Survey on competition law developments in the sports sector—January 2022 to June 2024

Abstract The survey offers a comprehensive overview of the EU competition law and policy developments between January 2022 and June 2024, covering competition authorities and courts at both EU and national level. Once considered exempt of the application of competition law due to its ‘specificity’, the sports industry and in particular the rules and sanctions imposed by sports governing bodies now face enhanced scrutiny under Articles 101 and 102 TFEU and the scope of the initial exemption is getting gradually more limited. The Court of Justice’s established Meca-Medina doctrine is being re-shaped, with questions of interpretation and the scope of application challenging competition authorities and courts. Competition law enforcement is strongly driven by private complaints and litigation and the case law of the Court of Justice of the EU. Requests for interim measures are growing in importance. Moreover, national competition authorities also keep themselves busy with sports matters, ranging from investment and reclassification rules to no-poach agreements, with the German authority at the forefront.