The Bosman case and its influences on the competitive balance in the European football market
The Bosman case and its influences on the competitive balance in the European football market
Introduction
Jean–Marc Bosman was a football player in the first division in Belgium and wanted to play for the French team Dunkerque after his contract expired in 1990. The transfer did not succeed because Dunkerque´s transfer fee was not high enough so his club RFC Liége refused and Bosman had to wait for a higher offer. Subsequently Bosman sued against the FIFA rules and ought to be proved right. The following pages outlines the consequences of the judgment of the so called “Bosman ruling” on the transfer system and on the competitive balance of the European football market.
The Judgment
An indicator that shows the dimension of the Bosman case is the official title it-self: “Union Royale Belge des Sociétés de Football Association ASBL v. Jean-Marc Bosman, Royal club Liégeois SA v. Jean-Marc Bosman and others and Union des Associations Européennes de Football (UEFA) v. Jean-Marc Bosman” (Case C-415/93. European Court reports 1995, page I-4921).
The case took place at the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in Luxemburg and was about two different issues. The first one Bosman’s complaint addressed two separate issues, one of them concerns the existing transfer regulation, whereby a professional football player is not allowed to transfer for free at the end of the contract. The other subject is the so called 3+2 rule of the European Football Federation (UEFA) which limits the number of foreign players on the field. Five foreign players in play are the maximum in a competitive match upon condition that two of them having played for at least five years in the club´s country (R. Parrish, (2003), Sports law and policy in the European Union, p. 226). Bosman´s argumentation based on the article 48 (Treaties of Rome) which deals amongst others with the free movement of workers in an international labour market and guarantees the equal treatment of workers of the
Introduction
Jean–Marc Bosman was a football player in the first division in Belgium and wanted to play for the French team Dunkerque after his contract expired in 1990. The transfer did not succeed because Dunkerque´s transfer fee was not high enough so his club RFC Liége refused and Bosman had to wait for a higher offer. Subsequently Bosman sued against the FIFA rules and ought to be proved right. The following pages outlines the consequences of the judgment of the so called “Bosman ruling” on the transfer system and on the competitive balance of the European football market.
The Judgment
An indicator that shows the dimension of the Bosman case is the official title it-self: “Union Royale Belge des Sociétés de Football Association ASBL v. Jean-Marc Bosman, Royal club Liégeois SA v. Jean-Marc Bosman and others and Union des Associations Européennes de Football (UEFA) v. Jean-Marc Bosman” (Case C-415/93. European Court reports 1995, page I-4921).
The case took place at the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in Luxemburg and was about two different issues. The first one Bosman’s complaint addressed two separate issues, one of them concerns the existing transfer regulation, whereby a professional football player is not allowed to transfer for free at the end of the contract. The other subject is the so called 3+2 rule of the European Football Federation (UEFA) which limits the number of foreign players on the field. Five foreign players in play are the maximum in a competitive match upon condition that two of them having played for at least five years in the club´s country (R. Parrish, (2003), Sports law and policy in the European Union, p. 226). Bosman´s argumentation based on the article 48 (Treaties of Rome) which deals amongst others with the free movement of workers in an international labour market and guarantees the equal treatment of workers of the
References: - T. Dejonghe, (2000), Rivista di Dritto ed Economica dello Sport Article 48