Apr 11, 2025
Every year the 15th of April marks #EUSportIntegrityDay. First launched by the European Athletes and Players Association (formerly EU Athletes) in 2014, EU Sport Integrity Day gives key stakeholders in sport across Europe the opportunity to speak out against match-fixing and reaffirm their commitment to safeguarding the integrity of sport. Over the years the campaign has grown with strong support from player associations, sport federations, public bodies and organisations.
The consequences of match-fixing for athletes can be devastating, affecting their reputations and potentially jeopardising their careers. Athlete and player associations remain actively engaged in educating athletes on combating competition manipulation, empowering them to identify fixers and report any suspicious activities.
In early 2025, we proudly announced our involvement in PROtect Integrity Responsibly, a new EU-funded Erasmus+ project. PROtect Integrity Responsibly is a continuation of over a decade of successful work from the Association in its fight against match-fixing and corruption in sport by focusing on promoting integrity in sport through the education of athletes about responsible gambling practices and their role in preventing competition manipulation.
In collaboration with player associations across Europe, EAPA aims to reach over 5,500 elite athletes and professionals. The project will combine both online and face-to-face education on responsible gambling and competition integrity.
Together with our partners, we are ensuring that the fight for clean, fair, and responsible sport continues to gain momentum.
Join us in safeguarding our sports and take a stand against match-fixing every year on #EUSportIntegrityDay.
Apr 15, 2023
Every year on the 15th of April, the #EUSportIntegrityDay campaign offers an opportunity to speak out against match fixing and demonstrate dedication to protecting the integrity of sport. EU Athletes started this initiative in 2014, and it has continued to grow ever since, with new stakeholders expressing their support each year. In 2023, the campaign has already received strong support from the player movement, including associations representing a variety of sport including handball, basketball, volleyball, rugby and futsal as well as multisport national unions.
This year, as a part of Erasmus + project PROtect Integrity Online co-funded by the European Union, an animated video in English, Spanish, Italian, Danish, and French languages was created to ensure that the message is received by as many stakeholders in their native languages. Players, coaches, officials, and support staff at all levels should know the threats of match fixing and applicable policies in their sport. You can watch the video in English below.
The integrity of sport is a top priority for EU Athletes and its members. Match fixing presents a major threat to the integrity of sport and can have a detrimental effect on the whole sport sector and people involved. In recent years, match fixing rapidly expanded to new forms and new areas due to the increasing digitisation and changing sporting environment.
Athlete and player associations regularly educate athletes on emerging methods of manipulating the competition to ensure that athletes can detect the fixer and report the case immediately. In turn, secure and effective ways of reporting match fixing cases must be established and supported in all sports and countries so that reports are not left unnoticed. To fight match fixing effectively, we need to cooperate locally, nationally, internationally and share our knowledge and expertise.
Join us! Make your stand against match fixing on #EUSportIntegrityDay and share it on social media platforms.
Find out more about the campaign at #EUSportIntegrityDay website.
Sep 14, 2022
The HealthyLifestyle4All is the European Commission’s initiative that aims to link sport and active lifestyles with health, food and other policies. It showcases the European Commission’s commitment to promoting healthy lifestyles for all, across generations and social groups, noting that everyone can benefit from activities that improve health and well-being
To promote a broad outreach, uptake and ownership of healthy lifestyles across society, the European Commission wishes to involve sport movements at national, European and international level; state authorities (ministries), cities & regions (local governments) and civil society organisations of the EU Member States, the Erasmus+ programme countries, the Eastern Partnership and Western Balkans countries.
“Sport is the day to day life of the athletes we represent” said EU Athletes board member Camille DELZANT “We believe as an organisation that our members have a role to play to help spreading the message across that a healthy lifestyle has a lot of positive impact on people mental and physical wellbeing. You can start small, there is no need for fancy equipments. And she concluded “With our Union members we have gathered a great group of ambassadors to promote this really important message. Follow their tips and it won’t take very long before you see some benefits in your day to day life.
EU Athletes is a proud signatory of the pledge for #healthylifestyle4all initiative. We have committed to develop a communication campaign to raise awareness about the importance of healthy lifestyle, with participation of professional athletes from different countires and sports in Europe. Follow our social media plateforms to discover the videos of our members under the Athletes for #healthylifestyle4all.
Apr 15, 2022
Every year on the 15th of April, the #EUSportIntegrityDay campaign is an opportunity to take a stand against match fixing and show commitment to protect the integrity of sport. This campaign was established by EU Athletes in 2014 and has developed and grown ever since, with more stakeholders showing their support every year. #EUSportIntegrityDay 2022 proved successful and was promoted by several public and private stakeholders, including player unions and associations from all over Europe, as well as WADA, Council of Europe or IBIA.
Match-fixing is not a new problem in sport. It is a persistent and ever-evolving phenomenon which poses a severe threat to the sports we love by undermining the integrity of the game. By virtue of the financial challenges and changing sporting circumstances pertaining to Covid-19 as well as the increasingly digital era, match fixing has recently taken new forms and diversified into new areas. This calls for strengthened and collective efforts by different stakeholders.
The involvement of athletes and their associations at national, European, and international level in the fight against match fixing is essential. Not only are athletes the ones with the most to lose if match fixing destroys public confidence in the sport they love and earn a living from, but they are also a vital factor in preventing match fixing as the “direct influencers” on the field of play. Athletes who are educated about the dangers of the phenomenon and who are given the opportunity to securely report to suspicious activity have the potential to effectively gate keep sports from manipulation.
An additional element of essence, the importance of which cannot not be understated, is good governance. Where good governance standards are met, including the respect for athletes rights and interests as well as the transparency at every level of sport organisations, there is less risk for match fixing to flourish.
Jun 14, 2021
EU Athletes reiterates that athletes have the same fundamental rights as every other person, citizen and worker. These rights are guaranteed by national and European laws, as well as internationally recognised human rights instruments and standards. They cannot be restricted or redefined by sport organisations.
We believe there is no one static European model of sport. Sport within Europe is based on a mixture of dynamic and evolving models that vary according to specific sports and countries. Sport needs to continue to adapt to modern circumstances if it is to retain its value to society and remain attractive as a spectator sport and economic activity.
EU Athletes is strongly opposed to any attempts to recognise, codify or ‘protect’ the European sport model or its elements as proposed by the Olympic movement. Consequently, we do not support any reference to a European sport model in the European Sports Charter. In our opinion, it is little more than a continuation of the long running and unsuccessful campaign for sport to be exempt from European laws.
European governments and organisations such as the Council of Europe have a crucial role to play in ensuring that sport is well governed, complies with the law and respects the fundamental rights of athletes and other stakeholders. Adopting the ‘European sport model’ presented by the Olympic movement risks undermining the valuable work and achievement at the European level in the recent years.
Any model of sport that can be accepted in Europe must comply with the principles of good governance, rule of law and democracy, while respecting and promoting the human rights of athletes and other people involved. Furthermore, there cannot be any support for a model that disregards the views, rights and interests of professional and elite athletes.
Emerging challenges related to the governance of sport should be addressed through dialogue, negotiations and multi-stakeholder initiatives. EU Athletes remains committed to cooperating on this issue with the governments, European organisations and institutions, as well as the sport organisations.
Is the Lobbying for a ‘European Sport Model’ Just Another Route for an Exemption?
The IOC and International Federations have long argued for a sport exemption from European law and fair competition, in order to retain their dominant position and control over sport. We believe that the calls for the recognition and protection of the ‘European sport model’ are just the latest name for this campaign.
One characteristic of many sports in Europe is its reliance upon competition with a system of promotion and relegation which theoretically enables all sports clubs and individuals to compete at the highest levels. Yet paradoxically, the lobby for recognition of the ‘European model of sport’ is keen to remove fair competition in the market by restricting third party event organisers and threatening to sanction the athletes.
The notion of a ‘European sport model’ has been created not to protect sport, but to protect the position and the power of the Olympic movement and sports federations. It is not acceptable to recognise and support a model that only serves some of the stakeholders, while denying the reality of the modern sport sector and hindering its further development.
Player and Athlete Associations Are a Key Part of the Sport Movement
We would like to stress that player and athlete associations were never consulted on the proposed ‘European sport model’. The main features and characteristic of this model were unilaterally defined by the Olympic movement, without taking into consideration the views and interests of player associations and other important stakeholders. The Olympic lobby for a ‘European sport model’ never mentions player unions, athlete associations or social dialogue.
Just as there is no sport without athletes, there is no sport movement without athlete associations. Any sport model that is adopted without the participation and agreement of athletes and their associations lacks legitimacy.
Any European model of sport must recognise the long-established sports trade union movement. This is an important part of the European model for business, and a fundamental right that applies to sport. Athletes have the right to organise, collectively bargain and to be included in decision making process on matters that affect them.
European Case Law and Good Governance
The Olympic proposal of a European sport model seems to be based on the official recognition and support for the ‘pyramid model’ and the position of sport federations. It is important to keep in mind that sports federations are typically both the monopolistic regulators of their sports as well as the dominant commercial organiser of events, which creates a clear potential conflict of interest.
Monopolistic sport federations have a history of exploiting their dominant positions – often at the expense of athletes. These abuses have been found by the European courts in high-profile court cases from Jean Marc Bosman in 1995 to the most recent 2020 decision in favour of Mark Tuitert and Niels Kerstholt against the ISU. The courts have been clear that federations must not abuse their dominant position by restricting access to other commercial event organisers, not negotiating with player unions and restricting the rights of athletes.
Whilst it is possible for monopolistic sports federations and leagues to operate effectively and efficiently, we are strongly of the opinion that this requires effective oversight by the law and cannot be curtailed by the notion of autonomy or specificity of sport. The European and national courts have shown themselves to be capable of taking into account the specific nature of sport activity whilst holding the sport governing bodies to account so that they do not abuse their dominant position.
Good governance in European sport also requires effective oversight by law and public authorities to prevent issues such as bribery, corruption, athlete exploitation and abuse. Through crises and scandals in the recent years, it has been clear that self-regulation, lack of oversight and undue autonomy of sport organisations can create an environment susceptible to those problems.
The system that led to abuse of sport organisations’ position, in detriment of athletes and the sport itself, does not deserve protection from the European governments or organisations. Recognition of the proposed European sport model, despite the European case law and the good governance principles, would undermine the rule of law and other fundamental European values.
Balancing the Importance of the National Team vs Other Competitions
While for many sports and athletes the opportunity to play for their national teams is the pinnacle of their careers, it is not the case for all. Those athletes who, for whatever reasons, do not wish to participate in national team competitions should not be pressured or obliged to do so. It would clearly be unacceptable and contrary to European values to force citizens to work for their sports federations by playing for the national team. On the other hand, athletes wishing to participate in the national team competition should be free to do so, in a way that respects their rights as workers as well as their occupational health and safety, particularly by assuring adequate time to rest and recover. What is more, athletes should not be threatened with bans and losing a chance to represent their country in national teams’ competitions for simply taking part in third party events.
Currently, rules in many sports require athletes to be available for national teams at the expense of other competitions. On the other hand, a number of professional sports clubs are often reluctant to release their employees to work for national teams. This tension is made worse by the continual increase in sporting competitions by both sports federations and clubs, which can increase athletes’ workloads beyond what is healthy, acceptable or prescribed by laws regulating working time.
This is an important issue that should be addressed in dialogue between players, clubs, leagues and federations with an agreed competition calendar and conditions of players’ participation in the national team competitions. Contrary to the Olympic lobby’s attempts, it cannot be resolved by simply referring to their European model of sport and claiming that national sport competitions should always be given priority.
Financial Solidarity
Professional and elite sport is an important economic sector, with many organisations within the Olympic movement engaging in significant commercial activity. Regardless of their non-for-profit status, those organisations operate as businesses and must comply with applicable law and standards on business and human rights.
Given the dominant market position of sports federations compared to individual athletes, it is essential that the rights of athletes as citizens and workers continue to be protected. The economic value of sport is derived from the work and image rights of the athletes. They deserve fair remuneration, a share in revenues that they have helped create and an opportunity to commercialise their image rights.
Currently, many athletes are underpaid or in some cases, not paid at all, even though sport organisations generate significant revenues. ‘Financial solidarity’, mentioned as one of the fundamental characteristics of IOC’s European sports model, can easily be misused as an excuse to justify not paying athletes and restricting their commercial rights, as in the case of the widely contested Rule 40 of the Olympic Charter.
Solidarity between sport stakeholders and adequate funding of sport at all levels, accompanied by financial transparency and accountability are crucial. Most importantly, financial solidarity needs to ensure a fair return to athletes, on whose work the sport organisations generate their income.
Any model of sport in Europe must respect athletes’ fundamental right to organise into independent player associations and engage in social dialogue, including on issues such as remuneration, revenue sharing and commercial rights. Attempts of the Olympic movement to restrict these fundamental rights, under the cover of their European model of sport, must not be validated by any government or organisation committed to upholding fundamental human rights.
Contact:
Paulina Tomczyk, EU Athletes General Secretary
paulinatomczyk@euathletes.org
EU Athletes Response to the Lobby for a ‘European sport model’
