play regulations. However, Milan’s case was again referred to the Adjudicatory Chamber of the UEFA Club Financial Control Body in April 2019 – this time its alleged breaches of UEFA’s financial fair play regulations concerned the 2016/2017/2018 monitoring period – and such referral apparently forced Milan into negotiations with UEFA which led to the settlement agreement ratified by the CAS.      

Swiss Federal Tribunal gives Caster Semenya a glimmer of hope at first but then stops her from running at the IAAF World Championships in Doha

Caster Semenya’s legal team brought an appeal to the Swiss Federal Tribunal in late May against the landmark ruling of the CAS which gave the IAAF the green light to apply its highly contentious Eligibility Regulations for Female Classification (Athlete with Difference of Sexual Development) preventing female athletes with naturally elevated levels of testosterone from participating in certain athletic events unless they take medication to supress such levels of testosterone below the threshold of five nmol/L for a continuous period of at least six months. The appeal yielded some positive partial results for Caster Semenya early on as the Swiss Federal Tribunal ordered the IAAF on 3 June 2019 to suspend the implementation of the contested regulations. However, the Swiss Federal Tribunal overturned its decision at the end of July which means that Caster Semenya is no longer able to run medication-free and this will most likely be the case also when the 2019 IAAF World Athletics Championships kick off in Doha in less than one month’s time. The procedural decisions adopted by the Swiss Federal Tribunal thus far have no impact on the merits of Caster Semenya’s appeal.

Sports Law Related Decisions

• CAS – Arbitral award in the case concerning Caster Semenya
• CAS – Arbitral award in the case concerning Vitaly Mutko and the IOC
• CAS – Consent award in the case concerning AC Milan and UEFA
• European Court of Justice – Judgment in the case TopFit eV and Daniele Biffi v Deutscher Leichtathletikverband eV

Official Documents and Press Releases

CAS

• CAS – Consent award issued by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in the arbitration procedure between AC Milan S.P.A. and UEFA
• CAS – The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) annuls the decision of the CAF Executive Committee
• CAS – The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) declares the appeals filed by the Comoros Football Federation inadmissible
• CAS – The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) dismisses the appeal filed by KS Skenderbeu
• CAS – The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) dismisses the appeal filed by the Gambia Football Federation
• CAS – The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) dismisses the appeal filed by the president of the Palestine FA against the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA)
• CAS – The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) dismisses the appeal of Turkish football club Trabzonspor Kulubu Dernegi
• CAS – The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) registers an appeal filed by the agent Carmine ‘Mino’ Raiola – urgent request for a stay granted – expedited CAS procedure ongoing
• CAS – Manchester City Football Club files an appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS)

FIFA 

• FIFA – Adjudicatory chamber of the independent Ethics Committee sanctions Mr Keramuudin Karim
• FIFA – FIFA and AFD sign landmark cooperation agreement to promote women’s football and develop school football in Africa
• FIFA – FIFA Council unanimously approves expanded 32-team field for FIFA Women’s World Cup
• FIFA – FIFA Disciplinary Committee sanctions Macau Football Association
• FIFA – FIFA introduces innovative approach with launch of new Disciplinary Code
• FIFA – FIFA makes important updates to Code of Ethics
• FIFA – FIFA statement on recent comments made relating to sexual abuse cases in Afghanistan
• FIFA – Gianni Infantino is re-elected as FIFA President until 2023
• FIFA – Joint statement from FIFA and CAF
• FIFA – Normalisation committee appointed for the Pakistan Football Federation
• FIFA – Road map for cooperation between FIFA and CAF
• FIFA – Worldwide suspensions of intermediaries Carmine and Vincenzo Raiola lifted

IAAF

• IAAF – IAAF approves the application of Russia’s Ekaterina Starygina to compete internationally as a neutral athlete
• IAAF – IAAF approves the application of 14 Russians to compete internationally as neutral athletes
• IAAF – IAAF approves the application of 37 Russians to compete internationally as neutral ahtletes
• IAAF – IAAF Council approves out of competition drug testing funding scheme for road races
• IAAF – IAAF response to IWG, WSI and IAPESGW
• IAAF – IAAF response to Swiss Federal Tribunal order regarding DSD regulations
• IAAF – IAAF statement in response to release of full CAS award
• IAAF – IAAF submits response to Swiss Federal Tribunal
• IAAF – IAAF response to Swiss Federal Tribunal’s decision

IOC

• IOC – Evolution of the revolution: IOC transforms future Olympic Games elections
• IOC – IOC lifts suspension of Kuwait Olympic Committee
• IOC – The IOC publishes its 2018 Annual Report and Financial Statements
• IOC – IOC sanctions one athlete for failing anti-doping tests at London 2012
• IOC – IOC sanctions one athlete for failing anti-doping tests at London 2012
• IOC – IOC Session elects two Executive Board members and ten new IOC members

UEFA

• UEFA – Joint statement by FIFA, the AFC, UEFA, the Bundesliga, LaLiga, the Premier League and Lega Serie A regarding the activities of beoutQ in Saudi Arabia
• UEFA – UEFA and Sport Integrity Global Alliance sign cooperation agreement

WADA

• WADA – WADA and iNADO reaffirm strong relationship for good of clean sport
• WADA – WADA Compliance Review Committee update
• WADA – WADA introduces standard analyser at all laboratories approved for ABP controls
• WADA – WADA posts IOC’s Anti-Doping Rules for Lausanne and Tokyo 2020
• WADA – WADA provides International Federations with first batch of cases in Russia investigation
• WADA – WADA publishes latest draft versions of the 2021 Code and International Standards
• WADA – WADA removes Democratic People’s Republic of Korea Anti-Doping Committee from non-compliant list
• WADA – WADA statement on Operation Viribus

Other

• AIU (Athletics Integrity Unit) – Athletics Integrity Unit confirms receipt of Moscow Laboratory data
• European Commission – Report from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council on the assessment of the risk of money laundering and terrorist financing affecting the internal market and relating to cross-border activities
• Europol – Keeping sport safe and fair: 3.8 million doping substances and fake medicines seized worldwide
• The International Working Group (IWG) on Women & Sport – Caster Semenya: IWG, WSI & IAPESWG write to IAAF
• IBU (International Biathlon Union) – IBU renders decision on two Russian biathletes
•  TIU (Tennis Integirty Unit) – Bulgarian brothers Karen and Yuri Khachatyran provisionally suspended by independent Anti-Corruption Hearing Officer
• TIU (Tennis Integrity Unit) – Nigerian tennis player Henry Atseye suspended and fined after admitting to match-fixing offences
• TIU (Tennis Integrity Unit) – Youssef Hossam provisionally suspended by independent Anti-Corruption Hearing Officer

In the news

Doping 

• Andy Brown Romanian NADO instructed lab to cover up positive tests
• Paul Byrne Mamadou Sakho suing WADA for £13m over drug test blunder that ruined Liverpool career
• Daniel Etchells Froome awarded 2011 Vuelta a Espana as Cobo stripped of title
• Daniel Etchells International Biathlon Union makes move to help tackle doping
• Daniel Etchells Olympic gold medallist steps down as first vice-president of Russian Athletics Federation while facing doping case
• Daniel Etchells Recovering Froome set to be awarded 2011 Vuelta a Espana title after winner Cobo found guilty of doping
• Daniel Etchells Russian long-distance runner Nurgaliyev given two-year doping ban
• Daniel Etchells Russian weightlifter Lomova handed four-year ban
• Daniel Etchells Two Russian biathletes given four-year bans for doping based on evidence from Moscow Laboratory
• Daniel Etchells WADA recommends dismissal of two Romanian National Anti-Doping Agency officials after finding doping cover-up
• Paul MacInnes Greg Rutherford and Dawn Fraser back swimmers over Sun Yang protests

Football

• David Conn African football president under questioning over corruption allegations
• David Conn Bahrain-Merida cycling team being used to ‘sportswash’, campaigners say
• David Conn England and Germany ‘will block European Super League’
• David Conn Gianni Infantino trumpets ‘new FIFA’s’ vast wealth at unopposed re-election
• David Conn Manchester City lodge appeal with CAS over UEFA’s FFP referral
• David Conn Manchester City’s CAS appeal against UEFA FFP referral likely to fail
• David Conn Michel Platini rages from the sidelines as Infantino stands to keep FIFA crown
• David Conn Michel Platini detained over award of 2022 World Cup to Qatar
• David Conn A Sarkozy lunch, PSG and beIN sports: questions for Platini over Qatar 2022
• David Conn Top clubs accused over ‘dangerous’ plans to reshape Champions League
• Daniel Etchells Argentine Football Association President stripped of FIFA Council seat after criticising Copa America referees
• Daniel Etchells Consensus that women’s football is in ‘best position’ as inaugural FIFA Convention on female game begins
• Rob Harris FIFA says wrong to stop Iran activists in World Cup stadiums
• Rob Harris Man City asks court to block UEFA case
• Anthony Harwood FIFA President Gianni Infantino opted against expanding the World Cup to 48 teams because of human rights concerns
• Sean Ingle PSG president Nasser al-Khelaifi in spotlight over Pastore transfer
• Sean Ingle World Cup prompts unprecedented global explosion for women’s football
• Jada Loutoo Jack Warner loses extradition challenge in Appeal Court
• Tariq Panja Match-fixing at women’s World Cup? As game grows, officials are on alert
• Aaron Walawalkar Women’s World Cup: Unequal prize money ‘a human rights breach’ say lawyers
• Suzanne Wrack FIFA aware of Afghanistan sexual abuse allegations two years ago, according to emails

Other

• Ben Bloom IAAF fail in initial bid to prevent Caster Semenya defending world 800m title
• Sibilla Bondolfi Why Swiss judges ruled on the Caster Semenya case
• Daniel Etchells FairSport slams CAS decision to uphold Mutko appeal against lifetime Olympic ban
• Daniel Etchells Malaysian badminton players lose appeals against career-ending bans for match-fixing
• Sean Ingle British Olympians call for IOC to shelve ‘unfair’ transgender guidelines
• Sean Ingle Caster Semenya able to run medication-free for now as Swiss court floors IAAF
• Sean Ingle Caster Semenya accuses IAAF of using her as a ‘guinea pig experiment’
• Sean Ingle How can we end the current impasse over transgender athletes?
• Sean Ingle IAAF agent ‘asked Qatari royal’ for $5m in bid for sporting events
• Sean Ingle Lamine Diack to stand trial for money laundering and corruption
• Sean Ingle IOC investigates allegations of bribery over Rio’s 2016 Olympic bid
• Sean Ingle Tokyo 2020: U-turn as hotels agree to wheelchair rooms for Paralympics
• Rory Jiwani Swiss Supreme Court upholds ruling in favour of Caster Semenya
• Lars Jorgensen EOC defends placing the European Games in Belarus
• Paul MacInnes Caster Semenya blocked from competing at world championships
• Ned Payne South African star Semenya set to miss IAAF World Championships after court ruling

Academic Materials

Books

•  Johan Lindholm The Court of Arbitration for Sport and its Jurisprudence: An Empirical Inquiry into Lex Sportiva

International Sports Law Journal

•  Rusa Agafonova International Skating Union versus European Commission: Is the European Sports Model under Threat?

• Stephanie De Dycker Good Governance in Sport: Comparative Law Aspects

• Jan Exner Fixed Sanction Framework in the World Anti-Doping Code: Can Hearing Panels Go Below the Limits in the Pursuit of Proportionate Sanctions?

• Paul Greene and Matthew Kaiser How Athletes’ Rights Can Be Better Protected When It Comes to Retroactive Therapeutic Use Exemptions

Other

•  Antoine Duval What Lex Sportiva Tells You About Transnational Law

Blog

Verfassungsblog: FIFA and human rights symposium

• Antoine Duval and Daniela Heerdt FIFA and human rights: Introduction to the symposium
• Eleanor Drywood ‘We need to talk about the kids’: FIFA’s children’s rights obligations
• Bodo P. Butzler and Lisa Schoddert FIFA’s Eigen-constitutionalisation and its limits
• Raquel Regueiro Dubra Shared international responsibility for human rights violations: The 2022 World Cup in Qatar
• Wojciech Lewandowski Is Bauer the new Bosman? The implications of the recent jurisprudence of the Court of Justice of the European Union for FIFA
• Daniel Rietiker The European Court of Human Rights and FIFA: Current issues and potential challenges
• Michele Krech FIFA for women or women for FIFA? The inherent tensions of FIFA’s Women’s Football Strategy
• Jan Lukomski The protection of labour rights in professional football under the ICESCR

Asser International Sports Law Blog

• Thomas Terraz A New Chapter for EU Sports Law and European Citizenship Rights? The TopFit Decision

Law in Sport

• Philippe Vladimir Boss Tackling match-fixing in Switzerland: The new duties on international sports federations to monitor and report suspected match manipulations
• Gavin Brogan The role and extent of criminal sanctions in sport
• Nikki Dryden When can IOC investigate National Olympic Committees?
• Tiran Gunawardena and Rustam Sethna An overview of the new FIFA Disciplinary Code
• Kei Ikuta Plans underway for pro bono legal services for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games
• Susie Jarrold How sports clubs are investing into tech start-ups
• Despina Mavromati and Jake Cohen International transfer of minors in football: Key takeaways and procedural issues from Chelsea & The FA v. FIFA
• Adam Powell Stadium naming deals: Why clubs and sponsors should always consider their termination rights
• Rustam Sethna A data analysis of the arbitrators, cases and sports at the Court of Arbitration for Sport
• Gavin Stenton and Jaya Bajaj Registering an EU trade mark in bad faith: Lessons from the ‘Neymar’ decision
• Serhat Yilmaz Re-regulating football agents: Would FIFA’s proposed commission cap and prohibition on dual representation work in practice?

Other

• Soren Bang, Christina Friis-Johansen and Jens Alm Victims or winners: Why children’s rights should be the next big issue for sport
• European Leagues Legal Newsletter: June 2019
• Marina Hyde FIFA’s dirty laundry does not cause such a stench in murky times of today
• Marina Hyde Women’s World Cup captured public’s imagination despite FIFA’s worst efforts
• Alex Kelham Rule 40: Olympian ‘business as usual’ ads OK
• Despina Mavromati Jerome Valcke v. FIFA – domestic vs international arbitration: distinction and consequences
• Despina Mavromati and Charles Poncet Application of equity instead of a particular set of rules not a ground for annulment of the arbitral award under Art. 190(2)(b) PILA
• The New Yorker Sunday reading: The women reshaping professional sports
• Keith Rathbone The gender pay gap for the FIFA World Cup is USD 370 million. It’s time for equity
• Roy Tomizawa The dark side of the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics: Claims that construction workers are understaffed, underpaid and underprotected
•  Minky Worden Women soccer players’ biggest challenge is changing FIFA itself

Upcoming Events

• 27-28 September – 8^th International Congress on Football Law, Madrid, Spain
• 13-16 October – Play the Game 2019: Athlete Power on the Rise, Colorado Springs, USA
• 24-25 October – Third Annual International Sports Law Conference of the International Sports Law Journal, T.M.C. Asser Institute, The Hague, Netherlands
• 1 November – The Future of Sports Law and Business, Etihad Stadium, Manchester, UK
• 14-15 November – 3^rd WISLaw Annual Conference & General Assembly, Zurich, Switzerland
• 26-27 March 2020 – 14^th Conference of the PSA Sport & Politics Group, Etihad Stadium, Manchester, UK

The Editors of the International Sports Law Journal (ISLJ) invite you to submit abstracts for the next edition of the ISLJ Conference on International Sports Law, which will take place on 24 and 25 October 2024 at the Asser Institute in The Hague. The ISLJ, published by Springer and TMC Asser Press, is the leading academic publication in the field of international sports law and the conference is a unique occasion to discuss the main legal issues affecting international sports and its governance with renowned academic experts.

We welcome abstracts from academics and practitioners on all issues related to international and transnational sports law and their impact on the governance of sport. We also welcome panel proposals (including a minimum of three presenters) on specific issues of interest to the Journal and its readers. For this year’s edition, we specifically invite submissions on the following themes and subthemes:

Reformism in transnational sports governance: Drivers and impacts

• Legal and social drivers of reforms in transnational sports governance   
• The role of strategic litigation (before the EU/ECtHR/National courts) as a driver of reform;
• The role of public/fan pressure groups on clubs, competition organisers and governments as a driver of change.
• The impact of internal reforms in transnational sports governance: Cosmetic or real change? (e.g. IOC Agenda 2020+5, FIFA governance reforms, CAS post-Pechstein changes, WADA sfter the Russian doping scandal)
• Emerging alternatives to private sports governance – the UK’s Independent Football Regulator.

The organization and regulation of mega sporting events: Current and future challenges 

• Mega-sporting events as legalized sites of digital surveillance 
• Greening mega-sporting events (e.g. carbon neutral pledges, environmental footprints of events, the impact of multiple hosting sites)
• Mega-sporting events and the protection of human rights and labour rights (e.g. Paris 2024 Social Charter, Euro 2024 human rights commitments)
• The Olympic Games and athletes’ economic rights (remuneration/advertisement)
• Reviews of the legal issues raised at Euro 2024 in Germany and the Paris 2024 Olympic Games
• Previews of the legal issues likely to have an impact on the FIFA 2026 World Cup and the Milano-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games

Please send your abstract of 300 words and CV no later than 15 July 2024 to a.duval@asser.nl. Selected speakers will be informed by 30 July.

The selected participants will be expected to submit a draft of their paper by 1 October 2024. Papers accepted and presented at the conference are eligible for publication in a special issue of the ISLJ, subject to peer-review. 

The Asser Institute will provide a limited number of travel & accommodation grants (max. 300€). If you wish to be considered for a grant, please explain why in your submission.