Analysis of the sports model in selected Western European countries

Abstract

Problem Statement: Sport is an area of life that may or may not be of interest to the national legislator. Western European countries have taken a very different approach to the regulation of sport. Some of them adhere to the principle that sport should 'govern itself' and refrain from intervening in this sphere of life, while others believe that it is such a significant social phenomenon (and one with a very high economic potential) that it requires the state to provide it with a specific structural and organisational framework. Purpose: The main purpose of this article is to describe the legal regulation of sport in selected Western European countries, which together form the Western European model of sport. Approach: The main approach, which was used by the author, is a formal and dogmatic analysis of generally applicable law provisions in Germany, Great Britain, France, Italy and Spain, which apply to the sports matters. The works of the doctrine were also analyzed, the author also gathered the information placed on the websites of various domestic sports organisations and European Union institutions. Results: Currently, among Western European countries, there are those that adopt an interventionist model in relation to sport and those that adopt a non-interventionist model (which can also be called autonomous). The model of sports regulation developed in a given country represents a 'difficult compromise' resulting from the need to maintain a balance between the distinctive features of sport (in the form of its autonomy and competition based on an organisational monopoly provided for a single sports organisation) and the necessity for the state to ensure conditions that make this competition possible without distortions, which is certainly not an easy task for the state. Conclusion: The way in which sport is regulated in a particular country is usually a result of its history and the actual influence of other legislation and international sporting organisations on the sporting organisations operating in that country.