From pitch to politics: Why the EU must catch up with global sport

Sport was once seen as something that existed above politics. Recent World Cups and the growing geopolitical battles surrounding global competitions show that this is no longer true.

Today, sport is not just entertainment. It is power, influence and business. Hosting rights, state-backed investments and the growing commercial dominance of governing bodies such as FIFA increasingly shape international politics and global markets. What was once mainly a social and cultural activity has become a multibillion-euro global industry.

For years, sport benefited from a special status that allowed it to operate with far greater autonomy than most sectors. But as governing bodies oversee markets worth billions and sporting events carry major political and economic consequences, that exceptionalism is becoming harder to justify. The EU is increasingly unwilling to treat sport as existing outside its legal and regulatory framework.

This matters for the EPP because sport remains deeply intertwined with European life. Millions of Europeans engage with it every day as fans, athletes, volunteers and participants. Sport builds communities, promotes health and encourages inclusion, particularly for people with fewer opportunities and people with disabilities. This is the European sport model.

Precisely because sport plays such an important social role, the governance of sport and the question of who holds power within it has become a matter of public interest. Trust in sport depends not only on what happens on the pitch, but also on whether the structures behind it are fair, transparent and accountable.

At the same time, the rapid commercialisation of sport has exposed the limits of its special status. Cross-border investments, financial flows and the monetisation of major competitions increasingly raise issues that cannot be separated from EU rules on competition, transparency and accountability.

The EPP rejects the idea that sport should be beyond the reach of EU law. Recent rulings by the European Court of Justice have confirmed that sporting bodies are subject to European rules when their decisions have significant economic effects. This reflects a broader and necessary shift towards stronger governance and greater accountability.

The growing debate around ticket pricing is one example. Dynamic pricing systems are often presented as simple market mechanisms. In reality, sport does not function like a normal competitive market. Fans cannot simply choose another World Cup final, another stadium, or another organiser.

As consumer organisations recently warned in a joint letter to Ursula von der Leyen, live sporting events are defined by structural scarcity: One organiser, one venue, one date, and often one ticketing platform.

In that context, dynamic pricing does not reward efficiency. It turns fan loyalty into a bidding war. The result is increasingly clear—higher prices, reduced accessibility for ordinary supporters and growing frustration among fans across Europe.

Complaints linked to major tournaments, including competitions organised under the authority of FIFA, are already reaching European regulators.

At the same time, another worrying trend is emerging—the attempts to stage domestic league matches abroad. European football clubs are rooted in local communities, traditions and supporters. Turning national league matches into travelling commercial events risks weakening the connection between clubs and the communities that built them. Fans should not be treated as secondary to global marketing strategies.

The geopolitical dimension of sport has also become impossible to ignore. Authoritarian regimes increasingly use international competitions and sporting success to project influence, improve their image and distract from repression at home. This is particularly evident in the continued attempts by Russia and Belarus to use sport as a propaganda tool following Russia’s war against Ukraine. European sport cannot be naïve about how international competitions can be exploited for political purposes.

What we are witnessing around events such as the World Cup is therefore not an isolated consumer issue, but part of a wider structural challenge. Where economic power is concentrated and supporters lack meaningful alternatives, the assumption that sport can simply regulate itself no longer holds.

At a time of growing geopolitical tension, sport sits at the crossroads of politics, economic influence and international prestige. Hosting rights, strategic investments and the governance of major competitions now have significant geopolitical implications. That makes transparency, accountability and legal certainty more important than ever.

For the EPP, this strengthens the case for a clearer and more consistent application of EU law to sport.

None of this means stripping sport of its autonomy. But autonomy cannot mean immunity from transparency, accountability or the rule of law. If sport now operates as a global industry with major political and economic consequences, its governance must meet the standards expected of any sector with comparable influence.