Welcome to LawInSport’s weekly News Roundup. This recap highlights this week’s news pieces from across the world of sport. For further updates, please visit our news section.
We hope you find this useful. If you have any related questions or feedback, please don’t hesitate to contact us.
FIFA is deeply concerned by the recent reports in the US made by several players. Due to the severity and seriousness of the allegations being made by players, we can confirm that FIFA’s judicial bodies are actively looking into the matter and have opened a preliminary investigation. As part of this, FIFA will be reaching out to the respective parties, including US Soccer and NWSL, for further information about the various safeguarding concerns and allegations of abuse that have been raised.
FIFA has today published its Anti-Doping Report 2020/2021, which covers FIFA’s efforts in the area from 1 July 2020 to 30 June 2021.
While the COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on the planning and implementation of FIFA’s anti-doping programme, with tournaments postponed and matches cancelled during the period covered by the report, a total of 354 players were subject to doping control tests in the following FIFA competitions:
In light of the range of predisposed decisions and communications made by FIFA recently in amending or planning future reform of the International Match Calendar (IMC), in direct and unilateral breach of certain legal obligations, ECA – as the voice of professional football clubs of Europe – feels compelled to issue the following.
The FIFA Disciplinary Committee has imposed a ban and a substantial fine on the Hungarian Football Federation (MLSZ) in relation to the racist behaviour of numerous supporters during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™ qualifying match between Hungary and England on 2 September 2021.
The FIFA Appeal Committee has upheld the appeals lodged by the French clubs Paris FC and Angers SCO and lifted the sanctions previously imposed by the FIFA Disciplinary Committee in its decisions dated 22 April 2021.
In this Olympic year, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has opened two temporary offices in Japan for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games (the Games) which have been postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic and have been held this year from 21 July to 8 August 2021.
Lausanne, 14 September 2021 - The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has dismissed the appeal filed by Brazilian football official Ricardo Terra Teixeira against the decision taken by the Ethics Committee of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) dated 26 July 2019 (the Challenged Decision).
Welcome to LawInSport’s weekly News Roundup. We have curated the top ten news pieces from around the world of sport. For further updates, please visit our news section.
We hope you find this useful. If you have any related questions or feedback, please don’t hesitate to contact us.
FIFA has published its International Transfer Snapshot (June – August 2021), an analysis of player transfer activity during the last transfer window.
According to the report, the number of transfers for men remained at the same level as last year with only a slight decrease in the total amount of transfer fees agreed. In the women’s game, there was a dramatic increase in the number of transfer during this year’s mid-year registration period compared to the same registration period in 2020.
The current political and security situation in Guinea is quite volatile and is being closely monitored by FIFA and CAF. To ensure the safety and security of all players and to protect all match officials, FIFA and CAF have decided to postpone the FIFA World Cup 2022 qualifying match Guinea vs. Morocco, which had scheduled to be hosted in Conakry, Guinea, on Monday 6 September.
USD 48.5 billion spent on transfer fees over the past decade
200 FIFA member associations involved in international transfers
Top 30 clubs in terms of transfer fee spend are European
The United States Department of Justice has awarded the sum of USD 201 million to the FIFA Foundation as compensation for the losses suffered by FIFA, Concacaf and CONMEBOL as victims of decades of football corruption schemes. This money was seized from the bank accounts of former officials who were involved in, and then prosecuted for, years of corruption schemes in football. The funds will go into a newly formed World Football Remission Fund, established under the auspices of the FIFA Foundation to help finance football-related projects with positive community impact across the globe.
35 member associations from North, Central America and the Caribbean to take part
Concacaf workshop begins on 11 August 2021
FIFA Global Integrity Programme, developed in collaboration with the UNODC, aims to educate and build integrity capacity across football
Thirty-five member associations from across the Concacaf region will come together this week to begin the third edition of the FIFA Global Integrity Programme, a dedicated integrity initiative designed to improve education and build integrity capacity across football.
The FIFA Disciplinary Committee has sanctioned the Russian players Ivan Knyazev, Daria Meshcheryakova and Vladimir Obukhov for breaches relating to the FIFA Anti-Doping Regulations and the FIFA Disciplinary Code.
Members of Rwanda Football Federation (FERWAFA) have backed businessman Olivier Nizeyimana to lead them in the next four years after voting for him during an extraordinary general assembly held on Sunday, June 27 at Lemigo Hotel, Kigali.
FIFA has today published the second report on the activities of its Players’ Status Department (PSD), covering the period from 1 July 2020 to 30 June 2021.
CAF General Secretary, Veron Mosengo-Omba gave opening remarks on Thursday morning during the opening session where he outlined the importance of the program for Member Associations.
Body composed of three chambers to become operational on 1 October #
New procedural rules for dispute resolution to be applied
Procedures to be free of charge if at least one of parties is natural person
New FIFA mediation list to be compiled
In May 2021, the FIFA Congress mandated the FIFA administration to conduct a study into the feasibility of a Men’s and Women’s World Cup every two years.
In strengthening its commitment towards greater transparency and full disclosure of its fundamental activities and operations, FIFA has today published the second annual report (2020/2021) of the activities of its independent judicial bodies, the Disciplinary, Appeal and Ethics Committees.
FIFA has reached out to its member associations and other stakeholders (representatives of the players, clubs, leagues, confederations) marking the beginning of a new phase of consultation around the International Match Calendar for women and men, set to expire at the end of 2023 and 2024 respectively.
The Oceania Football Confederation is welcoming discussions initiated by FIFA, regarding its participation in the consultation process around the review and development of a new women’s and men’s FIFA International Match Calendar.
FIFPRO today stresses once again that any plans to change the men’s or women’s International Match Calendar must address the players’ concerns such as an expanding workload at the top of the game, the need to protect and improve jobs for the majority of our members around the world and protecting the promising advancement of the women’s professional game. Proposals isolating further expansions such as a biennial World Cup – as well as other competition reforms under discussion – are inadequate in the absence of solutions for existing problems. Without the agreement of the players, who bring all competitions to life on the pitch, no such reforms will have the required legitimacy.
FIFA and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on 14 September 2020
The FIFA Global Integrity Programme (FGIP) has been delivered to the Integrity Officers from Member Associations of three confederations (AFC, CONMEBOL and Concacaf), with further editions planned for CAF, OFC and UEFA
The FGIP editions have been fully subscribed across all confederations
A group of top footballers and coaches from six continents is joining FIFA Chief of Global Football Development Arsène Wenger this week as part of the ongoing consultation process on the future of global football.
INVESTIGATIONS
Belgium
Did Belgium’s 3x3 basketball team commit fraud to qualify for the Olympics?
Basketball Belgium, the Belgian basketball association and the international basketball federation are conducting an investigation into possible fraud involving the organisation of three-on-three basketball tournaments. The investigations have been launched following allegations of fraud involving the Belgian 3x3 Lions, who shone at the Tokyo Olympics.
Lausanne, 30 August 2021 - The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has issued its decision in the appeal filed by the Football Association of Albania (FAA) and the player Nedim Bajrami against the decision issued by the Single Judge of the FIFA Players’ Status Committee dated 27 May 2021 (the Challenged Decision). In the Challenged Decision, the request filed by the FAA in respect of Mr Bajrami for change of association from Switzerland to Albania was denied.
FIFA welcomes today’s ruling by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) rejecting the Spanish LaLiga’s request to set aside the decision by FIFA to extend the international window for the FIFA World Cup™ qualifiers in South America by two days.
The adjudicatory chamber of the independent Ethics Committee has found Mr Issa Hayatou, former CAF president, former FIFA President ad interim, FIFA Vice-President and member of the FIFA Council, as well as Honorary FIFA VicePresident, responsible for having breached article 15 (Duty of Loyalty) of the FIFA Code of Ethics.
The Bureau of the FIFA Council has today decided to extend the mandate of the normalisation committee of the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF), which was due to expire on 30 June 2021, until 30 September 2021.
The Bureau took note that, since the suspension of the PFF, the normalisation committee has been working relentlessly in an effort to meet the criteria for the suspension to be lifted, which will occur when the PFF’s premises, accounts, administration and communication channels are once again under the normalisation committee’s full control and the committee can continue to carry out its mandate without further hindrance. At present, however, the PFF’s premises continue to be occupied and the PFF therefore remains suspended.
Global Summit 2024