Krakow, 14/10/2011 (Agence Europe) - Sport has, for the first time, been mentioned in the EU's budget (multiannual financial framework) for 2014-2020, and a sports programme will be set up under the education section. The matter was discussed by EU27 sports ministers in Krakow on Thursday 13 and Friday 14 October. EU Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou commented that at the end of November they had to adopt a new programme for education and sport and that they would consider the domains to which most importance should be given, like violence, doping or corruption.
In lean years, countries like France, the United Kingdom and Finland, which have always opposed the idea of EU funding for sport, may decide to change their tune. Certainly in France, where new sports minister David Douillet said that a sports body had to be set up and sport had to be funded as an investment in the future and in wealth-creation. He said he had recently discussed the matter with French President, Nicolas Sarkozy, who agreed with him. The European Commission announced recently that the EU sports programme for 2014-2020 would support sports organisations at the bottom of the pyramid rather than the elite. Still under negotiations, the share of the budget devoted to sport might be in the range of €200 million. (VW/transl.fl)