On 21 December 2023, the ECJ handed down three rulings, one of them concerned the plan of several European football clubs to establish a new European Super League outside the FIFA and UEFA structures. This project caused a major media furor in the sporting world when it was first announced a few years ago. With some delay, this case is now also attracting attention among European competition lawyers. This is because the ECJ took a position on the question of the applicability of the competition rules, which prohibit agreements between competitors and exploitative behavior by dominant undertakings, to FIFA’s statutes, in particular its requirement to authorize competitions organized by competitors. Similar authorization statutes were at issue in the proceedings against the International Skating Union, which the ECJ ruled on the same day.
This thesis examines the special features of the market for sporting events, special characteristics and structures that have long been the subject of debate as to whether the competition rules can be applied to sporting events at all and in what form. The development of the interaction between European law and European sporting matters is then illustrated on the basis of ECJ case law on sport-related matters. Particular attention is paid to the ECJ’s landmark decision on sports competition law in the Meca Medina case from 2006 and the principles developed there on the so-called Wouters doctrine, an exception to Art. 101 TFEU in the presence of non-economic objectives that are particularly worthy of protection. As part of the analysis of the judgments of 21 December 2023, the restriction of the scope of application of this Wouters doctrine and its possible effects on the enforcement of competition law against sports associations will be examined. In addition, an evaluation is made of further statements made by the court on the standard of review of Art. 101 and 102 TFEU, with which the court has concretized and tightened the requirements for sports associations.