By Aris Barkas/ barkas@eurohoops.net
While NBA Europe is moving fast, the political aspect of the project remains complicated, as the answer of the EU Commissioner for Sports, Glenn Micallef, proves.
Micallef, who recently met with the EuroLeague, repeats that the European Union must protect the European Sports Model, which is against any form of closed leagues.
Of course, this is also one of the main concerns about the EuroLeague model, but the difference here is the fact that sports economic activities “must comply with EU law, including the legal framework aimed at preventing tax base erosion and protecting the integrity of the internal market, notably against the diversion of value flows to third countries”.
Simply put, the fact that a US entity will manage the league may end up being a problem, considering the current political climate in the US and Europe’s relationship.
The full text of the parliamentary answer is the following: “Decisions regarding the organisation of sporting competitions are taken autonomously by sporting federations and organisations.
While such decisions must comply with EU law, the specificity and autonomy of sport, explicitly recognised in Article 165 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, must also be safeguarded.
With regard to the ongoing discussions surrounding the proposed ‘NBA Europe’, the Commission notes that current developments continue to highlight longstanding concerns, from a sporting perspective, related to closed league models.
It should be recalled that this would not be the first closed or semi-closed league operating in European basketball, and that the adverse effects of such models are well documented.
These include their impact on domestic competitions, on the principle of open sporting competitions based on sporting merit, on solidarity mechanisms between grassroots and elite sport, as well as on talent development and participation growth. These elements constitute core pillars of the European Sport Model.
Within the limits of its competences, the Commission will continue to call on new sporting competitions to respect the fundamental principles of the European Sport Model.
With respect to sport-related economic activities, the Commission recalls that these must comply with EU law, including the legal framework aimed at preventing tax base erosion and protecting the integrity of the internal market, notably against the diversion of value flows to third countries”.