National courts must be empowered to carry out, at the request of litigants or even of their own motion, an in-depth legal review of the compatibility of arbitration awards by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) with EU public policy, ruled the Court of Justice of the EU in a judgment (C-600/23) on Friday 1 August.
The Court pointed out that, in the field of sports, the submission of disputes to arbitration is generally not freely accepted, but unilaterally imposed on athletes and clubs by international associations, such as the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA). It therefore considered it essential that recourse to arbitration should not compromise the rights and freedoms which the fundamental rules of Union law guarantee to anyone practising professional sport or pursuing an economic activity related to it.
The Court thus followed the opinion of Advocate General Tamara Ćapeta, delivered in January (see EUROPE 13559/25). It is therefore leaving it to the Belgian courts to decide the case between FIFA and Royal Football Club Seraing and the Maltese company Doyen Sports 1. These last two concluded a contract for the transfer of the economic rights of several players, which FIFA contested.
To read the ruling, go to https://aeur.eu/f/i3b (Original version in French by Anne Damiani)