The saga involving Spain’s public funding of certain Spanish football clubs took a new turn on 26 February 2019, as the General Court of the European Union overturned the European Commission’s (“EC”) ruling that FC Barcelona had received unlawful state aid from Spain.… Continue Reading
Earlier this month, Sports Shorts considered the Neymar transfer saga with an in-depth look at the law surrounding buy-out clauses and a more specific post on penalty clauses in contracts entered into by Spanish clubs and minors. Neymar, backed by Paris Saint-Germain, was recently able to buy himself out of his contract with FC Barcelona … Continue Reading
Since part 1 of this blog series was published, the Neymar transfer saga moved to a denouement. Overnight, FC Barcelona were reported to have accepted the buy-out fee and today (4 August 2017), Neymar was officially unveiled as a Paris Saint-Germain player. In the case of Neymar, the inclusion of a buy-out clause in the … Continue Reading
In January 2017, the Italian football club Juventus unveiled a new club crest. The familiar silhouette of a charging bull against the fabled black and white stripes will now be replaced by a black and white letter J in the shape of a shield. Speaking about the new crest, Juventus’ club president, Andrea Agnelli, stated … Continue Reading
On 2 November 2016, Sports Shorts wrote about the English and Scottish Football Associations’ request for their players to wear armbands featuring poppies. On Friday, the two teams ignored FIFA’s guidance and decided to play with the armband anyway. Our blog post on this issue noted the thorny intersection between sports and politics and the … Continue Reading
On 25 October 2016, FIFA announced that the FIFA Disciplinary Committee has sanctioned the Real Federación Española de Fútbol (the Spanish FA) (the “RFEF”) for breaches relating to the international transfer and registration of players under the age of 18. According to FIFA’s press release, the RFEF was found to have: “…violated several provisions concerning … Continue Reading