Changes from report parliamentary committee draft to plenary report

Change 9

Changed3. Stresses the need to further develop the European Sport Model in line with the interests of citizens, EU values and policy priorities such as equality, diversity, inclusion, sustainability, health and well-being, the European social model as well asand EU competitiveness;

Change 10

Changed4. Calls on all stakeholders to intensify their efforts to promote safe, inclusive,inclusive and equitable sport, accessible to all, with a focus on advancing gender equality, combating all forms of violenceviolence, discrimination and harassment, and improving the accessibility of sports infrastructure;

Change 11

Removed5. Underlines the vital role of physical activity for children and young people, highlighting its immediate and long-term benefits for physical and mental health, as well as its contribution to developing young people’s social and life skills;

Added5. Stresses, in this regard, the need to ensure the inclusion of persons with disabilities in all sports contexts, including their involvement in governance and decision-making processes;

Removed6. Underlines the crucial role of volunteers in sport and asks the Commission to develop recommendations jointly with the Member States concerning volunteering in sport;

Added6. Highlights that the European Sport Model must be based on the principle of sport as a public good, ensuring that public investment in sport returns benefits to society in the form of inclusion, health, education and social cohesion;

Added7. Underlines the vital role of physical activity for all, regardless of age, highlighting its immediate and long-term benefits for physical and mental health, as well as its contribution to developing and maintaining people’s social and life skills;

Added8. Stresses the importance of promoting physical activity among children and young people, including the involvement of athletes and para-athletes as role models, and calls for the increased investment in the necessary school sport infrastructures, quality physical education and extracurricular sport programmes;

Change 12

Changed7.12. Stresses the fundamental importance of the principle of solidarity in ensuring that sport serves and promotes the interests of all, rather than the profits of a few, and reiterates the need to strengthen the connection between professional and grassroots sport through more effective financial solidarity mechanisms;mechanisms, to optimise its development;

Change 13

Added13. Calls on the Commission to encourage sports governing bodies to implement mechanisms and policies in youth development, aimed at rewarding clubs for training players who contribute to the continued success of professional competitions, thereby ensuring the long-term competitiveness of the sports sector;

Change 14

Changed9.15. CallsCalls, in this regardregard, for the Commission to support legal certainty for sportsports governing bodies and explore the need for redistribution mechanisms between big and small leaguesleagues, clubs or competitions and in different disciplines, including in youth sports;

Change 15

Changed10.16. Stresses the need to furthersignificantly increase funding for sport,sport and physical activity, especially under the new Erasmus+ programme for 2028-20342028-2034, in line with the existing horizontal priorities and to support further synergies between other programmes and funds;

Change 16

Changed11.17. Recognises the potential flagship role of the Erasmus+ programme in financially supporting grassroots sportsports organisations and the programme’s positive impact on citizens and society;

Change 17

Removed12. Believes that financial sustainability regulations are essential in sport, and stresses the need to effectively enforce and update these measures, including appropriate controls on player salaries in professional football;

Added18. Calls on the Commission to develop accessible and substantial funding schemes for sports clubs and organisations, with clear and accessible mechanisms, ensuring that earmarked funds reach the grassroots level;

Removed13. Urges the Member States to continue to insist that hosts and organisers of major sports events uphold the values of the European Sport Model, including human rights and sustainability;

Added19. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to support investment in safe and accessible sports infrastructure at all levels through EU funds such as the European Regional Development Fund, with a particular focus on rural and disadvantaged urban neighbourhoods;

Removed14. Acknowledges the rising trend of foreign investment and ownership in European sport and calls on the Commission to safeguard the financial integrity and competitive balance of European sport;

Added20. Believes that financial sustainability regulations are essential in sport to ensure the long-term viability and integrity of professional sport within the EU; encourages the Commission and the Member States to promote consistent financial governance standards across all professional sports, and stresses the need to effectively enforce and update these measures, including appropriate oversight of athletes’ salaries;

Change 18

Changed17.30. Recognises that the autonomy of sport is conditional upon good governance, and calls on international, European, and national sportsports organisations, as well as stakeholder representativestakeholder-representative organisationsorganisations, to implement the highest standards of governancegovernance, integrity and transparency;transparency, with appropriate checks and balances to ensure accountability;

Change 19

Removed18. Welcomes efforts made by governing bodies on collective governance and encourages further steps to strengthen stakeholder representation in decision-making, with a particular commitment to ensuring the involvement of athletes and fans;

Added31. Invites the Commission to review the effectiveness and consistency of current EU measures in these areas, and to develop targeted actions and policy responses to address persisting challenges;

Removed19. Urges sport governing bodies to implement further measures on equality, diversity and inclusion, in particular to address the persistent under-representation of women in leadership positions;

Added32. Calls for a collaborative approach between sports organisations and public authorities to uphold these standards and to ensure that sport remains a trusted, safe and ethical space for all participants;

Removed20. Stresses the need for representativeness standards and checks as a prerequisite for stakeholder organisations to be in involved in governance processes;

Added33. Stresses the importance of ensuring that all institutions, sports governing bodies and stakeholders abide by the principles set out in the case-law of the CJEU in the field of sport;

Change 20

Changed23.39. Calls onfor the EU institutions to protect and promotepromote, and for the Member States to implement, the fundamental rights of athletes,athletes and other workers in the sports sector, including social rights and protection, such as the freedom of association, collective bargaining, non-discrimination, decent working conditionsconditions, safety measures and occupational healthhealth, especially with regard to pregnancy and safetymaternity principles;leave;

Change 21

Added40. Emphasises the need for proactive risk management in developing and overseeing occupational safety and health policies, including factors such as travel, match calendars and overlapping competitions;

Added41. Calls for the EU institutions and the Member States to further support initiatives related to the dual-careers, lifelong learning, post-retirement periods, personal development and the mental health of athletes, in partnership with relevant organisations such as athlete commissions and associations;

Added42. Stresses that sports calendars have become more intense due to the increase in European and international matches and competitions, and calls for the involvement of all stakeholders in the calendar decision-making processes to avoid clashes;

Added43. Supports the right of athletes to be free to represent their countries, and emphasises that clubs should be required to release athletes for national team participation;

Added44. Calls on the sports governing bodies to prevent domestic competition matches from being played abroad;

Added45. Recognises the importance of international bodies in ensuring a transparent and fair transfer system, in line with EU law and European specificities, and calls for a strong emphasis on safeguarding the rights of athletes across all sports, with particular attention to minors;

Change 22

Changed24.47. Calls on the Commission to present a long-term strategy on sport policyand physical activity policy, in response to the strong political impetus from the Member States and the EU institutions, focusing on key features of the European Sport ModelModel, and to propose concrete actions in this regard;

Change 23

Removed25. Calls on the Commission to fulfil its role as the guardian of the treaties in one of the most important social and economic sectors of the Union by actively monitoring and addressing threats to the European Sport Model, such as breakaway competitions that endanger the overall sport ecosystem;

Added48. Welcomes the existing dialogue on sport policy and calls on the Commission to ensure active engagement in the discussions at EU, national and grassroots levels, involving all relevant stakeholders in shaping long-term strategies;

Removed26. Reaffirms the specific nature of sport while upholding respect for EU law and recognises that there is not a one-size-fits-all way in which the European Sport Model applies across different sports;

Added49. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to support data collection and evidence-based policymaking, in order to strengthen the role of sport as a contributor to EU policy objectives;

Removed27. Calls on the Commission to provide clear guidelines on the application of EU law, including competition law, to the sport sector, also in light of recent rulings of the European Court of Justice;

Added50. Calls on the Commission to fulfil its role as the guardian of the Treaties in one of the most important social and economic sectors of the EU by actively monitoring and addressing threats, at all levels, to the values-based European Sport Model, including breakaway competitions that endanger the overall sports ecosystem;