UEFA’s Post

Football Transfer Fees X Artificial Intelligence. FIFA are considering using algorithms to set player transfer fees in an effort to move away from a negotiations based approach where the values are set by the clubs. It could potentially involve factors such as a player's age, performance, market demand, injury susceptibility, and other relevant variables. The use of algorithms is part of a broad plan to bring more transparency and fairness to the transfer market. Is this a good approach to tackle spiralling costs? #machinelearning #football #fifa #transferfees

The UEFA European Championship has officially kicked off, and in the first of our Euro 2024 blog series, we explore an essential yet sometimes overlooked side of the game: Intellectual property rights.   As the marketization of football grows, the careful management of intellectual property rights will stay front and center, creating powerful opportunities for engagement. Sasha Rubinstein and Anna Blest delve into the IPR fundamentals that underpin the entire tournament, from the logos on the players’ shirts to the role of patents in protecting specialist VAR technology.   To read more, click here: https://lnkd.in/eXJ7J_-V   #IntellectualProperty #Trademarks #EURO2024 #PatentLaw

Did you know that FIFA ticket sales, including for the UEFA European Cup and CONMEBOL's Copa América finance apartheid football activities in the West Bank? In 2016, Human Rights Watch (HRW) reported that the Israel FA (a FIFA member association) had 6 football clubs in illegal settlements in the West Bank, which are still in operation. Not only does this violate international law, it is also is a clear violation of FIFA Statute 72.2: “member associations and their clubs may not play on the territory of another member association without the latter’s approval.” HRW reported that: 1) Under apartheid military law, access to these settlements and football grounds is limited to Israelis and Israel visa-holders, or individuals of Jewish ancestry. 2)Palestinians living in the vicinity of these six clubs are forced to listen to football activities taking place on their land, but are forbidden from attending, playing in or coaching games. 3) These football clubs were not only a source of income for apartheid settlements, sustaining them in the long-term, but also a fruit of the financial relationship between the Israel FA, FIFA and UEFA. In recent years, FIFA and UEFA have transferred millions of shekels annually to the Israel FA as part of a reciprocal financial relationship in which FIFA and UEFA earn money from regional and international games in which Israeli teams play. While campaigners and Palestinians have known about these activities for years, Friday's advisory opinion by the ICJ is an awkward development for FIFA as an international company. "All states and international organizations must end any aid or assistance to the occupation..." Beyond FIFA's financing of apartheid activities in the West Bank, there is widespread photograph and video evidence of Israeli football clubs, including its most successful clubs who play in UEFA fixtures, aiding the military, including providing them with food, toiletaries and club memorabilia which they can then decorate their tanks with. These photos and videos are shared on football club official pages and in video screenings to first team players to motivate both teams and the military. FIFA pretends its own Statues are difficult to interperet but on the principles of fairness, a child could understand Statute 72.2. International legal developments are now backing FIFA into a tight corner. As a company, FIFA is heavily implicated in genocide and apartheid. The IDF (many of whom are also Israeli football players) are directly involved with efforts circumvent the efforts to sanction Israel at FIFA, which is being hailed as a vital way to isolate Israel internationally and dent the country's sense of legitimacy (Foreign Policy, 2024). 6.4 million agree so far. Please take 10 seconds to add your name: https://lnkd.in/dNzRUq_e

#EURO2024 and the #OlympicGames are just around the corner and millions of fans are putting their most fervent hopes and [often] lots of money into their favourite clubs and athletes. As anticipation mounts, the spotlight intensifies on sports' integrity. ⚽ Recent data from Sportradar reveals a concerning trend: "the beautiful game" accounted for 66% of matches suspected of being fixed across 11 sports in 2023. Match-fixing, bribery, and money laundering have infiltrated the sporting world, with organised crime exploiting regulatory loopholes, low-paid athletes, and the destructive allure of betting. A true honour to speak with Swiss-qualified attorney specialising in sports and gambling law and academic Dr. Madalina Diaconu, investigative academic, author and journalist Declan Hill, and head of financial crime prevention for Advisense Chris Kronow Rasmussen and delve into the intersection of sports corruption, match-fixing, organised crime and money laundering for the article co-authored with my colleague, Diana Vasile. https://lnkd.in/dB6yf3Ti

⚽️🇪🇺 With the start of the UEFA EURO 2024 hours away (and the European Parliament elections results now settled), let’s dive into this piece from European Broadcasting Union (EBU) analyzing the disruptive effect investment funds and multi-club ownership have on European #football: - Influence on transfer market - Competition integrity risks - Conflicts of interest - Ethical debates - Ban bases’ disconnection - Unwanted/Unexpected side effects The European football heritage is, by all means, at a crossroads. Associations like Union of European Clubs European Leagues Professional Footballers' Association (PFA), as well as the European Commission, should find a way to saveguard a model that has led to the success of the “beautiful game” in our continent. In the end, this is also part of that European strategic autonomy. https://lnkd.in/dW7U39Mh

In April 2021, shockwaves were sent through the footballing world. Twelve leading European Clubs announced the founding of the European Super League, a breakaway competition to challenge the UEFA Champions League- as well as the other European domestic leagues.   In response, UEFA warned of sanctions for any club involved. The Super League responded by applying for, and obtaining, a series of interim protective measures to restrain FIFA or UEFA from following through on this threat.   In a recent court case, The Super League asserted the UEFA and FIFA’s restriction on new competitions constituted an abuse of its dominant position. The CJEU agreed. It warned that UEFA and FIFA must impose a pre-approval procedure for the authorisation of new competitions that are based on objective, transparent and non-discriminatory criteria.   If UEFA don’t follow this, they will fall foul of EU Competition Law. This is an interesting development for all sports fans, and we will provide further updates as this case progresses. 

Forget transfer market bling! Financial fair play is the real beautiful game. ⚽️💰 This article explains how UEFA & Premier League stop clubs from overspending & getting into debt. It's all about financial sustainability & a level playing field.

🚨 Keir Starmer is refusing to budge on the UK's plans for an independent football regulator in the face of threats from UEFA to expel England from Euro 2028. ⚖️The proposed regulator aims to protect the integrity of domestic football (particularly around issues such as financial sustainability, governance and club ownership) but UEFA sees potential conflict with its rules against political interference. Read more in the article below. #Football #Euro2028 #SportsLaw #FootballRegulator #UEFA #Governance #SportsBusiness

💡⚽️ Insight of the week ⚽️💡 In 1999, a crucial turning point for club football occurred when ENIC's ownership of both AEK and Sparta led to a UEFA investigation. This was triggered when both clubs qualified for European competition, raising potential conflicts of interest. As a result, a new rule was implemented that prevented two clubs with the same majority shareholders from facing each other in the same European competition. At the time, this was a somewhat unusual scenario. However, the succeeding years have seen an increase in instances where a single entity owns multiple clubs, turning this once-oddity into a global phenomenon. Consequently, this has ignited further discussions and investigations into club ownership rules and regulations. Should it be the same in women's football or if the rules were 'adjusted' for a period would this allow more money to flow into the women's game and create a better product? I'd love to hear your thoughts 👇👇👇 

The UEFA House is on fire ♨ ♨ ♨ 🚒 🚒 🚒 (Part 16) In previous parts (👉https://lnkd.in/eBUA_stN ), we highlighted that UEFA was initially just a player in the #market for #organizing #football #competitions. Aiming to obtain a #monopoly, #UEFA refused to allow #private actors, like Marcel LECLERC, to organize new #competitions. Their refusal was never explicit or direct. #UEFA preferred to refuse by using its #regulatory #power. And, in the event that an actor managed to comply with its requirements, it would mean that the authorized #competition would not compete with #UEFA's flagship #competitions in any way. Potential #competitors from the #private sector therefore didn't attempt anything else until 1998. The 1990s would constitute a turning point that wouldn't prove decisive in the short term, but would plant the seeds of an environment conducive to direct defiance of UEFA in the long term. Indeed, the Maastricht Treaty in 1992 would be a game changer with the establishment of a #European #internal #market. The #European #Community wanted to assert itself and, in sports, this assertion would materialize in the BOSMAN ruling of 1995; a ruling that would, in reality, only reaffirm the principles already highlighted in previous rulings of the Cour de justice de l'Union européenne (such as the WALRAVE 1974 and DONA 1976 rulings). The European Parliament had already repeatedly denounced #UEFA's practices and had urged the European Commission to intervene. However, this Commission was reluctant to intervene due to the #European #Community's lack of #competence in #sports (principle of subsidiarity). It would therefore take an "ordinary" player (BOSMAN) filing a #complaint with the Cour de justice de l'Union européenne for this body to finally intervene directly with the aim of eradicating #UEFA's #illegal practices (3+2 rules, and the out-of-contract transfer rule). BOSMAN's victory would have direct and indirect repercussions, in the short and long term. One of the most important consequences, as far as we're concerned here, is that this defeat of #UEFA demonstrated that it is no longer untouchable, that it is now possible to #challenge its decisions and #regulations. The 1990s would also be marked by the beginning of an unprecedented #economic development of the #football #market, largely due to the rise of broadcasting rights. I'll tell you more in my next post 😁 If this topic interests you, I'll tell you all about it in my upcoming book 📖 "Towards a new organization of football and sport in Europe" (HLSC Edition).