Latest news with #RFCSeraing
Yahoo
01-08-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
10 years after offence: European Court of Justice rules in Seraing's favour in dispute with FIFA
As per HLN, the European Court of Justice has ruled in RFC Seraing's favour, after the club were in dispute with FIFA regarding third-party owners. The problems stem from 2015, when Seraing transferred the economic rights for several players to the Maltese company Doyen Sports. However, according to FIFA, this violated the ban on Third Party Ownership (TPO). The Belgian news outlet explains that. 'this means that a party other than a football club owns part of the economic rights to a player and can thus profit from transfer fees, loan fees, and image rights.' FIFA imposed a transfer ban on the club for four transfer windows and a fine of 150,000 Swiss francs (over 136,000 euros). These sanctions were upheld by the International Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) and the Swiss Federal Court, with FIFA being based in Switzerland. The case was also brought before the Belgian court, but it declared itself incompetent in the matter. Belgian law recognises the authority of rulings by the CAS. An appeal was subsequently filed, and the Court of Cassation referred the matter to the European Court of Justice. The Advocate General of the Court had already issued an opinion in the case in January. Now the European Court agree, ruling that 'it is essential that arbitration does not undermine the rights and freedoms that athletes, clubs, and the like derive from the fundamental rules of EU law.' According to the Court, 'national courts must therefore have the power to thoroughly review the compatibility of arbitration awards from the CAS. Furthermore, if a national regulation or a sports federation's regulation prevents national courts from exercising their jurisdiction, the courts are obligated to disapply the regulation.' GBeNeFN | Max Bradfield
New York Times
01-08-2025
- Business
- New York Times
EU court rules CAS decisions can be reviewed by national courts
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled Friday that decisions made by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) can now be reviewed by national courts to ensure compliance with European Union (EU) law. The ruling means that certain decisions from governing bodies such as FIFA can be challenged outside of Switzerland. If the legislation or rules of world football's governing body are deemed to 'prevent the national courts or tribunals from exercising their powers,' said courts or tribunals are now 'required to disapply that legislation or those rules'. Advertisement CAS, an institution independent of any sports organisation, handles significant legal sporting cases such as doping and contract disputes. The court is based in Lausanne, Switzerland. Officials and clubs had previously been bound to accept verdicts made by CAS. Switzerland's supreme court decides upon CAS verdicts which have been challenged, but have rarely overturned the verdicts. The ECJ said in a statement that national courts or tribunals of member states 'must be empowered to carry out, at the request of individuals or of the court's or tribunal's own motion, an in-depth judicial review as to whether arbitral awards made by CAS are consistent with EU public policy'. The verdict directly relates to the 10-year legal battle between FIFA and Belgian club RFC Seraing, who, alongside Maltese investment fund Doyen Sports, opposed the governing body's rules on third-party ownership of the economic rights of players. FIFA imposed several registration bans and a fine of 150,000CHF ($184,700) on Seraing, sanctions which were upheld by CAS and the Swiss Federal Supreme Court. The club subsequently put the case before the Belgian court of first instance and court of appeal, but found it could not carry out a new assessment of the compatibility of the verdict with EU law, with CAS' decision holding the authority of res judicata — effectively meaning it cannot be pursued further. After the club put the case before the court, the ECJ ruled that such authority is incompatible with EU law. It said: 'The application of rules of this kind deprives individuals of the possibility of obtaining, from the courts or tribunals of the Member States, effective judicial review of such arbitral awards.' In quotes carried by the Associated Press, Seraing's lawyer Jean-Louis Dupont said the club should be compensated for the sanctions imposed on it by FIFA and said the implications of the ECJ ruling challenge the legality of all 'forced arbitrations' by mandated international sports federations. Advertisement 'In summary, the (court) has definitively ended the procedural deception used by international sports federations to evade the proper application of EU law through the imposition of compulsory arbitration outside the EU,' Dupont said. CAS issued a statement Friday saying it acknowledges the ECJ's ruling that its awards 'should be limited to EU public policy only' while adding that only six per cent of the court's decisions are appealed to the Swiss Federal Tribunal (SFT). 'ICAS also acknowledges recognition by the CJEU that sports arbitration is a legitimate mechanism ensuring a uniform treatment of sporting disputes and a consistent application of sporting rules,' the statement added. The ECJ's ruling on Friday marks another landmark verdict under EU competition law. In the last two years, it challenged the authority of UEFA and FIFA by ruling the governing bodies acted unlawfully in blocking the creation of the proposed Super League, while ruling last year in the Lassana Diarra case that some FIFA rules regarding players transfers were acting contrary to EU law in relation to freedom of movement. FIFA declined to comment when approached by The Athletic.
Washington Post
01-08-2025
- Business
- Washington Post
Top EU court rules that soccer governing body FIFA's decisions can be challenged outside Switzerland
BRUSSELS — The European Union's top court ruled on Friday that the decisions of world soccer's governing body FIFA can be challenged outside Switzerland, opening up a system that currently binds athletes, officials and clubs to accept verdicts there. A statement from the European Court of Justice said that tribunals in the 27 EU member states 'must be able to carry out an in-depth review of those awards for consistency with the fundamental rules of EU law.' The ECJ ruling means that EU national courts should be able to review verdicts from the Swiss-based Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). Switzerland is not a member of the European Union. The decision could end a decade-long legal fight by Belgian soccer club RFC Seraing and Maltese investment fund Doyen Sports. They opposed FIFA rules prohibiting third-party ownership of a player's registration and transfer rights, and in 2015 asked a commercial court in Brussels to review if those rules breached EU law. ___ AP soccer:
Yahoo
01-08-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Top EU court rules that soccer governing body FIFA's decisions can be challenged outside Switzerland
BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union's top court ruled on Friday that the decisions of world soccer's governing body FIFA can be challenged outside Switzerland, opening up a system that currently binds athletes, officials and clubs to accept verdicts there. A statement from the European Court of Justice said that tribunals in the 27 EU member states 'must be able to carry out an in-depth review of those awards for consistency with the fundamental rules of EU law.' The ECJ ruling means that EU national courts should be able to review verdicts from the Swiss-based Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). Switzerland is not a member of the European Union. The decision could end a decade-long legal fight by Belgian soccer club RFC Seraing and Maltese investment fund Doyen Sports. They opposed FIFA rules prohibiting third-party ownership of a player's registration and transfer rights, and in 2015 asked a commercial court in Brussels to review if those rules breached EU law. ___ AP soccer: The Associated Press
The Independent
01-08-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Top EU court rules that soccer governing body FIFA's decisions can be challenged outside Switzerland
The European Union's top court ruled on Friday that the decisions of world soccer's governing body FIFA can be challenged outside Switzerland, opening up a system that currently binds athletes, officials and clubs to accept verdicts there. A statement from the European Court of Justice said that tribunals in the 27 EU member states 'must be able to carry out an in-depth review of those awards for consistency with the fundamental rules of EU law.' The ECJ ruling means that EU national courts should be able to review verdicts from the Swiss-based Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). Switzerland is not a member of the European Union. The decision could end a decade-long legal fight by Belgian soccer club RFC Seraing and Maltese investment fund Doyen Sports. They opposed FIFA rules prohibiting third-party ownership of a player's registration and transfer rights, and in 2015 asked a commercial court in Brussels to review if those rules breached EU law. ___
