In Warsaw the 8th 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 1st June 2012 until 30th 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