Choosing the least restrictive regulation: The way forward for UEFA

A series of high-profile judgments of the European Court of Justice has recently emphasized the anticompetitive character of many regulatory interventions of sports associations (like UEFA) into the sports markets they are governing. This has led to widespread calls for reforms and changes. However, given the special characteristics of sports requiring a market-internal regulator to set, implement, and enforce the common rules of the game, a somewhat neglected question is how regulatory interventions by sports associations can look like in the future in order to avoid violating competition rules. This paper develops a framework for regulatory activities by sports governing bodies (like UEFA) that stands in line even with ambitious interpretations of the judgments. It uses the Royal Antwerpen case about regulations to promote homegrown talent as an example. However, the developed framework may be applied for virtually all regulatory interventions by sports associations.