Nyon, Friday 11 April 2025 – Today, the European Leagues convened for the first Board of Director’s meeting of the new Association’s cycle under the leadership of its recently elected President Claudius Schäfer.
During the meeting, the new Board had an open discussion about the governance of international football and the impacts that conflicts of interest between FIFA’s role as a Governing body and its ambitions as a competition organiser are having on domestic leagues.
FIFA’s role is currently under scrutiny at EU level following multiple Court cases that have highlighted the necessity of a transparent, objective, non-discriminatory, and proportionate criteria to manage the International Match calendar. The Board discussed the next steps in the joint European Leagues / FIFPRO Europe legal complaint against FIFA to the European Commission over its management of the International Match Calendar.
New European Leagues President, Claudius Schäfer, commented:
“The expansion of international club competitions has made this season a game-changer for football in which the competitive balance and future health of the domestic game are challenged.”
“It is well known that all European Leagues members are facing scheduling challenges and player unions have been raising concerns about the decline in player welfare. But we are also concerned about the distortive impact that the vast increase in prize money at international level is having on the competitive balance of domestic football. This competitive balance is coveted by fans who want to believe that any club can dream of rising through their domestic pyramid and into international competitions.”
“We are therefore calling on FIFA to compile a detailed study, in partnership with stakeholders across the game, that analyses the impact of their expanded competitions on the development of domestic football. This research will help us to understand the calendar management criteria and equitable financial distribution required to improve the balance between international and domestic football so that the industry can thrive long into the future.”
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