Welcome on board – Alessandro Marzoli
About Alessandro Alessandro Marzoli is the president of Giocatori Italiani Basket Associati (GIBA), the Italian basketball players association, and an EUA board member since 2015. Q&A 1. What are you trying to achieve as a Board member of EU Athletes? As a Board member of EU Athletes, I am striving to improve the work and […]
Welcome on Board – Camille Delzant
About Camille Camille is the adviser to the president at Union Nationale des Footballeurs Professionnel (UNFP) and an EU Athletes board member since 2017. With educational background in law, Camille is working for UNFP since 2013. Q&A What are you trying to achieve as a Board member of EU Athletes? I would like to contribute, […]
Welcome on Board – Simon Keogh
About Simon Simon Keogh is the CEO of Rugby Players Ireland (RPI), the representative body for professional rugby players in Ireland, and an EUA board member since 2013. Simon has a background as professional rugby player and is a qualified solicitor. Q&A What are you trying to achieve as a Board member of EU Athletes? […]
Welcome on board – Sander van der Holst
About Sander Sander is the chairman of NL Sporter and an EU Athletes board member since 2018. He is also a former professional basketball player. Q&A What are you trying to achieve as a Board member of EU Athletes? We are trying to give a voice to Athletes who are not able to or do […]
ISU Hearing took place at the CJEU in Luxembourg
About a week ago, the Court of Justice of the European Union was at the center stage of EU sports law. First the ISU case and then the Superleague case was brought to the attention of the judges of the CJEU. EU Athletes has been strongly supportive of the ISU case since its inception, by launching […]
Welcome on board – Natalia Orive Siviter
About Natalia Natalia is the vice president of EUA since 2017 and the president of AJFSF, the Spanish Futsal Players Association for women. She is also a a member of the Board Directors in the Royal Spanish Football Federation and a professional futsal player since many years. Q&A 1. What are you trying to achieve […]
SDE Pro Sports Project kick-off meeting
On 7-8 July 2022, the Social Dialogue in Europe for Professional (SDE Pro) Sports project kick-off meeting took place in the offices of COSMOS (Association of Sport Employers in France) in Paris, France. SDE Pro Sports is a 2-year project co-funded by the EU that will run under the Support for Social Dialogue programme. It […]
Welcome on board – Marc Leroy
About Marc Marc is the national responsible for United Athletes, the only trade union in Belgium that unites athletes. He is a new EUA board member as of 2022. Q&A What are you trying to achieve as a Board member of EU Athletes? “We should know each other better, who’s who, and how we can […]
Play the Game 2022 – is there a cure for sport?
On 27-30 June, EU Athletes attended the 2022 edition of the Play the Game conference in Odense, Denmark. This event brought together various stakeholders in sport to discuss, debate, and find solutions to topical issues and threats facing international sport. Is there a cure for sport? was the theme of Play the Game 2022, which […]
Welcome on Board – EUA President Brendon Batson
About Brendon Brendon Batson is the president of EU Athletes since 2017. As a former professional football player, Brendon is the Chair of Professional Players Federation (PPF). Q&A What are you trying to achieve as a Board member of EU Athletes? “To encourage the growth and development of player associations.” In your view, what has […]
SAPIS steering group meeting in Odense, Denmark
EU Athletes is a partner to ‘Strengthening Athlete Power in Sport’ (SAPIS), a project co-funded by the Erasmus+ programme of the European Union. SAPIS strives to strengthen athletes’ influence and representation in sport through increasing the democratisation of sports governance and management. This is important considering that athletes are often not allowed to participate effectively […]
Welcome on Board – Joachim Walltin
About Joachim Joachim Walltin is the General Secretary of FIFPRO Division Europe. Prior to taking up this role, the former professional football player was the president of Norwegian player association NISO for 10 years. Joachim has been on the EUA board since 2021. Q&A What are you trying to achieve as a Board member of […]
EU Athletes released the results of its 2nd survey on the long-term impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic
Today EU Athletes publishes the results of its research on the long-term impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic on Players and their Player associations in Europe. This study is the continuation of the EU Athletes survey that was conducted amongst EU Athletes members at the early stage of the pandemic in 2020 (can be found here). […]
ISU hearing to take place in front of CJEU July 11 2022
Since 2015 EU Athletes stands alongside Mark TUITERT and Niels KERSHOLT on their legal battle against the International Skating Federation (ISU). Anti-competitive practices by governing bodies throughout European sport and world sport have restricted the livelihood of athletes and in many cases have imposed or threatened them with disproportional bans. We are please to see […]
SDE Pro Sports project set to strengthen social dialogue in sport
EU Athletes is pleased to announce that the Social Dialogue in Europe for Professional (SDE Pro) Sports project has been approved and is set to officially start in June 2022 under the Support for Social Dialogue programme. In the course of this 2-year project, co-funded by the EU, EU Athletes will together with the European […]
EU Athletes General Assembly 2022
After two years of online meetings caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, EU Athletes members were happy to meet in person for the 2022 General Assembly. The event took place last Friday, the 22nd of April 2022 in Valencia, Spain and gathered over 30 representatives of player and athlete unions and associations from different sports and […]
Together against match fixing on #EUSportIntegrityDay 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 […]
PROMobility project progresses as final Online Exchange is concluded
The PROMobility project, coordinated by EU Athletes and financed by the EU under the ‘Exchanges and Mobility in Sport’ Preparatory Action, aims to develop cooperation in sport through job shadowing for the staff and volunteers at player associations in Europe and South Africa. Its goal is to improve the skills and knowledge base of key personnel […]
PROMobility project Online Exchanges continue
The PROMobility project, financed by the EU under the ‘Exchanges and Mobility in Sport’ Preparatory Action, aims to develop cooperation in sport through job shadowing for the staff and volunteers at player associations in Europe and South Africa. Its goal is to improve the skills and knowledge base of key personnel at player associations thereby […]
PROLead project progresses as the European Leadership Course comes to the conclusion
PROLead is a collaborative partnership Erasmus+ project coordinated by EU Athletes. Partnership include German Sport University Cologne and 8 player associations from different countries and sports. Focusing on the topic of dual careers of athletes, the project aims to enhance leadership skills of athletes, as well as volunteers and staff of player associations, by designing […]
EU Athletes Response to the Lobby for a ‘European sport model’
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 […]
PROMobility project Online Exchanges kick off
The PROMobility project, financed by the EU under the ‘Exchanges and Mobility in Sport’ Preparatory Action, aims to develop cooperation in sport through job shadowing for the staff and volunteers at player associations in Europe and South Africa. Its goal is to improve the skills and knowledge base of key personnel at player associations thereby […]
EU Athletes General Assembly 2021
On the 7th of June, the EU Athletes General Assembly took place online due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. Nearly 30 participants and representatives of player and athlete unions and associations from different sports and countries in Europe expressed their concerns for the circumstances and their hope to meet soon in person. Despite the difficult […]
Statement on Rule 50 of the Olympic Charter
EU Athletes has noted the report and recommendations from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Athletes Commission which were approved by the IOC Executive Board on the 21st of April 2021. We are deeply concerned by the decision taken by the IOC and believe that the consultation process and the rule 50 itself are not compatible […]
#EUSportIntegrityDay to demonstrate our commitment to fight against match fixing
Every year since 2014, the 15th of April is an opportunity to show the commitment and make a stand against match-fixing. This awareness raising initiative consists of a social media campaign that can be supported by all stakeholders: public authorities, sports organizations, betting operators and regulators, athletes, coaches, referees, fans and other organizations and people […]
Internship opportunity at EU Athletes
EU Athletes is looking for an intern to support the team in management and implementation of ongoing European-wide projects. The internship will also include daily communication and administrative tasks, as well as development and policy work in different areas, according to the profile and preferences of the successful candidate. The position will provide an excellent […]
EU Athletes concludes a cooperation agreement with Johan Cruyff Institute
EU Athletes is proud to announce its recently concluded cooperation agreement with Johan Cruyff Institute, a recognized institution educating athletes, sport and business professional to become leaders in Sport Management. Johan Cruyff Institute will offer EU Athletes’ members special conditions to access its academic training in Sport Management, Sport Marketing and Sponsorship, Football Business and Coaching as a result of the agreement signed between […]
Statement on the Judgment of the General Court – International Skating Union Eligibility Rules
EU Athletes welcomes the General Court Judgment in Case T-93/18 International Skating Union v Commission announced yesterday. The judgment confirms that the rules of the International Skating Union (ISU) providing for severe penalties for athletes taking part in speed skating events not recognised by it are contrary to EU competition law. The decision is the […]
Intellectual outputs of the Erasmus+ PEAK project published
PEAK is an EU funded international project under ICSSPE’s leadership aiming to develop coaching policy recommendations for use by sport federations, coaching bodies and governments. The project brings together a unique consortium of expert partners, including the International Council for Coaching Excellence, The German Sport University Cologne, European Elite Athletes Association, Finnish Olympic Committee, Sport Ireland […]
PROLead Erasmus+ project about to enter its next phase
PROLead is a collaborative partnership Erasmus+ project coordinated by EU Athletes. Partnership include German Sport University Cologne and 8 player associations from different countries and sports. Focusing on the topic of dual careers of athletes, the project aims to enhance leadership skills of athletes, as well as volunteers and staff of player associations, by designing […]
Impact of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic on players and their associations
On 14th of October 2020, EU Athletes held an online exchange with the member player associations, in order to discuss the current situation in different sport and countires regarding the Covid-19 pandemic and its impact on sport, athletes and their associations. The summary of the key points from the discussion can be found here.
EU Athletes supports Belarusian athletes and calls for the release of Yelena Leuchanka
U Athletes shares serious concerns expressed by the international community regarding the situation in Belarus. We stand in solidarity with nearly 700 athletes and other persons from Belarusian sport who have called for, among others, new elections, end to police violence and assistance to all victims of illegal actions of the regime in their open […]
Covid-19 impact on players and their player associations
Today EU Athletes publishes the results of its preliminary research on impact of Covid-19 on players and their player associations. The results are based on the questionnaire sent to EU Athletes’ member player associations, with 29 associations from more than 15 countries and wide range of sports participating. The results clearly confirm the importance of […]
EU Athletes General Assembly 2020
EU Athletes General Assembly, held virtually this year due to the current situation, too place yesterday and gathered over 30 representatives of player and athlete unions and associations from different countires and sports in Europe. Exchanges between associations included a presentation and feedback on the results of a preliminary research on the impact of Covid-19 […]
#EUSportIntegrityDay, together against match-fixing
Match-fixing is widely recognized as a major threat for today’s sport, undermining the integrity of the game. Because of organized crime involvement, it can put athletes and other individuals at serious danger. If not acted upon, it could destroy sports that we all love because of the loss of public faith that can be caused […]
EU Athletes Statement on COVID-19 Impact on Sport
On 31st of March 2020, EU Athletes Executive Board held an online emergency meeting in order to discuss latest developments related to the Coronavirus pandemic and its impact on sport and the athletes. In the time of a global public health crisis, many of player associations and players themselves have demonstrated an exemplary leadership, dedication […]
EU Athletes Board Meeting
On the 29th of January EU Athletes Board members gathered at the FIFPro offices in Amsterdam for the first Board meeting of 2020. The topics tackled included the priorities and future actions of EU Athletes, the results of the PROtect Integrity Erasmus+ project and an update on the current and upcoming projects. Moreover, the future […]
PROLead, the new Erasmus+ project to shape athletes’ leadership skills kicks off
On the 28th of January the kick-off meeting of PROLead, the new 3-years project funded by the Erasmus+ Program, took place in Amsterdam. PROLead aims to improve dual career opportunities for professional athletes by providing tailored leadership training for current and retired athletes. EU Athletes is responsible to coordinate the 9 partners taking part into […]
Decent work challenges of athletes discussed at ILO Global Dialogue Forum
The International Labour Organization (ILO) Global Dialogue Forum on Decent Work in the World of Sport has taken place from 20th to 22nd of January in Geneva, Switzerland. The report ‘Decent work in the world of sport’ was a basis for discussions between the employers (IOE), workers (World Players Association and its affiliates) and the governements. Additionally, […]
EU Athletes at the Seminar “Specificity of Sport” organized by the European Commission
EU Athletes took part in the Seminar about “Specificity of Sport”, organized by the European Commission on the 17th of December. The productive day was organized in three different panels about the definition of specificity of sport, how national institutions are taking it into account and how should it be protected. no need to describe […]
Statement on Bye-law 3 to Rule 40 of the Olympic Charter
Following the developments related to the modification of the Olympic Charter’s Bye-law 3 to Rule 40 (Rule 40) and inquiries about its incompatibility with the European Union (EU) law, we would like to underline our opposition to the above-mentioned rule, emphasize our support for the European Commission for protecting athletes’ rights against the abuse and […]
PROtect Integrity Plus comes to an end but is ready for future challenges
On the 13th of December at FIFPro House in Amsterdam, EU Athletes organized the wrap up meeting for the Protect Integrity Plus 2018, co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme, which aimed to adapt and implement the Red Button App in seven different countries and five sports. The app, previously developed by FIFPro and the Finnish Football […]
EU Athletes in Lithuania for the third awareness raising session of Integrisport Erasmus+
The third awareness raising session on combating sport manipulation and match fixing, within the framework of EU-financed Project Integrisport Erasmus+, was held in Vilnius, Lithuania, between 2-4 December. It was co-organized by the Ministry of Education, Science and Sport and the Lithuanian Sport Centre, together with CSCF-Foundation for Sport Integrity. The productive debate was an […]
EU Directors General for Sport discuss the fight against corruption in sport
A meeting of Directors General for Sport took place on 9-10th of December in Helsinki. Corruption in sport was one of the main topics addressed by the Finnish Presidency, and the discussions came very timely after the adoption of the Council Conclusions on combating corruption in sport. EU Athletes was invited to take part in […]
Project CARE by World Player Association, EU Athletes cares about the youngest
On the #HumanRightsDay the World Player Association launches its first global study on child athletes’ experience in collaboration with Loughborough University. EU Athletes is involved in the development and dissemination of the project with three of its affiliates (Associación de Jugadores de Fútbol-Sala, the Norwegian Players’ Association (NISO) and The Cyclist Alliance), alongside International Rugby […]
PEAK Erasmus+ Project for the future of coaching
We are a proud partner of PEAK, an international project coordinated by the International Council of Sport Science and Physical Education (ICSSPE), aiming to develop coaching policy recommendations for use by sport federations, coaching bodies and governments. EU Athletes is collaborating with a unique consortium of expert partners, including the International Council for Coaching Excellence […]
Constructive discussions about European volleyball at ACPV meeting
A meeting organized by the Association des Clubs Professionnels de Volleyball has taken place in Nova Gorica, Slovenia on 15th of November 2019. On the invitation of ACPV, Blagovest Petrov, a former volleyball player and the General Secretary of Spanish Volleyball Players Association (AJJV) was there to represent his organization as well as EU Athletes. […]
Integrisport Erasmus+ Awareness Raising Session Organized in Hungary
EU Athletes, as a partner in Integrisport Erasmus+ project, took part in the event in Budapest in order to talk about player unions role and work when it comes to fighting against match-fixing. During the 3-day training organized specially for members of the Hungarian Police, as well as the National Tax and Customs Administration, the Hungarian […]
EU Athletes at the World Conference on Doping in Sport
The event took part in Katowice, Poland on 5-7th of November and gathered around 1500 participants. The Conference and the accompanying meetings of WADA Executive Committee and the Foundation Board were an opportunity to approve the new International Standards as well as the 2021 World Anti Doping Code. Regarding the substantial changes, EU Athletes is […]
European basketball players: #WeAreStrongerTogether
Since January 2018, EU Athletes has been involved as a parnert the EU-funded project ‘European Social Dialogue Targeted Initiative: Strenghtening social Dialogue in the Professional Basketball Sector’. The project, coordinated by UNI Europa, allowed the player unions representing basketball players to participate in a number of meetings and work together in oder to discuss current […]
Play the Game 2019 in Colorado Springs
For the first time hosted outside Europe, Play the Game took place in Colorado Springs 13-16th of October 2019. With over 300 participants, the Conference provided a venue for inspiring debates on the most topical themes in the world of sport with the conference’s main theme: Athlete power on the rise. Play the Game 2019 […]
PROtect Integrity Plus Dissemination Conference in Athens
With our Erasmus+ PROtect Integrity Plus project concluding by the end of the year, a final event has taken place in Athens, Greece on 8th of October to share the results and outputs of the project. The conference was attended by player associations and some of the key stakeholders in the fight against match-fixing which […]
EU Athletes General Assembly 2019
EU Athletes member associations met in Athens, Greece, on 9th of October for the annual meeting. Members and staff discussed the work and achievements of the organiazation over the last months, including Erasmus+ projects, cooperation with key stakeholders such as European Union and Council of Europe, as well as latest developments within the sport policy, […]
Round table on athletes’ involvement in anti-doping
Last week a meeting was organized in Warsaw, Poland, from the initiative of the future WADA President Witold Banka, to discuss athletes involvement in anti-doping. EU Athletes was invited alongside different athletes commissions and committees and was able to present the common views of our member player unions and athlete associations from around Europe. Our […]
PROtect Integrity Plus Staff Meeting
PROtect Integrity Plus staff meeting took place on June 26th in Finland. The aim of the staff meeting was to catch-up on the implementation of the project so far, especially the roll-out of the Red Button App across project partners and to prepare for the upcoming Dissemination Conference which will take place in Athens, Greece, […]
EPAS Governing Board and Consultative Committee Meeting
On 5th-6th of June in Strasbourg, EPAS held its annual joint meeting of the Governing Board and Consultative Committee. EPAS provides a platform for intergovernmental sports co-operation between the public authorities of its member states. It also encourages dialogue between public authorities, sports organizations and NGOs. The topics tackled during the meeting included good governance […]
Executive Board Meeting in Warsaw
EU Athletes Board met for the second time this year in Warsaw, on the 4th of June 2019. The topics tackled included latest developments and events in the international sport policy and EU Athletes’ participation in cooperation and meetings at the European level. The board also discussed different projects that EU Athletes coordinates and participate […]
EU Council event ‘Listening to the voice of athletes’
On the 23rd of May, Romanian Presidency has put forward the topic of athlete voice for a breakfast event in the Council of the EU. The event gathered athletes’ representatives as well as the political representatives of Austria, Romania, Finland, Croatia and the European Commission, including Commissioner Navracsics. The meeting was an opportunity for EU […]
EPAS Consultative Committee Bureau Meeting
Last week, the members of the EPAS Consultative Committee Bureau, including EU Athletes General Secretary Paulina Tomczyk, met at the Council of Europe’s office in Paris. Main focus of the meeting was to prepare a plenary meeting of the CC, which will take place in Strasbourg on the 5th of June, around the joint meeting […]
Meeting of the European Basketball Player Associations
EU Athletes took part in the meeting for the European Basketball Player Associations on May 6th, in Milan. Within the scope of the European Commission funded project, “European Social Dialogue targeted initiative: strengthening social dialogue in the professional basketball sector”, the project coordinated by UNI Europa/World Players Association, with EU Athletes involved as an associated […]
EU Athletes took part in the 2019 EU Sport Forum
EU Athletes took part in the 2019, EU Sport Forum on 8-9th of April in Bucharest, Romania. The EU Sport Forum provided the platform for structured dialogue between the European Commission and various sport stakeholders from across Europe. The Forum’s main objective was to take stoke of progress achieved in implementing the EU agenda for […]
EU Athletes at the World Players Development Conference
The third edition of the World Players Association – World Player Development Conference was hosted by FIFPro in Hoofddorp, The Netherlands from 2 – 4 April 2019. The conference brought together more than 100 of the world’s leading player development professionals and player association executives from 47 countries and more than 13 different sports to […]
Official Launch of the new project – Combating Match Fixing in Club Football Non-Competitive Matches
EU Athletes took part in the first steering meeting for the new project coordinated by the University of Nicosia – Combating Match Fixing in Club Football Non-Competitive Matches, at the European Office of Cyprus on Thursday, 28 March. This ongoing project is co-funded by the European Union through the Erasmus+ Program. The project started this […]
KCOOS+ Advisory Board Meeting
EU Athletes took part in the KCOOS+ 2018-2020, 2nd Advisory meeting of Contributors and Associate Partners hosted by the Council of Europe – Brussels Office on Friday, March 8th. The Keep Crime Out Of Sport- “against manipulations of sports competitions” is a technical assistance project coordinated by the Council of Europe. KCOOS+ builds upon the […]
Official launch of Integrisport ERASMUS+ Project on tackling match-fixing
EU Athletes is a partner in the new EU-financed project under ERASMUS+, namely Integrisport ERASMUS+ which has its official launch on 30-31 January 2019 in The Hague, during the project’s first steering committee meeting. The meeting was hosted by The Dutch Ministry of Justice and Security, one of the beneficiary countries of the project and […]
EU Athletes Executive Board meeting
New Android Games every day here: https://hackfuchsia.com/category/game/ EU Athletes Board met for the first time this year on the 23rd of January in Copenhagen. Discussions included exchanges about activities related to the European institutions and policy developments in areas such as player rights, anti-doping, match-fixing and others. New possibilities for organizing and cooperation were noted […]
PROtect Integrity Plus Catch-Up Meeting
After one year since our Erasmus+ PROtect Integrity Plus project kicked off, project partners and staff met in Copenhagen on 22nd of January, the to asses the implementation of the project so far and discuss the upcoming actions. New WordPress Templates every day xnulls The aim of the project is to introduce the Red Button […]
EU Athletes releases its new Common Position Paper
EU Athletes, the European federation of independent athlete unions and associations from different sports, representing more than 25 000 individual athletes, has released the newest Common Position Paper developed and agreed by its members. A working group composed by EU Athletes members and supported by staff was created to submit a new Draft Common Position Paper […]
Maternity Rights and Minimum Wage for the Women’s WorldTour
The Cyclists’ Alliance is pleased that the UCI has continued down a path of reform and improvement in women’s elite cycling, starting in 2020. New contract minimum standards, including maternity leave and a starting point for a Women’s WorldTour minimum salary, are important next steps in the evolution of our sport. As reported in Cyclingnews.com by editor […]
Internship offer
EU Athletes is the European federation of player associations and sport trade unions (www.euathletes.org), representing more than 35 players associations in 18 different European countries. We are also affiliated to UNI Global Union and its sport sector World Players Association, the international federation of player unions (www.uniglobalunion.org). EU Athletes is looking for an intern to […]
Protection of human rights and fight against corruption on the agenda in Tbilisi
The 15th Council of Europe Conference of Ministers responsible for Sport took place on the 16th of October 2018 in Tbilisi, Georgia. The event was an opportunity to focus on main areas of interest of the Council of Europe, human rights and fight against corruption, in the framework of the activities of the Enlarged Partial […]
World Mental Health Day at the European Parliament
10th of October every year is dedicated to the awareness about the importance of mental health. On this occasion, EU Athletes engaged with VUB, European Brain Council and EP Sport Intergroup, in organization of an event “Mental Health in Elite Sport”. Mental health and well-being is one of the main priorities for EU Athletes and our […]
IOC told: “Athlete rights are not a game”
EU Athletes supports the position of World Players Association, human rights advocates and athlete organisations, calling on the International Olympic Committee to seriously address the abuse of athlete rights. Statement from World Players Association: NYON, SWITZERLAND – The World Players Association and the Sport and Rights Alliance (SRA) have called on the International Olympic Committee […]
EU Athletes’ Board meets in Bologna
Final Executive Board’s meeting of 2018 has taken place on the 2nd of October, at GIBA’s office in Bologna, Italy. The Board members have discussed several important topics, including new Common Position Paper which will be published soon, potential cooperation with Volleyball Leagues Association, basketball organizing project with UNI Europa, ongoing and future Erasmus+ projects, […]
3rd International Conference on the fight against the manipulation of sports competitions
On 24-25th of September 2018, EU Athletes has taken part in the 3rd Macolin Conference organized by the Council of Europe in Strasbourg. The event brought together over 160 participants from 37 countries and 23 international stakeholders. EU Athletes has been actively involved in the Macolin Process, particularly by coordinating and representing athlete and player […]
EU Athletes to develop cooperation with Volleyball Leagues Association (VLA)
EU Athletes representation, composed of Paulina Tomczyk (General Secretary), Vasilis Minoudis (HPVPA) and Stijn Boeykens (ACV Sporta) was hosted by the Vollayball Leagues Association (VLA) during its meeting in Athens, Greece, on the 11th of September 2018. VLA was set up earlier this year and brings together national volleyball leagues from Belgium, France, Italy, Germany, Greece […]
PROtect Integrity Plus: 2018 Code of Conduct for Athletes to help educate players about sport integrity
The newest version of the Code of Conduct for Athletes was developed and published as a part of Erasmus+ funded PROtect Integrity Plus project, in cooperation with project partners as well as the private betting operators represented by ESSA, EGBA and RGA. The Code of Conduct focuses on 5 key messages, in order to make […]
PROtect Integrity Plus: Red Button App introduced to players around Europe
PROtect Integrity Plus Erasmus+ project coordinated by EU Athletes aims to support the efforts to fight match-fixing by introducing the Red Button reporting App to more than 3 000 athletes in 5 sports in 7 European countries. The App was initially developed by the Finish Football Players Association (JPY) and FIFPro, who are involved in […]
Female basketball players’ meeting in Brussels
In the framework of the European Commission funded project “European Social Dialogue targeted initiative: strengthening social dialogue in the professional basketball sector”, the meeting brought together eight female basketball players, active or retired. Players from EU Athletes’ members SNB (France), AJUB (Spain) and GIBA (Italy) as well as from Belgium and Turkey participated in the […]
Olaberría fights for maternity rights and against discrimination
EU Athletes supports the case of Spanish cyclist Leire Olaberría, which raises important questions about the gender equality in sport, women’s rights for family and personal life and more generally, about the rights of women as athletes and as women in society. The article from The Cyclists’ Alliance: Multi-time Spanish champion and 2008 Olympic medalist, […]
EU Athletes supports FNASS against the law change affecting professional athletes
EU Athletes supports FNASS (Fédération nationale des associations et syndicats de sportifs) and our French affiliates UNFP (football), SNB (basketball), PROVALE (rugby) and AJPH (handball), protesting the changes in the law which extends the duration of the first professional contract for athletes. By introducing the amendment in the law on vocational training (formation professionnelle) which […]
‘Making It Happen’ with UNI Global Union
UNI Global Union World Women’s Conference and World Congress has taken place in Liverpool 14-20th of June 2018 and brought together almost 2 000 delegates from all around the World. Being affiliated to UNI Global Union as well as its regional organization UNI Europa and the sport sector World Players Organization, EU Athletes is a […]
EU Athletes General Assembly
EU Athletes held its annual General Assembly in Lisbon, Portugal on 4-6th of June 2018, with over 25 member player unions and athlete associations represented. This was the first Assembly after the changes in EU Athletes leadership, with Brendon Batson as President and Paulina Tomczyk as General Secretary. This year’s Assembly focused on mental health […]
Maternity rights of athletes – new law recently adopted in Italy
The discrimination of women athletes when it comes to their professional status and the denial of labour rights has been confirmed by the results of SWAFE project. This has a direct connection to the lack of maternity protection that many athletes are facing, being forced to chose between their professional careers and family life. Our Italian […]
World Players Executive Committee meeting and “Beyond Integrity” conference
EU Athletes has participated in the meetings organized by the World Players Association and taking place in New York at the NBPA’s office, on 5-6th of April 2018. The Executive Committee discussed latest developments in the organization’s wok on embedding human rights of athletes in sport, improving the governance of sport organizations and necessary reform […]
EU Athletes at the EU Sport Forum 2018
Hosted by Tibor Navracsics, the Commissioner responsible for Education, Culture, Youth and Sport, the 2018 EU Sport Forum has taken place in Sofia on 22nd and 23rd March.The EU Sport forum is the most important event in the European sport sector and an opportunity for EU institutions and Member States to engage in dialogue with […]
PROtect Integrity Plus Erasmus+ Project Meeting in Helsinki
Project partners and staff have gathered in Helsinki, Finland for three days PROtect Integrity Plus Red Button meeting. The project, co-financed by the European Union and the private betting operators ESSA, EGBA and RGA, aims to fight against match-fixing by making sure that the professional and elite players in Europe have a secure and trusted […]
‘Improving player associations’ support for women athletes’
Over the course of last year, EU Athletes has been coordinating an Erasmus+ project ‘Supporting Women Athletes from Europe’ (SWAFE). Project partners included WGPA (Gaelic sports, Ireland), AJFSF (futsal, Spain) and HPVPA (volleyball, Greece). The project aimed to improve the support that the player unions are offering to their women members, and to support female […]
PROtect Integrity Plus Kick-off Meeting
The first staff meeting of EU Athletes-coordinated Erasmus+ project PROtect Integrity Plus has taken place at Provale’s office in Toulouse, France on the 26th of January 2018. The project is a continuation of the succesful PROtect Integrity campaign against match-fixing, started back in 2010 in partnership with ESSA, EGBA and RGA. The new project, following […]
Paulina Tomczyk appointed as EU Athletes General Secretary
Following the EU Athletes Board meeting on the 23rd of January in Amsterdam, Paulina Tomczyk has been appointed as the General Secretary. After a recruitment process that started in October 2017, the Board concluded that Paulina’s qualifications, experience within the organization and vision for the future of EU Athletes made her an ideal candidate for […]
Creation of “FIPA” Futsal International Players Association
The main goal of this association, registered in Spain, is to act as FIFA’s interlocutors for the development of women’s futsal. FIPA is formed by well-known international players such as Jozi Oliveira from Brazil, Shiori Nakajima from Japan and Lorena Rubio from Spain among others. FIPA was constituted on the 15th of December, the main […]
Internship offer
EU Athletes is the European federation of player associations and sport trade unions in Europe (www.euathletes.org) representing more than 35 players associations in 13 different EU Member States. We are also affiliated to World Players Association, the international federation of player unions (www.uniglobalunion.org). EU Athletes is an established stakeholder in the sport sector, cooperating with […]
World Players Association launches the Universal Declaration of Player Rights
WASHINGTON—The world’s leading player association executives—collectively representing more than 85,000 players and athletes—will announce a Universal Declaration of Player Rights (Declaration) on 14 December 2017 in Washington, D.C. The Declaration will address the persistent, systemic and long-standing violations of players’ fundamental rights throughout world sport. It is the first framework ever that explicitly articulates the […]
EU Athletes at Play the Game 2017: Riding waves of change
Play the Game is a biannual conference addressing a number of challenges to modern sport, such as corruption in sports organizations, match-fixing, doping, unsustainable mega-events and the need for more active sports participation policies. Play the Game 2017 “Riding the waves of change” gathers almost 450 journalists, scientists and sport officials on the 26-30th of […]
PROtect Integrity Wrap-up Meeting
The staff of our Erasmus+ “2016 PROtect Integrity” project met last week in Amsterdam for the final project meeting. The main goal of the meeting was to review and evaluate the project so far and discuss the remaining actions, including the ongoing research, led by prof. David Forrest and based on responses collected from players’ […]
“Tackling Corruption in the European Sport”
The event organized by the Greek MEP Stelios Kouloglou has taken place in the European Parliament in Brussels on the 7th of November. The conference has gathered many interesting speakers including representatives from the European institutions, as well as the research and sport, in order to discuss the problem of corruption, match-fixing and doping. Our […]
New President of EU Athletes elected !
During the last Board meeting of EU Athletes, which has taken place at the Gaelic Players Association’s office in Dublin, Brendon Batson has been elected the President of EU Athletes. Natalia Orive has been elected as Vice President. They both have received a strong support from the Board, as their candidatures have been approved unanimously […]
Gender Equality Index 2017 includes data on decision-making in sport for the first time
The Conference for Gender Equality Index 2017, the document prepared by EIGE (European Institute for Gender Equality) and outlining the gender gaps in different areas has taken place in Brussels on the 11th of October 2017. The Index included for the first time data on decision making in sport and our Policy Officer Paulina Tomczyk […]
Important changes for EU Athletes following the 2017 General Assembly
The General Assembly of EU Athletes has taken place last week in Barcelona. It was an opportunity to give an activity and financial update to the members, discuss latest development, projects and campaigns as well as the future priorities and actions. Nearly 30 player association have been present during the GA. EU Athletes supports the […]
PROtect Integrity Dissemination Conference
With our Erasmus+ project “2016 PROtect Integrity” concluding at the end of the year, we have organized the Dissemination Conference in Barcelona on 25-27th of September. The goal of this event was to share the first results of the project, share best practices and partners’ experiences through the project and to further discuss issues related […]
World Players Association launches landmark standard to underpin holistic player and athlete development and wellbeing
The World Players Association today launched a landmark standard to underpin holistic player and athlete development and wellbeing across the globe. The World Player Development, Wellbeing, Transition and Retirement Standard, Paris 2017 (Standard) addresses the acute need for sport to raise its investment in players as people as well as athletes. Being thrust into an ever-more demanding […]
EU Athletes application PROtect Integrity+, selected for EU co-funding as part of Erasmus+ Sport Programme
In April 2016, EU Athletes have submitted an application to the Erasmus+ Sport Programme for a project related to Matchfixing : PROtectIntegrity+. Last week the Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA), selected EU Athletes to receive a funding of 204.656€ between January 2018 and December 2019 to implement the action. This grant will be […]
Binding players’ rights commitment –”the first step to protecting the integrity of sport”
(Kazan, Russia) The World Players Association today commended UNESCO for highlighting the essential need to safeguard player rights as a cornerstone of any effective approach to protecting the integrity of sport. Further, World Players called upon global sport to adopt a binding policy to embed the human rights of players. “Integrity in sport as end […]
“Human Rights and Mega Sport Events” Working Breakfast at the European Parliament
The meeting was hosted on the 12th of July by the Sport Intergroup as a part of “Queering Football” project, with a focus on human rights ahead of 2018 World Cup in Russia. The event has gathered MEPs, representatives from the Commission, FIFA, EOC and NGOs and was an opportunity for interesting discussions on the […]
SWAFE conference in Athens
SWAFE, the EU Athletes project that aims to empower women athletes in Europe, held a conference in Athens earlier this week. This event gathered 20 different players association from 10 EU countries and various women sports such as handball, rugby, basketball, futsal, Gaelic sport, football, golf, and judo. The objective of the conference was to […]
ESSDC Meeting in Brussels
A Working Group meeting of European Sectoral Social Dialogue Committee for Sport and Active Leisure has taken place in Brussels on the 29th of May 2017. The discussions were mainly focused on the evaluation of the Social Dialogue project concluded this year, fix-term contracts in the sport sector and the Work Plan for Sport 2017-2020 […]
Resolution of the EPAS Consultative Committee on the closure of UNOSDP
The Consultative Committee of the Enlarged Partial Agreement on Sport under the Council of Europe expresses its concern over the sudden closure of the United Nations Office for Sport Development & Peace, which since the beginning of the century has played an important role as catalyst, adviser and advocate for a wide global group of […]
PROtect Integrity Catch-up Round Table – Stockholm
On the 25-26th of April in Stockholm, the third and final Catch-up Round Table has taken place. Besides being an opportunity for 10 participating player associations to give a feedback about the implementation of the project and discuss with the staff, it was focused on problem gambling within professional athletes. During the workshop led by […]
#EUSportIntegrityDay
Like every year on the 15th of April, this Saturday we will be showing our commitment to tackle match fixing in sport with the #EUSportIntegrityDay. Match-fixing is widely regarded as one of the major threats to sport. It undermines the values of sport such as integrity, fair play, respect for others and have a negative […]
Players are people first: World Players to develop global standard at Player Development Conference
Championing the theme #people first – embedding holistic player development in world sport – World Player Development Conference will kick off in Paris today. Over the course of three days, 75 of the leading player development professionals and player association executives from 28 countries and 10 different sports will exchange on current challenges and future […]
#WorldPlayersUnited: World Players Association Media Release
UNI World Athletes, which brings together 85,000 players across professional sport through more than 100 player associations in over 60 countries, has today unveiled its new strategic vision – #WorldPlayersUnited – to ensure the voice of the player is heeded in the running of sport. The new vision sees UNI World Athletes become the […]
European Social Dialogue Project Plenary
Plenary meeting of the project “Supporting the test phase of the European Sectoral Social Dialogue Committee for sport and active leisure”, co-financed by the European Union and coordinated by UNI Europa has taken place in Berlin on 23-24th of March. This event has gathered around 50 participants from 19 different member states and as an […]
EU Sport Forum 2017
This event is the biggest gathering of stakeholders in the sport sector, with over 350 delegates from EU institutions, Member States, sport organizations and other NGOs participating. This edition was organized by the Maltese presidency on 8-9th of March in St. Julian’s. The main focus was put on grassroots sport, but a number of other […]
PROtect Integrity Catch-up Round Table in Milan
The second Catch-up Round Table organized in the frame of our Erasmus+ 2016 PROtect Integrity project has taken place in Milan, 21-22nd of February. The main focus of the meeting was the national cooperation against match fixing and the involvement of player associations within the process. To discuss this topic, we have invited Cassandra Fernandes […]
EU Athletes Board Meeting
First EUA Board Meeting of the year has taken place in Madrid on the 26th of January. The members discussed the latest developments in the EU Athletes policy and the work plan for the next few months. The ISU antitrust case was an important point on the agenda since the European Commission has recognized EU […]
Erasmus+ SWAFE project Kick-off Staff Meeting
“Supporting Women Athletes from Europe” is an Erasmus+ project on the topic of gender equality, led by EU Athletes in partnership with three player associations: HPVPA (Greece), AJFSF (Spain) and WGPA (Ireland). The project aims to research into and improve the situation of professional and elite women athletes in Europe, particularly by working on the […]
Council of Europe Conference of Ministers Responsible for Sport
European Sport Ministers have met on 28-30th of November in Budapest, Hungary for a conference organised by the Council of Europe under its Enlarged Partial Agreement on Sport. The main themes of the meeting were the anti-doping, promoting the Convention on match-fixing and good governance in sport. EU Athletes’ policy officer Paulina Tomczyk was there […]
EU Athletes Board meeting in Dublin
EU Athletes’ final Board meeting of the year has taken place on the 15th of November in Dublin. The Board members have discussed the latest developments in work of the organization and future policy priorites, such as ISU anti-trust case, anti-doping crisis, involvement in EU sport policy and Erasmus+ projects. Next meeting will take place […]
PROtect Integrity Catch-up Round Table in Dublin
In the frame of our Erasmus+ #PROtectIntegrity project, we had the first Catch-up Round Table, held in Dublin on 14-15th of November 2016. The first purpose of the meeting was to work on communication and social media and how it can be best used by the player associations to spread the integrity message. The second […]
EU Athletes at the EP Sport Report hearing
On the 12th of October at the European Parliament, EU Athletes has participated in the hearing on the draft report “Integrated approach to sport policy: good governance, accessibility and integrity”, organized by the rapporteur, Finnish MEP Hannu Takkula. The statement of EU Athletes’ General Secretary Jeff Reymond and the full video from the meeting is […]
Player associations educating athletes on sport integrity
The Erasmus+ project “2016 PROtect Integrity” continues as the participating player associations carry on team visits delivering match fixing education to their members. Representatives from each of the 21 project partners travel all around their countries in order to make sure that they reach all their members with the PROtect Integrity message. Over the two […]
EU Anti-doping Conference
The conference under the title “The fight against doping in the EU legal framework: balance between effective anti-doping measures and fundamental rights” was held on the 15th of June in Amsterdam. Anti-doping has been defined as one the priorities in the field of sport for the Dutch Presidency of the EU, who has organized this event. […]
New tools for risk assessment in the sport sector
The social partners of the sports sector, UNI Europa and EASE, have developed three new tools for comprehensive risk evaluation, with the support from the European Agency for Health and Safety at Work, EU-OSHA. The sports sector accounts for a very high rate of work-related accidents. Comprehensive risk evaluation is the first step forward to […]