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 

Anti-doping whereabouts requirements declared compatible with the athletes' right to privacy and family life

On 18 January 2018, the European Court of Human Rights rendered a judgment with important consequences for the world of sport in general and the anti-doping regime in particular. The Strasbourg-based court was called upon to decide whether the anti-doping whereabouts system – which requires that a limited number of top elite athletes provide their National Anti-Doping Organisation or International Federation with regular information about their location, including identifying for each day one specific 60-minute time slot where the athlete will be available for testing at a pre-determined location – is compatible with the athletes' right to private and family life under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights and their freedom of movement pursuant to Article 2 Protocol No. 4 of the Convention. The case was brought by the French cyclist Jeannie Longo and five French athlete unions that had filed their application on behalf of 99 professional handball, football, rugby, and basketball players.

While acknowledging that the whereabouts requirements clash with the athletes' right to private and family life, the judges took the view that such a restriction is necessary in order to protect the health of athletes and ensure a level playing field in sports competitions. They held that ''the reduction or removal of the relevant obligations would lead to an increase in the dangers of doping for the health of sports professionals and of all those who practise sports, and would be at odds with the European and international consensus on the need for unannounced testing as part of doping control''. Accordingly, the judges found no violation of Article 8 of the Convention and, in a similar vein, ruled that Article 2 Protocol No. 4 of the Convention was not applicable to the case.

Football stakeholders preparing to crack down on agents' excessive fees

It has been a record-breaking January transfer window with Premier League clubs having spent an eye-watering £430 million on signing new acquisitions. These spiralling transfer fees enable football agents, nowadays also called intermediaries, to charge impressive sums for their services. However, this might soon no longer be the case as the main stakeholders in European football are preparing to take action. UEFA, FIFPro, the European Club Association and the European Professional Football Leagues acknowledge in their joint resolution that the 2015 FIFA Regulations on Working with Intermediaries failed to address serious concerns in relation to the activities of intermediaries/agents. They recognise in broad terms that a more effective regulatory framework is needed and call among other things for a reasonable and proportionate cap on fees for intermediaries/agents, enhanced transparency and accountability, or stronger provisions to protect minors.

The CAS award in Joseph Odartei Lamptey v. FIFA 

On 15 January 2018, FIFA published on its website an arbitral award delivered on 4 August 2017 by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in the dispute between the Ghanian football referee Joseph Odartei Lamptey and FIFA. The CAS sided with FIFA and dismissed the appeal filed by Mr Lamptey against an earlier decision of the FIFA Appeal Committee which (i) found him to have violated Article 69(1) of the FIFA Disciplinary Code as he unlawfully influenced the 2018 World Cup qualifying match between South Africa and Senegal that took place on 12 November 2016; (ii) as a consequence, banned him for life from taking part in any football-related activity; and (iii) ordered the match in question to be replayed. In reaching its conclusion, the CAS relied heavily on multiple reports of irregular betting activities that significantly deviated from usual market developments. 

Sports Law Related Decisions

• CAS – Award delivered in the arbitration between Joseph Odartei Lamptey and FIFA
• CAS – Award delivered in the arbitration between the Virgin Islands Olympic Committee and the International Olympic Committee
• CAS – Award delivered in the arbitration between WADA and Gil Roberts
• European Court of Human Rights – Judgment on the compatibility of the anti-doping whereabouts rules with the fundamental rights of athletes

Official Documents and Press Releases

• CAS – CAS declares Lao Toyota Football Club eligible to participate in the 2018 AFC Cup
• CAS – CAS does not have jurisdiction to entertain the appeal filed by the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federatio
• CAS – CAS has opened its temporary offices on the site of the Pyeongchang Winter Olympic Games
• CAS – CAS has registered 42 appeals filed by Russian athletes against the Disciplinary Commission of the International Olympic Committee
• CAS – Dutee Chand case: The application of the IAAF Hyperandrogenism Regulations remain suspended
• Council of Europe – FIFA and the Council of Europe to promote human rights
• FIFA – Global Transfer Market Report: A review of all international football transfers in 2017
• FIFA – Guidance on the Bid Rules of Conduct for the process to select the host(s) of the 2026 FIFA World Cup
• FIFA – Normalisation committee appointed for the Kuwait FA
• FIFA – Statement on CAS decision relating to match official Joseph Odartei Lamptey
• FIFPro – Belounis settles with Qatari club
• IOC – International Testing Agency (ITA) moves closer to being operational
• IOC – IOC issues Conduct Guidelines for Olympic Athlete from Russia delegation
• IOC – Olympic Athlete from Russia (OAR) Invitation Review Panel releases list of information used as part of its deliberations
• IOC – Reduced pool of Russian athletes and officials who can be considered for invitation to Pyeongchang 2018 determined
• Tennis Integrity Unit – Annual Review 2017
• UEFA – Club Licensing Benchmarking Report: Financial Year 2016
• UEFA – EU Sectoral Social Dialogue Committee for Professional Football: Resolution on intermediaries/agents
• UEFA – Professional Football Strategy Council meets in Nyon
• UEFA – UEFA bans six Malta under-21 players for match-fixing offences
• WADA – WADA announces that 2018 List of Prohibited Substances and Methods is now in force
• WADA – WADA investigates potential integrity issue with new generation BEREG-KIT Geneva security bottles
• WADA – WADA's fifth World Conference on Doping in Sport to be held in November 2019

In the news

Doping

• Andrew Aloia Ryan Bailey: Ex-England and Great Britain prop avoids ban after 'landmark' drugs case
• Nick Butler European Court dismisses claim anti-doping whereabouts system violates human rights
• Nick Butler NADOs criticise IOC for not revealing criteria for Russian eligibility at Pyeongchang 2018
• Nick Butler Russian sliders still eligible to compete in IBSF events after CAS decide against ruling
• Daniel Etchells Russia work on sanctions against WADA officials in response to Pyeongchang 2018 ban
• Martha Kelner and Sean Ingle Chris Froome says report of plea bargain over failed drug test 'completely untrue'
• Victor Mather and Rebecca R. Ruiz Russia is barred from Winter Olympics. Russia is sending 169 athletes to Winter Olympics
• Reuters IOC 'concerned' about potential integrity issues with testing bottles
• Rebecca R. Ruiz American sprinter used 'passionate kissing' defence in doping case. And it worked
• Rebecca R. Ruiz IOC clears nearly 400 Russians to compete in Winter Games
• Rebecca R. Ruiz Russia is banned from Paralympics, again, for doping

Football

• Global Legal Post Mainz 05 obtains landmark ruling on temporary contracts
• Martha Kelner Chelsea racism allegations: Four more players to take legal action against club
• Thomas Klein Training in Qatar: 'Bayern Munich cannot remain silent'
• Tariq Panja Critics say FIFA is stalling a doping inquiry as World Cup nears
• Sky Sports Michel Platini takes FIFA ban appeal to European Court of Human Rights
• Sky Sports Prosecutors investigating FIFA payment to head of Austrian Football Federation

Other

• David Conn The Lawn Tennis Association launches review into procedural failings over jailed tennis coach
• Mike Dunne Show jumping awaits competition body ruling
• SportBusiness International Force India, Sauber witdraw EU complaint against Formula One

Blog 

Asser International Sports Law Blog

• Stefano Bastianon The ISU Commission's Decision and the Slipery Side of Eligibility Rules
• Tomáš Grell Human Rights as Selection Criteria in Bidding Regulations for Mega-Sporting Events – Part II: FIFA and Comparative Overview

Law in Sport

• Nick Fitzpatrick and Ruth Hoy The major global challenges in managing data to protect sporting integrity
• Graham Gilbert Athlete cocaine use: The cases of Dale Swift, Graham Gibbons and Dan Evans
• Alex Haffner Why the International Skating Union was found in breach of EU competition law
• Manali Kulkarni and Sean Cottrell Key sports law cases and developments to watch in 2018: Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia and Australia
• Manali Kulkarni and Sean Cottrell Key sports law cases of 2017: Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia and Australia
• Nick Tsatsas Will the FA score with its adoption of the Rooney Rule?
• Sophie Wilkinson and Adam Leadercramer Key information on the General Data Protection Regulation for the sports industry

Others

• Jens Sejer Andersen European politicians demand radical change of sports governance
• Andy Brown ECHR judgment fails to consider alternatives to 'whereabouts'
• Braham Dabscheck Why Djokovic is right to say tennis players need a union
• European Professional Football Leagues Legal Newsletter January 2018
• Nick De Marco Italian parliament enacts new regulation of football agents
• Despina Mavromati SFT Judgment 4A_312/2017: Compatibility of an agent's commission fee with public policy
• David Owen European football: A cash magnet, but is the pyramid's base starting to erode?
• Tariq Panja At African soccer event, games of cat and mouse
• Daisuke Takahashi Tokyo Olympic Sustainable Sourcing Code and its grievance mechanism in a Japanese legal context

Upcoming Events

• 16 March – Sports Law & Business Conference, Etihad Stadium, Manchester, England
• 3-4 July – 13^th Sport & EU Annual Conference, Edge Hill University, England

On March 27, 2014, a Brazilian court ruling authorized the Football Players’ Union in the State of Sao Paulo[1] to tap funds generated by TV rights agreements destined to a Brazilian Club, Comercial Futebol Clube (hereinafter “Comercial”). The Court came to this decision after Comercial did not comply with its obligation  to pay players’ salaries. It is a peculiar decision when taking into account the global problem of clubs overspending and not complying with their financial obligations.  Furthermore, it could create a precedent for future cases regarding default by professional sporting clubs.

In 2013, 19 players were victims of financial mismanagement of the football club based in Ribeirao Preto. This year, with the problem still unresolved, the 19 players once again were facing financial distress. The total sum that Comercial still owed players, which consisted of overdue salaries, social security contributions and severance pay after contract expiration, amounted to R$ 363,147.71, or €120,000.00. By means of meeting the player’s demands, Comercial had issued unredeemed cheques in order to pay part of the salaries of the Players before this year’s carnival. To receive the salaries Comercial owed, the Players’ Union filed a complaint against Comercial in front of the Labour Court of Ribeirao Preto, representing eight players who are members of the Union. It asked, inter alia, for a provisional measure that would freeze  the amount that Comercial would receive from the Football Federation of Sao Paulo and the Brazilian television network Rede Globo for the TV rights. Rede Globo is the biggest broadcasting company in Brazil and holds the rights to broadcast the main competitions in football, including the upcoming FIFA World Cup. For Comercial, this would mean not receiving up to €850,000.00 from the Football Federation of Sao Paulo for the TV rights agreement. The agreement included the broadcasting of the Campeonato Paulista, for which Comercial was to be paid in four instalments (January, February, March and April 2014). At the time of the request, three out of four instalments had already been paid. Therefore, the Players’ Union could only acquire the amount of the fourth instalment due in April 2014, equal to €210,000.00.

In accordance with the tradition of Roman Law, on which the Brazilian legal system was developed, the Court had identified the existence of both legal requirements in order to issue a provisional measure: fumus boni juris, i.e. that the claim has a reasonable prospect of success and periculum in mora, i.e. the danger that claimant's rights may be impaired by the lapse of time. Regarding the first requirement, the Court established (in accordance with Article 335 of Brazilian Civil Procedural Code[2]) that Comercial had issued cheques that afterwards could not be claimed by the players. As regards the second requirement, the Court took in consideration the fact that Comercial was relegated to the second division of the Sao Paulo State League[3] and that the players were dismissed.

As a consequence, the Court accepted the request of the Players’ Union, and ordered the Football Federation of Sao Paulo and Rede Globo to deposit the amount that was due to CFC on the Union’s bank account instead. Whether Comercial exerted its possibility to challenge this measure within five days is yet unknown.

This decision is, to our knowledge, a novel and efficient method (from the point of view of the players) to tackle the problem of unpaid salaries in the world of football. It has, therefore, also been welcomed by FIFPRO. The measure issued in this particular case is of limited importance, because it only applies to the eight players affiliated to the Players’ Union. However, the method used by the Union, ceasing the TV rights income directly, might prove very useful for players in similar situations worldwide, it ensures that, even in case of default of their employers, the contractual demands of the players can be satisfied.

2nd Labour Court of Ribeirao Preto SAPESP-Comercial F C (3).pdf (14.6KB)

[1] Sindicato de Atletas Profissionais do Estado de São Paulo, one of the five founding members of the Brazilian National Players’ Union (FENAPAF)

[2] that states the application of rules of common experience in absence of specific regulations

[3] Paulistão da Série A2