VARIOUS: COURT DECIDES THAT FIFA'S RULES ON FOOTBALL AGENTS DO NOT BREAK EUROPEAN UNION COMPETITION LAWS

Record ID: 251350

  • Title: VARIOUS: COURT DECIDES THAT FIFA'S RULES ON FOOTBALL AGENTS DO NOT BREAK EUROPEAN UNION COMPETITION LAWS
  • Date: 26th January 2005
  • Summary: BRUSSELS, BELGIUM, JANUARY 25, 2005 (REUTERS-ACCESS ALL) 1. VARIOUS EXTERIORS OF EU COMMISSION BUILDING. BRUSSELS, BELGIUM, JANUARY 26, 2005 (EBS-ACCESS ALL) 2. WIDE SHOT OF COMMISSION BRIEFING ROOM. 3. PULL FOCUS FROM CAMERA TO JOURNALIST TAKING NOTES. 4. (SOUNDBITE)(English) COMPETITION SPOKESMAN JONATHAN TODD ABOUT THE COURT'S DECISION ON FIFA: "The Court confirmed that the Commission was right to reject the complaint in the sense that after amendments were made to the rules by FIFA, they were objectively justified in order to ensure that they were proper qualitative rules on player's agence. But the Court has gone actually further than the Commission, the Court of First Instance, by taking the view that FIFA was in fact enjoying a dominant market position, so has gone further than the Commission in that respect and the Commission welcomes this ruling and will of course take account of it in its future application of competition rules to sports sectors." 5. JOURNALISTS LISTENING TO COMMISSION SPOKESMAN. 6. WIDE SHOT OF BRIEFING ROOM. 7. (SOUNDBITE)(English) COMPETITION SPOKESMAN JONATHAN TODD ABOUT THE COURT'S DECISION ON FIFA: "Well, on the FIFA point, I mean, it's rather that we will take account of this clarification of the Court of First Instance in our future decisions, rather than reviewing previous decisions. If others want to challenge our previous decisions, then that will be up to them." LUXEMBOURG, LUXEMBOURG, JANUARY 2000 FILE (REUTERS-ACCESS ALL) 8. WIDE SHOT OF EUROPEAN COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE. 9. VARIOUS SIGNS INSIDE COURT. 10. WIDE SHOT OF ENTRANCE WITH EUROPEAN FLAGS AND STATUE. 11. VARIOUS OF FILES IN BAGS BEING PRESENTED TO THE COURT'S RECEPTION. Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
  • Embargoed: 10th February 2005 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: BRUSSELS, BELGIUM AND LUXEMBOURG, LUXEMBOURG
  • City:
  • Country: Belgium Luxembourg
  • Reuters ID: LVA6JFSA6BZDFLQBVM9WHWQFYH3B
  • Story Text: Court says FIFA's rules on football agents do not
    break European Union competition law.




    Soccer governing body FIFA's rules on football
    agents do not break European Union competition laws, the
    bloc's second highest court said on Wednesday (January 26),
    throwing out a complaint by a French resident.

    "The need to introduce professionalism and morality to
    the occupation of players' agent in order to protect
    players whose careers are short ... justify the rule-making
    action on the part of FIFA," the Court of First Instance
    said in a statement.

    Laurent Piau had challenged FIFA's (Federation
    Internationale de Football Association) 1994 rules
    regulating football agents, saying they were excessive,
    opaque, discriminatory and counter to EU competition rules.

    He lodged a complaint with the EU executive Commission
    but FIFA then revised its rules and the Commission dropped
    the case, saying the main restrictive features had been
    removed.

    Piau challenged the Commission decision to drop the
    case in the Court of the First Instance.

    The Luxembourg-based court ruled the Commission was
    correct in dismissing the competition case. However, the
    court disagreed with the executive's analysis and said FIFA
    holds a dominant position in the player agent market but
    soccer body does not abuse its position.

    Under FIFA rules, a footballer's agent must be licensed
    and the two parties must sign a contract for a minimum of
    two years setting out the agenda.



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