Competition Law in Sport

The relationship between the autonomy of sport and competition law is becoming an increasingly watched topic in the Czech Republic. The fact that even the specific rules of the sports associations are subject to regulatory oversight is illustrated by a recent dispute in the ice hockey scene. By its nature, this case transcended the boundaries of the stadium and reached the Office for the Protection of Competition (“OPC”). On 7 March 2026, the OPC dismissed a complaint filed by the Association for Direct Promotion to Extra League against the Association of Professional Ice Hockey Teams regarding an alleged abuse of a dominant position on the market in setting the play-off conditions (baráž). By closing the case, the OPC confirmed that the rules governing promotion to the Czech top flight in this specific instance do not infringe competition law.

Interventions by competition authorities in the sporting environment are no rarity abroad either. Alongside the activities of foreign competition regulators, we are increasingly seeing landmark decisions rendered by the Court of Justice of the European Union (“Court of Justice”), which arise through the preliminary ruling procedure. Even though the rulings of the Court of Justice are general in nature and the final decision-making in a specific case rests with the national court that submitted the request for a preliminary ruling, the interpretations provided by the Court of Justice often have a fundamental impact on the operations of sports associations. For this reason, we will take a closer look at several key cases.

Super League

At the outset, several prominent football clubs from Europe’s top leagues attempted to establish their own league outside the UEFA structure. Both FIFA and UEFA bodies sought to prevent this move. UEFA even publicly threatened potential Super League participants with a ban from all other UEFA competitions, most notably the Champions League. The participants involved in the Super League project brought an action before the Commercial Court in Madrid to prevent the blocking of the new football competition’s formation. After the case was referred to the Court of Justice for a preliminary ruling, the Court of Justice found that FIFA and UEFA regulations contravene the law of the European Union. The Court of Justice grounded its conclusion in a reference to (i) Article 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (“TFEU”), which classifies the requirement of prior approval for competition participants as an abuse of a dominant position, and (ii) Article 101(1) of the TFEU, which identifies such conduct as a restriction of competition. The Madrid Commercial Court, which originally referred the case, subsequently reached the same conclusion.

Tennis

The following case, which commenced in March last year, concerns tennis. Within the European Union, a complaint was filed with the European Commission by the Association of Professional Tennis Players and a group of individual tennis players. They claim that the ATP, WTA, ITF, and ITIA created a cartelized market environment through which players are being exploited. According to current information, the European Commission has not yet initiated any formal investigation.  

Football agents

In 2022, FIFA published new regulations regarding the provision of services by football agents, known as FFAR. These new rules also introduced caps on agents’ fees. Even before national associations could implement these new regulations into their own frameworks, there was significant opposition from agents across Europe. Initially, their motion to set aside the FFAR failed in arbitration before the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne (CAS); however, they found recourse through several national courts. A significant milestone was an interim injunction issued by the Dortmund Regional Court, which prohibited the German Football Association (DFB) from implementing the new agent regulations in Germany. The decision concerning the non-incorporation of certain articles was grounded in Articles 101 and 102 of the TFEU and the risk of irreparable harm to the agents. In response to this interim injunction, FIFA suspended the enforcement of selected FFAR articles. We can probably expect a more definitive resolution this year, following the preliminary ruling to be issued by the Court of Justice upon the request submitted by the Regional Court of Mainz.

International and national sports organizations face a new challenge: ensuring that their internal rules align with the principles of competition law. Caution and precise legal analysis are becoming as important a part of sport management as the organization of matches and competitions itself.