Summary of Panel Discussion of 16 September 2026 on the “Position of the European Union towards Sports Arbitration and Justice”

The European Dispute Resolution Society (“EDRS”) is an independent not-for-profit organization which aims to bring together academics, practitioners and policy-makers for debates on topical discussions and developments related to dispute resolution in, with and by the European Union and its Member States, in the broadest sense.

It organised a fifth event on 16 September 2026 on the topic of the “Position of the European Union towards Sports Arbitration and Justice”. It was the second event which was organized fully online.

On behalf of the EDRS, Dr Herman Verbist (EDRS Executive Committee Member; attorney with Everest Attorneys) welcomed the more than 30 persons attending the event remotely.

Prof. Stefaan Van den Bogaert (Professor of European Law and Director of the European Institute at Leiden University, Netherlands) delivered a keynote speech on the topic of “The Position of the CJEU towards Sports Arbitration and Justice after Seraing”.

Dr. Pieter Van Vaerenbergh was moderator of a panel discussion on the topic with the following speakers: Mr. Fabien Zivy (Legal Secretary at the Court of Justice of the EU), Mr. Mathieu Baert (attorney with Everest Attorneys, Ghent) and Prof. Ben Köhler (Professor for Private Law, EU Private Law and Private International Law at the University of Bayreuth, Germany).

The panel discussion was followed by a Q&A debate with the participation of the audience members attending remotely.

As the interaction between established mechanisms to resolve sports disputes and the legal order of the European Union has become increasingly significant, the European Dispute Resolution Society discussed with leading practitioners and academics and officers of European institutions how the European Union positions itself towards the evolving field of the resolution of disputes in sports. The speakers discussed about the question whether dispute resolution in sports arbitration, including compulsory arbitration, satisfies the requirement of effective judicial protection under EU law and whether the requirements of EU public policy review as mandated by the European Court of Justice are compatible with the notion of public policy under the 1958 New York Convention on the recognition and enforcement of arbitration agreements and arbitral awards.

The European Court of Justice has rendered recently a number of decisions related to sports arbitration and procedural justice and more broadly to sports as well as to the activities of sports federations, i.a. the Judgment of 21 December 2023 in Case C-124/21 P, International Skating Union v. European Commission; the Judgment of 21 December 2023 in case C-333/21, European Superleague Company SL v FIFA, UEFA; the Judgment of 21 December 2023 in Case C-680/21, UL, SA Royal Antwerp Football Club v. URBSFA; the Judgment of 4 October 2024 in Case C-650/22, FIFA v. BZ (Diarra case); the Judgment of 1 August 2025 in Case C-600/23, RFC Seraing vs. FIFA, UEFA and URBSFA, interested party: Doyen Sports Investment Ltd; the Judgment of 16 July 2026 in Case C-209/23, FT, RRC Sports GmbH v. FIFA and the Judgment of 16 July 2026 in Cases C-424/24 and C-425/24, ZD, MI v. FIGC, CONI.

It was argued that the European Court of Justice accepts that arbitration is legitimate and has clear benefits in the context of sports. It was also noted that the Europe Court of Justice requires a ‘limited’ but ‘in-depth review’ of EU public policy in regard to sports arbitration whilst it has indicated that in commercial arbitration the EU public policy review will be a ‘limited review’. The question was raised whether this will lead to different interpretations of EU public policy between sports arbitration and commercial arbitration.

The event was hosted by the Everest Attorneys law office in Ghent.

More information on the European Dispute Resolution Society at : https://www.edrs.eu. 

• Title: The Position of the European Union towards Sports Arbitration and Justice

• Format: online event
  

• Date: 16 September 2026
  

• Registration: This event is open to all, and free of charge, but registration is required. Please register here below.

Programme:

18:30 – brief welcome EDRS

18:40 – 19:10 : Keynote speech by Prof. Dr. Stefaan Van den Bogaert

 19:10 – 19:40 : Panel discussion with :

Mr Fabien Zivy

Alexander Vantyghem  
Prof. Dr. Ben Köhler

Dr. Pieter Van Vaerenbergh (moderator)

19:40 – 20:00 : Q&A