Fuente: © European Parliament
http://www.europarl.eu.int/

EU: Towards an EU policy on sport - MEPs concerned about TV rights, player selections and doping

/noticias.info/ Stricter rules on doping, no quotas for football players from specific countries and a fair distribution of lottery profits are among the proposals of the European Parliament in a report adopted by a large majority (518 in favour 49 against and 9 abstentions) The report calls for the Commission to come with clearer guidelines on how to apply EU rules in the area of sport. Parliament also voices concern about the possible deregulation of gambling markets.

The report, drafted by Manolis MAVROMMATIS (EPP-ED, EL) welcomes the Commission's July 2007 White Paper on Sport and emphasises the important role of sport in society. It notes that about 60% of EU citizens regularly participate in sporting activities within or outside some 700,000 clubs, and that sport in a broader sense generated € 407 billion in value-added in 2004 (3.4% of EU GDP) and employment for 15 million people (5.4% of the labour force).

No discrimination on nationality - but favour home-grown players

MEPs call on Member States and sports associations not to introduce new rules that will create discrimination on the basis of nationality, such as the rule of 6+5, where 6 players on the field in the beginning of the match will have to be from the country of the club they are playing for. They also call on the Commission to recognise the legality of measures that favour a minimum number of locally trained players and believe that the UEFA-rule on home grown players by which a minimum number of players in a team should be trained in the club or in the same league is better.

Sport needs more certainty as to the law

The rapporteur Manolis Mavrommatis was delighted that sport has a more prominent place in the Lisbon treaty: "We need to protect the specific nature of sport and it is good that the European Union will now push forward a policy in the sport area," he said.

With a view to the Lisbon Treaty's ratification, the role of sport in Europe must be given a "strategic orientation", and the application of Community law must be clarified, says the report. MEPs ask the Commission to respect sport's specificity and to create clear guidelines as to how EU rules should be applied. MEPs also request a special budget line in the budget 2009 for preparatory actions in the field of sport, given that the Lisbon Treaty, if ratified, foresees incentive measures in the area of sport.

Self regulation

MEPs agree with the Commission that most challenges can be addressed though self regulation 4 provided that EU law is complied with, and believe that a structured partnership and dialogue between the Commission and sports movements is essential for good governance of sport, in order to avoid legal uncertainty and to respect the autonomy of the sports organisations.

Fight against doping

Doping is a key concern for MEPs, as it undermines transparency and fair competition. Policies to prevent and combat doping should include avoiding excessively busy sports calendars that put pressure on the athletes, say MEPs, who also call on professional clubs and sports organisations to adopt a pledge to combat doping and invite the Commission to consider treating trade in illicit doping substances in the same way as trade in illicit drugs.

Amateur sport and possible deregulation of gambling markets

The report also voices concern about the possible deregulation of lotteries and gambling markets. MEPs consider it appropriate to use lottery profits for purposes that are in the public interest, and calls on the Commission and the Member States to adopt regulatory measures to ensure that sport is protected from any improper influence relating to betting. They stress the need to continue to provide for the possibility of reduced VAT for sporting activities. MEPs also underline the important role of sport in society, as an effective tool for social integration and the importance of supporting measures for persons with disabilities.

Solidarity in the selling of TV rights - key sporting events should be free-to-air

Television rights are the primary source of income for professional sport in Europe. To ensure that not only the biggest clubs will benefit from the selling of the rights, MEPs recommend that Member States and national sports federations and leagues introduce collective selling of media rights so that there should be an equitable redistribution of income between the clubs within and between the leagues and between professional and amateur sport. They also encourage the sports organisations to reinvest a percentage of the revenue from TV rights to a particular sport to fund the volunteer and non-profit sectors MEPs acknowledge the right of the member states to assure wide access by television coverage sport events of major interest of the public such as Olympic Games, the football World Cup and the European football Championship and support Member states in drawing up a list of events of major importance that should be on free-to-air television.

The House repeats its support for Member States drawing up a list of events of major importance to the public that should be on free-to-air television under Article 3a of the Audiovisual Media Services Directive and condemns FIFA's court actions in this respect.

Stop human trafficking and favour home-grown players

Immigration laws should always be respected when recruiting new talented players to the European playing fields say MEPs, who call on the sports governing bodies to engage in the fight against human trafficking, subscribe to a European Charter for solidarity, create a solidarity fund to finance programmes in the countries most affected by human trafficking and review the FIFA rules of transfer in relation to the protection of minors. MEPs urge the Commission to openly express it self in favour of the of stricter application of the FIFA regulations banning transfers of players aged under 16 within the EU and endorsing the principle that players should sign their first professional contract with the club which has trained them. MEPs also believe that the sports governing bodies should improve the rules concerning players' agents, and call on the Commission to support this initiative - if necessary by proposing a directive.

More gender equality in sport and fight against racism

MEPs regret that the Commission White Paper on sport does not take the gender aspect adequately into account especially concerning equal pay for female and male athletes and urge the Member States to value women performances in sport equally as men by introducing legal provisions to ensure that women are not awarded less valuable financial or other prizes in sporting events. The report also calls on sports organisations and Member States to adopt the strictest measures to combat racism and discrimination in sports, and calls on professional sports organisations and sports clubs to launch campaigns to tackle all forms of discrimination, racism, and xenophobia in connection to matches and sports activities both inside and outside stadiums.

Muscle drain

Finally, the House insists that development through sport should never lead to "muscle drain" and calls on the Union to address this issue in its policy dialogue and cooperation with partner countries.
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