““EU involvement in sport matters: an EU involvement in sport matters: an opportunity for renewal?”opportunity for renewal?”

Jacob Kornbeck Jacob Kornbeck

Willy Calewaert Chair Inaugural LectureWilly Calewaert Chair Inaugural Lecture VUB, Brussels, Thursday, 18 November 2010, 6.15-7.15 VUB, Brussels, Thursday, 18 November 2010, 6.15-7.15

pmpm

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Willy Willy CalewaertCalewaert, VUB, the European Commission…, VUB, the European Commission…

Introducing the lecturesIntroducing the lectures

                                

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Introducing the lecturersIntroducing the lecturers

Education and Training

Doping

Transfers, Licensing Systems,

Players’ Agents

MediaMedia

HEPA(health-enhancing physical activity)

HEPA(health-enhancing physical activity)

Chair HolderChair Holder

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Practitioners in the audience:Practitioners in the audience:

• employees or elected leaders of sports organisations? employees or elected leaders of sports organisations? • or from civil society in general?or from civil society in general?• teachers, health professionals, social workers and social teachers, health professionals, social workers and social pedagogues?pedagogues?• … … but also government employees, consultants, etc.?but also government employees, consultants, etc.?

… … Not to forget academics and students, of course ;-)Not to forget academics and students, of course ;-)

Professionals lecturing (1)Professionals lecturing (1)

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Vladimir NabokovVladimir Nabokovlectures about Cervantes’s Don Quijotelectures about Cervantes’s Don QuijoteHarvard, Harvard, sspring semester 1952pring semester 1952

Professionals lecturing (2)Professionals lecturing (2)

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• For you, a city, a region, 19 local authorities• VUB student life…

What does “Brussels” mean? (1)What does “Brussels” mean? (1)

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• For many other Europeans, a distant entity (“Brussels has decided”, “Brussels says we must”, “Brussels says we can’t”…)

• A convenient shorthand (“la Commission de Bruxelles”), but is it also fair?

What does “Brussels” mean? (2)What does “Brussels” mean? (2)

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M. P. C. M. van Schendelen: Machiavelli in Brussels, Amsterdam Univ. Pr., 2006:• “an exceptionally small bureaucracy”, “volume and content

overload” (p. 66) (…described by scholars already in the 1960s!)• Recurrent references to “overload” (pp. 66, 84, 114, 257, 275, 293,

294)• “EU myths”, including big bureaucracy, centralism, formal powers =

real influence, elitism, democratic deficit…

What does “Brussels” mean? (3)What does “Brussels” mean? (3)

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So what does this bureaucracy consist of?

• European Parliament (directly elected) … in Brussels• Council of the European Union (Ministers from Member States) …

in Brussels• European Commission (executive)… in Brussels• Court of Justice … in Luxembourg• Court of Auditors … in Luxembourg• Agencies (in various cities in Member States)• Delegations (around the world)

What does “Brussels” mean? (4)What does “Brussels” mean? (4)

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• The European Commission• Directorates General comparable to Ministries• Commissioners comparable to Ministers• Mrs Androulla Vassiliou, Commissioner for Education, Culture,

Multilingualism, Sport, Media and Youth,• Sport Unit in DG Education and Culture

What does “Brussels” mean? (5)What does “Brussels” mean? (5)

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What can “Brussels” do?• Regulate (regulations, directives, etc.) … but only when explicitly

empowered to do so.• Foster cooperation, exchange of information, etc.• Manage funding programmes

NB: The Sport Unit is not the only Commission service having an impact on sport:

• Applicable EU law (acquis communautaire) applies to sport• Case-law of the Court of Justice has been important (example:

Bosman, 1995; Meca Medina and Majcen, 2006)• Regional funds support the construction of infrastructures • Public Health Programme support sport-related projects

What does “Brussels” mean? (6)What does “Brussels” mean? (6)

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• “The Union shall contribute to the promotion of European sporting issues, while taking account of the specific nature of sport, its structures based on voluntary activity and its social and educational function.” (Article 165 (1) TFEU)

• “Union action shall be aimed at: (…) developing the European

dimension in sport, by promoting fairness and openness in sporting competitions and cooperation between bodies responsible for sports, and by protecting the physical and moral integrity of sportsmen and sportswomen, especially the youngest sportsmen and sportswomen.” (Article 165 (2) TFEU, 7th indent)

Inspiration from Brussels? (1)Inspiration from Brussels? (1)

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• “The Union and the Member States shall foster cooperation with third countries and the competent international organisations in the field of education and sport, in particular the Council of Europe.” (Article 165 (3) TFEU)

• “In order to contribute to the achievement of the objectives referred to in this Article:— the European Parliament and the Council, acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure, after consulting the Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions, shall adopt incentive measures, excluding any harmonisation of the laws and regulations of the Member States,— the Council, on a proposal from the Commission, shall adopt recommendations.” (Article 165 (4) TFEU)

Inspiration from Brussels? (2)Inspiration from Brussels? (2)

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Remember the discussions about the “specific nature of sport”?

• IOC & FIFA statement on the Commission’s White Paper, 2007

• Alternative voices from “sport for all” organisations

• Voices from academia:"Het bestaande juridisch kader is immers voldoende flexibel opdat de specifieke eigenschappen van sport in overweging genomen kunnen worden." (Vermeersch, 2007, p. 80, in Scheerder, et al.: Europa in beweging)

Inspiration from Brussels? (3)Inspiration from Brussels? (3)

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Building on theories of governance, we may understand inspiration as coming from:

• A certain common framework (including some amount of regulation).

• Sharing of knowledge, good practice, etc.• Mutual learning

For example: Sport participation in the EU…

Inspiration from Brussels? (4)Inspiration from Brussels? (4)

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Special Eurobarometer 2010Special Eurobarometer 2010

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Using Eurobarometer survey data in the two highest categories ("Regularly", "With some regularity"), we get the following ranking:

Sweden: 22 + 50 = 72Finland: 17 + 55 = 72

Denmark: 15 + 49 = 64Ireland: 23 + 35 = 58

Netherlands: 5 + 51 = 56Slovenia: 13 + 39 = 52

Luxembourg: 12 + 39 = 51Belgium: 16 + 34 = 50Germany: 9 + 40 = 49Malta: 17 + 31 = 48France: 13 + 35 = 48

United Kingdom: 14 + 32 = 46Cyprus: 16 + 25 = 41EU 27: 9 + 31 = 40Spain: 12 + 27 = 39Austria: 5 + 33 = 38

Lithuania: 14 + 22 = 36Estonia: 7 + 27 = 34Portugal: 9 + 24 = 33Slovakia: 5 + 25 = 30

Italy: 3 + 26 = 29Czech Republic: 5 + 23 = 28

Latvia: 8 + 19 = 27Poland: 6 + 19 = 25

Hungary: 5 + 18 = 23Romania: 8 + 13 = 21Greece: 3 + 15 = 18

Bulgaria: 3 + 10 = 13

Inspiration from Brussels? (5)Inspiration from Brussels? (5)

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What can we do with such data?• Compare it with previous surveys (Special Eurobarometer, 2003,

2004)• Compare it with academic literature

(e.g., Scheerder, J. & Van Tuyckom, C. (2007): Sportparticipatie in de Europese Unie. Vlaanderen vergeleken met her Europa van de 25. In: Scheerder, J.; Van Tuyckom, C. & Vermeersch, A. (eds): Europa in beweging. Sport vanuit Europees perspectief. Ghent: Academia Press, pp. 123-157)

• Cross-tabulate with other types of information about the same countries

• Use the data to build political cooperation (not binding) with Member States

• Use the data to build a structured dialogue (not binding) with sports organisations on this

Inspiration from Brussels? (6)Inspiration from Brussels? (6)

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But…• Regulation remains a factor to be counted with.• The relevant EU law (acquis communautaire) is still in force.• As a mixture of regulation and networking, this reality is best

understood by drawing on governance theories.• Finally, there is the crisis…

Inspiration from Brussels? (7)Inspiration from Brussels? (7)

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22ndnd session sessionThursday, 2 December Thursday, 2 December

Jacob Kornbeck Jacob Kornbeck

““The ongoing fight against doping in sport”The ongoing fight against doping in sport”

Language: EnglishLanguage: English

What you can expect (1)What you can expect (1)

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33rdrd session sessionThursday January 27, 2011Thursday January 27, 2011

Gianluca MonteGianluca Monte

““Sport and the media: which role does the EU play?”Sport and the media: which role does the EU play?”

Language: EnglishLanguage: English

What you can expect (2)What you can expect (2)

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44thth session sessionThursday 10 February, 2011Thursday 10 February, 2011

Bart OoijenBart Ooijen

““EU perspective on Education and Training EU perspective on Education and Training Qualifications in Sport”Qualifications in Sport”

Language: DutchLanguage: Dutch

What you can expect (3)What you can expect (3)

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55thth session sessionThursday, Thursday, 17 February, 2011, 6-7.30 pm17 February, 2011, 6-7.30 pm

Gianluca MonteGianluca Monte

““Transfers, licensing systems and players’ agents: the Transfers, licensing systems and players’ agents: the EU as a gatekeeper of the integrity of sport EU as a gatekeeper of the integrity of sport competitions?”competitions?”

Language: EnglishLanguage: English

What you can expect (4)What you can expect (4)

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66thth session sessionThursday, Thursday, 3 March, 2011, 6-7.30 pm3 March, 2011, 6-7.30 pm

Jacob Kornbeck Jacob Kornbeck

““Play, not therapy: the EU’s role in promoting health-Play, not therapy: the EU’s role in promoting health-enhancing physical activity (HEPA).“enhancing physical activity (HEPA).“

Language: EnglishLanguage: English

What you can expect (5)What you can expect (5)

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77tthtth session sessionThursday, 31 March 2010, 6-7.30 pmThursday, 31 March 2010, 6-7.30 pm

Jacob Kornbeck Jacob Kornbeck

"Looking into the future: the implementation of the "Looking into the future: the implementation of the Lisbon Treaty in the field of sport“Lisbon Treaty in the field of sport“

Language: EnglishLanguage: English

What you can expect (6)What you can expect (6)

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Hoping there will be something for Hoping there will be something for everybody to take home!everybody to take home!

See you soon…See you soon…

http://ec.europa.eu/sport/index_en.htmljacob.kornbeck@ec.europa.eujacob.kornbeck@ec.europa.eu