The European Court Allowed to Appeal the FIFA Decision Outside Switzerland

• The European Court allowed to appeal the FIFA decision in the EU
• National courts may review the CAS decisions
• This decision may end a decade-long legal battle

The European Court of Justice on September 1, 2025, upheld a ruling that allows the appeal of FIFA decisions outside the borders of Switzerland. This ruling opens the possibility for the review of FIFA decisions in the 27 EU member states, since Switzerland is not a member of the EU.

The court stated that national courts in the EU are entitled to conduct a detailed review of decisions that were made in Switzerland, to ensure their compliance with the fundamental norms of European legislation. This also applies to the decisions of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), which resolves disputes in the sports sector.

This decision may conclude a decade-long legal battle of the Belgian football club RFC Seraing and the Maltese investment fund Doyen Sports, which appealed FIFA's rules regarding the prohibition of third-party ownership of player rights on registration and transfer of players. In 2015, they appealed to the commercial court in Brussels requesting to review whether these rules violate EU legislation.

The ruling of the European court does not specifically concern third-party ownership but merely outlines the review of CAS decisions. This also emphasizes the importance of legal oversight over sports organizations based in Switzerland.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport was established in 1984 to ensure a unified legal forum for resolving sports disputes. Among its clients, football occupies the largest share, and the court's decisions rarely get appealed to the Swiss Supreme Court.

Tags: Europe/Sport/Football