According to an information of Sportcal (14.1.13) the 53 UEFA member federations will discuss possible changes of FIFA statutes on 24 th January 2013. The idea is to limit the FIFA presidency to two four-year terms and the age limit for officials to 72 years. According to Sportcal the current FIFA President, 76-year-old Sepp Blatter, is opposed to the introduction of age limits. The next FIFA congress – which could decide upon changes – will take place in Mauritius end of May 2013.

The reigning IHF President Hassan Moustafa was elected in 2000. If the 68-year-old Egyptian gets re-elected during the next IHF Congress in Oct 2013, his fourth term will expire in 2017.

Wie das deutsche Magazin ‚Sponsors‘ am 28.12.12 vermeldete, könnte ein ‚Urteil des schwedischen Kartellgerichts gegen den schwedischen Automobilverband über Skandinavien hinaus Bedeutung erlangen.‘

Der schwedische Automobilverband hatte von ihm lizensierten Fahrern verboten, an konkurrierenden Rennserien teilzunehmen. Damit sah das schwedische Gericht die Entstehung von Wettbewerb verhindert. Es wurde eine Strafe in Höhe von einer Million Schwedischer Kronen (ca 120.000 Euro) verhängt. Grundlage für das schwedische Urteil sind frühere Entscheidungen des EuGH.

Das Urteil könnte Einfluss auf Europäische und Weltsportverbände haben. Diese versuchen über ihre Statuten und Reglemente unliebsame Konkurrenz zu verhindern. So ist zur Zeit im Handball die Teilnahme an multinationalen Wettbewerben genehmigungspflichtig, wenn diese nicht von EHF oder IHF organisiert werden.

Der deutsche Sportjurist Mark E. Orth empfiehlt den Sportverbänden, ihre ‚Regelungen schleunigst anzupassen‘, da künftige richterliche Entscheide deutlich teurer werden könnten.  (Zitate aus Sponsors, 28.12.12)

8 World Tour Team members announced the inauguration of ‘World Series Cycling’ this Monday in Brussels. It has to be expected that these professional cycling unify their interests against the World Cycling Union UCI. The project is lead by Jonathan Price from sports marketing company ‘Gifted Group’ and Thomas Kurth, former Managing Director of  G 14 (football). Pat McQuaid, UCI President, spoke about the WSC as a ‘breakaway league’ earlier this year.

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/how-world-series-cycling-plans-to-reinvent-the-sport

Basketball will change its international calendar as of 2017. Currently European Championships are played once in two years. As of 2017 European Championships will be played once in four years!

FCH Managing Director G. Butzeck was invited as observer to the 9^th ordinary General Assembly of European Club Association (ECA), taking place in Geneva on 10.+11.9.12. The content of the new ‘Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)’ between UEFA and ECA was presented to the representatives of 135 football clubs. ECA Chairman K.H. Rummenigge (FC Bayern Munich, Germany) expressed himself satisfied with the document. At the same time he is ‘optimistic’ that in the near future a ‘similar agreement’ will be reached with FIFA.

The International Handball Federation (IHF) refused to start negotiations with FCH on a MoU before the next IHF Congress (which will take place in Qatar in October 2013). GB

FIFA faces a dispute over the release of three players for the London Olympics. French clubs Lorient and Le Mans have each refused to release a player for the Gabon squad, and the west African team have also failed to secure the release of a third player from a Gabon club.

FIFA lost a case in the Court of Arbitration for Sport in 2008 which ruled that clubs were not obliged to release players and the governing body are now monitoring the situation with Gabon.

A FIFA spokesman said: “The National federation are trying to come to an agreement with the clubs. We are aware of the situation and we are maintaining a watching brief.”

(Press Association 24/07/2012, by Martyn Ziegler)

FIFA.com, 25.5.2012

FIFA’s new Club protection programme (CPP) which is now set for implementation was part of the 62nd FIFA Congress agenda.

The Club protection programme constitutes an important measure after years of consultations with all members of the international football family on the issue of compensation of clubs for injuries to players while on duty in all ‘A’ international matches listed in FIFA’s international match calendar. This topic is a matter of fundamental importance for FIFA bringing now a sustainable solution on a long term debate between FIFA, the clubs and the Member Associations.

FIFA’s Club protection programme on behalf of the Member Associations will be applicable on a world-wide level in form of a player insurance for all matches listed in the international match calendar for the period 1 September 2012 until 31 December 2014 (the Club protection programme will also include the Olympic Football Tournament in London 2012).

The amount insured is the player’s annual fixed salary with a maximum of a daily amount of about $27,000 (€20,548) paid by the insurance for a maximum period of 365 days making a total amount of $9.7m (€7.5m) per player. The overall estimated cost of this programme is around $75m.

Through the Club protection programme FIFA achieves a global harmonised solution on the insurance of players’ question to the benefit of Confederations, Member Associations, players and clubs. With this program FIFA marks an important step for the benefit of the entire football family in a spirit of dialogue and solidarity.

FIFA.COM News:  The FIFA Congress will also be asked to approve the new worldwide player insurance project which was approved by the Executive Committee in March. Starting in August 2012, this major new undertaking will see FIFA insure all players involved in all international “A” matches listed in the international match calendar. The provisional budget for this project amounts to USD100 million. FIFA is also working on an insurance solution for the Olympic Games.

According to information of InsideWorldFootball (5.4.2012) FIFA decided that the participation in Olympic Games is compulsory for U23 players. According to FIFA this decisions is covered by existing rules that state “a duty to release players exists on the basis of a special decision by the FIFA Executive Committee”. ECA Vice-President Gandini/AC Milan commented that this decision came ‘completely out of the blue’. ECA President Rummenigge/FC Bayern attended a recent FIFA strategy meeting at which the under 23 issue never arose. In Football the Olympic Games are not part of the International Calendar ‘and therefore the participation has never been compulsary’, added Gandini. Obviously FIFA took the decision without discussing the issue with the stakeholders concerned. The ECA board will discuss the FIFA decision during a board meeting in Munich next week.

In Warsaw the 8^th General Assembly (GA) ECA announced a new agreement with UEFA, replacing the ‘Memorandum of Understanding’ (MoU), signed in 2008. The new agreement shall run from 1^st June 2012 until 30^th May 2018. Therefore it includes the EURO 2012 in Poland/Ukraine but not the World Cup 2018 in Russia.

For the first time UEFA agreed to establish an insurance, covering the injury risk of players while on international team duty for all National team matches, including both official and friendly matches.

The compensation, paid to clubs for release of players to the National teams, will be increased significantly. Details will be announced during the next UEFA Congress in March 2012.

In the future clubs will have a ‘Referral Right’ on all decisions affecting club football. This means that no further decision will be taken without the consent of the clubs.

The number of National team matches will be reduced. International matches will be played as double-headers only. There will be no more single friendlies in the future.

In the future no player will be allowed to play more than one international tournament per year. In Handball FCH is complaining for more than 5 years that players do play two competitions every 4 years in the Olympic season on regular basis and demanding a reduction of the number of big competitions.

ECA Chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge/FC Bayern München commented on the agreement ‚as a major break-through for European Club football‘. At the same time he continued to criticize that ‘the situation remains unsatisfactory in relation to FIFA’.

After a stop of the negotiations between FIFA and ECA regarding a long term agreement, ECA representatives did not follow FIFA invitations to attend FIFA club meetings during the last months.

Forum Club Handball (FCH) signed a similar agreement with European Handball Federation (EHF) in May 2010 which expires in June 2014.

In February 2012 FCH and International Handball Federation (IHF) decided to start negotiations on an agreement, regulating the relation between Clubs and IHF. For the moment the clubs have no claims for compensation or insurance. According to the statutes of IHF the clubs are not even existing. GB