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The Institutional Framework for Doing Sports Business: Principles of EU Competition Policy in Sports Markets

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  • Oliver Budzinski

    (Department of Environmental and Business Economics, University of Southern Denmark)

Abstract

The competition rules and policy framework of the European Union represents an important institutional restriction for doing sports business. Driven by the courts, the 2007 overhaul of the approach and methodology has increased the scope of competition policy towards sports associations and clubs. Nowadays, virtually all activities of sports associations that govern and organize a sports discipline with business elements are subject to antitrust rules. This includes genuine sporting rules that are essential for a league, championship or tourna-ment to come into existence. Of course, ‘real’ business or commercial activities like ticket selling, marketing of broadcasting rights, etc. also have to comply with competition rules. Regulatory activities of sports associations comply with European competition rules if they pursuit a legitimate objective, its restrictive effects are inherent to that objective and proportionate to it. This new approach offers important orientation for the strategy choice of sports associations, clubs and related enterprises. Since this assessment is done following a case-by-case approach, however, neither a blacklist of anticompetitive nor a whitelist of procompetitive sporting rules can be derived. Instead, conclusions can be drawn only from the existing case decisions – but, unfortunately, this leaves many aspects open. With respect to business activities, the focus of European competition policy is on centralized marketing arrangements bundling media rights. These constitute cartels and are viewed to be anticompetitive in nature. However, they may be exempted from the cartel prohibition on efficiency and consumer benefits considerations. Here, a detailed list of conditions exists that centralized marketing arrangements must comply with in order to be legal. Although this policy seems to be well-developed at first sight, a closer look at the decision practice reveals several open problems. Other areas of the buying and selling behavior of sports associations and related enterprises are considerably less well-developed and do not provide much orientation for business. The author would like to thank Arne Feddersen and the participants of the 2nd European Conference on Sports Economics (German Sports University Co-logne, 2010) for valuable comments on earlier versions of this paper.

Suggested Citation

  • Oliver Budzinski, 2011. "The Institutional Framework for Doing Sports Business: Principles of EU Competition Policy in Sports Markets," Working Papers 108/11, University of Southern Denmark, Department of Sociology, Environmental and Business Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:sdk:wpaper:108
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    12. Brian M. Mills & Jason A. Winfree & Mark S. Rosentraub & Ekaterina Sorokina, 2015. "Fan substitution between North American professional sports leagues," Applied Economics Letters, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 22(7), pages 563-566, May.
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    Cited by:

    1. Oliver Budzinski & Anika Müller‐Kock, 2018. "Is The Revenue Allocation Scheme Of Formula One Motor Racing A Case For European Competition Policy?," Contemporary Economic Policy, Western Economic Association International, vol. 36(1), pages 215-233, January.
    2. Budzinski, Oliver & Pawlowski, Tim, 2014. "The behavioural economics of competitive balance: Implications for league policy and championship management," Ilmenau Economics Discussion Papers 89, Ilmenau University of Technology, Institute of Economics.
    3. Oliver Budzinski & Janina Satzer, 2011. "Sports Business and Multisided Markets: Towards a New Analytical Framework? (Long Version)," Working Papers 1104, International Association of Sports Economists;North American Association of Sports Economists.
    4. Tomislav Globan & Ed Jägers, 2019. "Multiple Ownership, Collusion And Unusual Result Patterns In Soccer," Contemporary Economic Policy, Western Economic Association International, vol. 37(2), pages 245-260, April.
    5. Budzinski, Oliver, 2017. "Four cases in sports competition policy: Baseball, judo, football, and motor racing," Ilmenau Economics Discussion Papers 109, Ilmenau University of Technology, Institute of Economics.
    6. Santiago-Caballero, Carlos & Fernández-Roldán Díaz, Alejandro, 2017. "Decomposing competitive balance in the major European football leagues : a Rawlsian approach," IFCS - Working Papers in Economic History.WH 24658, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. Instituto Figuerola.
    7. Budzinski, Oliver & Müller-Kock, Anika, 2016. "Market power and media revenue allocation in professonal sports: The case of formula one," Ilmenau Economics Discussion Papers 102, Ilmenau University of Technology, Institute of Economics.
    8. Budzinski, Oliver, 2012. "Impact evaluation of merger control decisions," Ilmenau Economics Discussion Papers 75, Ilmenau University of Technology, Institute of Economics.
    9. Domenico Campa, 2022. "Exploring the Market of Soccer Player Registrations: An Empirical Analysis of the Difference Between Transfer Fees and Estimated Players’ Inherent Value," Journal of Sports Economics, , vol. 23(4), pages 379-406, May.
    10. Oliver Budzinski & Arne Feddersen, 2020. "Measuring competitive balance in Formula One racing," Chapters, in: Plácido Rodríguez & Stefan Kesenne & Brad R. Humphreys (ed.), Outcome Uncertainty in Sporting Events, chapter 1, pages 5-26, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    11. Oliver Budzinski & Stefan Szymanski, 2015. "Are Restrictions Of Competition By Sports Associations Horizontal Or Vertical In Nature?," Journal of Competition Law and Economics, Oxford University Press, vol. 11(2), pages 409-429.
    12. repec:beo:swcetp:23-12 is not listed on IDEAS
    13. Miklos Kozma & Krisztina Andras, 2016. "A Typology of International Strategies for Hungarian Professional Sports Clubs," Management, University of Primorska, Faculty of Management Koper, vol. 11(1), pages 7-27.
    14. Budzinski, Oliver & Gänßle, Sophia & Kunz-Kaltenhäuser, Philipp, 2019. "How does online streaming affect antitrust remedies to centralized marketing? The case of European football broadcasting rights," Ilmenau Economics Discussion Papers 128, Ilmenau University of Technology, Institute of Economics.
    15. Budzinski, Oliver, 2017. "Market-internal financial regulation in sports as an anticompetitive institution," Ilmenau Economics Discussion Papers 110, Ilmenau University of Technology, Institute of Economics.
    16. Budzinski, Oliver, 2014. "The competition economics of financial fair play," Ilmenau Economics Discussion Papers 85, Ilmenau University of Technology, Institute of Economics.
    17. Budzinski, Oliver & Feddersen, Arne, 2022. "Should organizing premier-level European football be a monopoly? And who should run it? - An economists' perspective," Ilmenau Economics Discussion Papers 166, Ilmenau University of Technology, Institute of Economics.
    18. Miklós Kozma & Krisztina András, 2014. "Winning in Europe: International Strategies for Hungarian Professional Sports Clubs," Entrepreneurial Business and Economics Review, Centre for Strategic and International Entrepreneurship at the Cracow University of Economics., vol. 2(4), pages 31-49.
    19. Budzinski, Oliver, 2012. "Empirische Ex-Post Evaluation von wettbewerbspolitischen Entscheidungen: Methodische Anmerkungen," Ilmenau Economics Discussion Papers 69, Ilmenau University of Technology, Institute of Economics.
    20. Dejan Trifunović & Bojan Ristić, 2023. "The Impact Of The Horizontal Distribution Of Media Rights Revenues In Sports Leagues On Competitive Balance," Shaping Post-COVID World – Challenges for Economic Theory and Policy, in: Aleksandra Praščević & Miomir Jakšić & Mihail Arandarenko & Dejan Trifunović & Milutin Ješić (ed.),Shaping Post-COVID World – Challenges for Economic Theory and Policy, chapter 12, pages 263-285, Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Belgrade.
    21. Budzinski, Oliver, 2024. "Financial regulation in sport championships as an anticompetitive institution," Ilmenau Economics Discussion Papers 187, Ilmenau University of Technology, Institute of Economics.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Sports business; competition policy; sporting rules; centralized marketing; sports economics;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • L83 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Services - - - Sports; Gambling; Restaurants; Recreation; Tourism
    • L41 - Industrial Organization - - Antitrust Issues and Policies - - - Monopolization; Horizontal Anticompetitive Practices
    • K21 - Law and Economics - - Regulation and Business Law - - - Antitrust Law
    • D02 - Microeconomics - - General - - - Institutions: Design, Formation, Operations, and Impact
    • M21 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Business Economics - - - Business Economics

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