The relationship between EU law and sports arbitration in <i>ISU v Commission</i> : the good, the bad, and the ugly

Abstract In ISU v Commission, the European Court of Justice dealt with the relationship between sports arbitration, the application of EU law, and judicial review of decisions by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). For such review to be effective, the Court held that reviewing courts should at least cover the question whether arbitral tribunals correctly apply fundamental provisions of public policy, such as EU competition law. However, the standard of the Swiss Federal Tribunal—the near-exclusive reviewer of CAS decisions—falls short of what the Court considers effective. This article presents the ISU decision and discusses its adverse impact on CAS arbitrators deciding EU law issues. We argue that while the decision justly identifies structural shortcomings of CAS arbitration, it sets an undesirable precedent that broadens the scope of judicial review beyond the principled limits of international arbitration's architecture. This not only disturbs the legitimate balance between the finality of arbitral awards and judicial review but may also lead us down a slippery slope when it comes to the application of EU law in commercial arbitrations. In anticipation of forthcoming rulings, we provide an alternative balance between the accurate application of public interest norms and the efficiency of CAS arbitration.