Sport is one of the areas of human activity that most concern and bring together the citizens of the European Union. Due to its capacity to reach out to everyone, regardless of age or social origin, sport can play various roles in European society:

• A health-promotion role: sport is often associated with the improvement of the public health of European citizens. It can play a role in the treatment of obesity and other health-related disorders. In an ageing society physical activity can have a positive impact on the health of the elderly.
• An educational role: sport can help in a number of ways in the education and training of children, young people and adults. Alongside the purely physical aspects, the social and educational values of sport also play an essential role, e.g. learning to be part of a team and to accept the principle of fair play. The European Union proclaimed 2004 as the "European year of Education through Sport" (EYES).[1]
• A social role: the vast network of clubs, associations and federations across Europe contributes to making sport the most important area of voluntary activity in Europe and provides a fertile ground for social inclusion.
• A recreational role: a Eurobarometer survey[2] conducted in November 2004 showed that 38% of EU citizens practiced a sportive activity at least once a week.
• A cultural role: the Amsterdam Treaty Conference emphasised sport's role in forging identity and bringing people together.

2.1. Sport, physical activity and public health

Sport and physical activity can make a major contribution to health promotion and disease prevention in areas such as overweight and obesity, diabetes and cardio-vascular diseases. The number of children affected by overweight and obesity is estimated to be rising by more than 400,000 a year, adding to the approximately 14 million EU citizens who are already overweight (including at least 3 million children).[3] Lack of physical activity and the occurrence of overweight and obesity have become a major societal problem. It is increasingly putting individuals at risk and is an economic burden as a result of the impact on health budgets and lower productivity due to the sub-optimal fitness in the workforce. It is estimated that obesity accounts for up to 7% of EU health care costs, and this amount will further increase given the rising obesity trend.[4]

In its White Paper "A Strategy for Europe on Nutrition, Health, Overweight and Obesity related health issues" the Commission calls upon sports organisations to work with public health groups to promote physical activity particularly among target populations such as young people or low socio-economic groups.

The recognised potential of the sport movement in fostering health-enhancing physical activity needs to be developed. The sport movement has a greater outreach than any other social movement. People view sport as attractive and it carries a positive image. However, sport organisations often focus narrowly on running a particular sport and their wider potential as regards health-enhancing physical activity remains under-utilised.

At EU level, the relation between sport and health is closely connected with the notion of Health-Enhancing Physical Activity (HEPA). This concept was defined in the framework of a Community-funded project in 1995-96[5], which led to the launch of a HEPA Network.[6] The Network is still active[7] and the HEPA concept has since then been energetically promoted by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and its Member States.

The World Health Organisation recommends 30 minutes of moderate physical activity per day to enhance health and prevent diseases.[8] Some studies tend to show that even more physical activity can be recommended. This suggests that guidelines to promote physical activity in the EU would be useful. Such guidelines could propose different recommendations for different age groups, such as children, adults and elderly people.

A Commission study on "young people's lifestyles and sedentariness and the role of sport" concluded that a network strategy is needed to halt the current alarming trend of rapidly rising overweight and obesity levels.[9] While it is important to address nutritional issues, physical activity (including sport) is equally crucial. Some studies show that it is not so much a higher calorie intake that causes overweight, particularly among children, but above all a lack of physical activity.

On the basis of the Commission study, conclusions were adopted at the meeting of Member State Sport Ministers in Luxembourg in April 2005. These "Luxembourg Recommendations" have led to a decision by Ministers to create a Working Group on Sport & Health (Liverpool, September 2005). Nine Member States currently participate in this Working Group with the objective to exchange good practices and develop physical activity guidelines. The mobilisation of the sport sector and the strengthening of school sport and physical activities are the key elements on the agenda.

The Commission has been keen to encourage sport organisations to join its Diet, Physical Activity and Health Platform[10] – an open, multi-stakeholder forum where industry, NGO and consumer organisations have committed themselves to actions to participate in the combat of obesity. Sport organisations have joined with their commitments, mainly on increased physical activity.

The link between sport and health goes far beyond the fight against overweight and obesity. Sport can make an excellent contribution to the reduction of other non-communicable health hazards, such as the risks posed by alcohol, tobacco, cholesterol, cardiovascular diseases, metabolic syndrome and cancer. Sport also supports psychological well-being. Potentially negative health effects of sport in the form of sport-related injuries have to be avoided through proper education and information.

Physical activity encompasses a range of activities from organised sports to "active commuting" or outdoor activities such as gardening. Pro-active steps need to be taken to reverse the decline in physical activity levels brought about by numerous factors in recent decades, such as the greater use of cars, other technologies such as computers and the internet, and other forms of sedentary activities, such as watching television and playing computer games.

Health-enhancing physical activity could be promoted at all levels and in a wide range of sectors, such as urban planning and building projects, transport, education, family and youth, the economic sphere, research, as well as in the workplace to improve employees' health and performance and reduce absenteeism. Physical activity as a determinant for health plays a particular role in urban and transport planning, for example by allowing more people to go to work on foot or by bicycle.

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2.2. The fight against doping

Doping poses an important threat to European sports as it compromises the principle of open and equal competitions. It is demotivating for the amateur and puts the professional under unreasonable pressure. It also negatively affects the image of sport.

Doping also poses a serious threat to individual and public health. It has led to serious long-term degradation of individuals' health in the past and in some documented cases it has entailed serious conditions of permanent ill-health, disability or even death. Even among amateurs, doping is practised at unprecedented levels, which makes it difficult to follow and even more difficult to police. A special problem is posed in relation to children and young people as it is know that many start taking doping substances at an increasingly young age.

With regard to doping, responsibilities are distributed unsystematically because sport is organised differently in different Member States, because the degree of autonomy of sport organisations varies, because the problem tends to be defined differently and because bodies at several levels – international, national, regional and local – claim responsibility and authority. There are calls for action from various sides.[11] Action at EU level should complement that of other actors, but without changing the existing allocation of competences.[12]

In Member States, doping may be regulated by national law, rules from private organisations or any combination of these. Some Member States have doping laws, others do not. The 1989 Convention of the Council of Europe and the 2005 UNESCO Convention are the only hard law at international level. The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), set up in 1999, is a private law body although half of its board members represent governments.

Doping has been on the EU agenda on a number of occasions, which is reflected in numerous documents from all EU institutions. The 1992 Olympics in Barcelona and Albertville saw actions on the spot as well as a code of conduct. The 1998 Tour de France led to a Community Support Plan[13] which promoted pilot projects in the field of the fight against doping, co-financed by the EU, for two years. Important development work in the field of laboratory analysis was funded from the research budget under the now discontinued HARDOP and CAFDIS programmes.[14] Political cooperation has included various meetings inside and outside of the EU, as well as regular contacts with the Council of Europe and UNESCO. Finally, the ECJ ruling in the Meca-Medina case was also connected with the question of doping in sport.[15]

Doping practices involving illegal substances pose a serious threat to social order, including criminal justice issues, and to the integrity of the sporting community. They rely on a generalised and systematic breach of law practised by persons acting within networks. Many substances used for doping are covered by national legislation on illicit drugs and/or international drug conventions. While the possession of these substances may be illegal, they are often easily available. In this respect, a remarkable enforcement deficit can be observed. For the criminal community, the trade in doping substances can offer an attractive mixture of low risk and high return on investments. Trade in doping substances is often not subject to severe punishment.

The EU would benefit from a more coordinated approach in the fight against doping, in particular by defining common positions in relation to WADA, UNESCO and the Council of Europe, and through the exchange of information and good practice between Governments, national anti-doping organisations and laboratories.

Partnerships could also be developed between Member State law enforcement agencies (border guards, national and local police, customs etc.), laboratories accredited by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and INTERPOL to exchange information about new doping substances and practices in a timely manner and in a secure environment.

The negative health effects of doping should be taken into account in public health and drugs policies. Sport organisations should develop rules of good practice to ensure that young sportsmen and sportswomen are better informed and educated of doping substances, prescription medicines which may contain them, and their health implications.

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2.3. The role of sport in education and training

The European Year of Education through Sport (EYES 2004) was launched to promote education through sport in formal and non-formal education and as a vehicle for social inclusion, in order to develop knowledge and skills by encouraging cooperation between educational institutions and sport organisations. 167 projects (out of 1643 applications) were co-financed through EYES’ €12.3m budget. In its subsequent Communication to the European institutions, the Commission acknowledged the need to build on the European Year's achievements.

The Council, in its Resolution of 17 December 1999 on the non-formal education dimension of sporting activities in the EU Youth programme[16], called upon the Commission, in cooperation with the Member States, to devise a coherent approach in order to exploit the educational potential of sport, considering that sporting activities can have a pedagogical value which contributes to strengthening civil society. The non-formal education dimension has been backed by the European Parliament, which has underlined the educational and social value of sport as well as its role in combating racism and xenophobia.

The important role played by schools and the need for health education and physical education are also outlined as priority themes in the White Paper "A Strategy for Europe on Nutrition, Overweight and Obesity related health issues".

Sport and physical education

Many stakeholders are concerned about the situation of sport and physical activity in schools in view of declining physical activity trends among young people and the corresponding rise in sedentary behaviour and obesity. Concrete physical and mental health problems can be addressed in part by ensuring a sufficient timeframe for sport and physical activity in schools, either inside or outside the school curriculum. Curriculum time allocation for physical education is a concern in some countries. Since 2002, there has been an overall reduction in average time allocation for physical education in both primary (from 121 minutes to 109 minutes per week) and secondary school curricula (from 117 to 101 minutes per week) across the EU.[17] This is particularly worrying since it is estimated that up to 80% of school-age children only practice physical activity at school, while it is recommended that they have at least one hour of light physical activity every day.[18]

For the purpose of strengthening physical activity in schools outside the school curriculum, innovative solutions should be explored, such as cooperation agreements between schools and sport clubs.

University sport also plays an important role in promoting health and physical activity as well as intercultural dialogue, as demonstrated by the summer and winter Universiades organised by the International University Sport Organisation (FISU).

Formal education could take better advantage of the values conveyed through sport to develop knowledge, motivation, skills, readiness for personal effort and also social abilities such as teamwork, solidarity, tolerance, fair play and the ability to lose. Time spent in sport activities, be it during school time or extra-curricular activities, can produce health and education benefits which need to be enhanced. The establishment of links between sport and formal and non-formal education to make better use of the educational potential of sport is also a key issue in view of the new integrated life-long learning strategy.

Sport and physical activity can be encouraged through various policy initiatives in the field of education and training, including the development of social and civic competences in accordance with the 2006 Recommendation on Key Competences for Lifelong Learning. This Recommendation mentions in particular that "personal and social well-being requires an understanding of how individuals can ensure optimum physical and mental health, including as a resource for oneself and one's family, and knowledge of how a healthy lifestyle can contribute to this". The development of social and civic competences could therefore be supported through the exchange of best practices in this context.

The training of young sportspeople

A Commission study on the training of young sportsmen and sportswomen in Europe is ongoing.[19] This study will identify training centres’ common quality criteria as regards education, training and/or vocational reintegration, evaluation, protection of minors, and ages of transfers. The initiative is linked to the need to ensure the possibility of so-called dual careers for top-level sportspeople, given that the lifespan of their sport career tends to be limited.

In 2005, UEFA introduced rules concerning players in the club competitions it organises (European Champions' League and UEFA Cup). The rules gradually require clubs in UEFA competitions to have locally trained players on the teams they present for UEFA matches. "Locally trained" means that the player must have spent at least 3 years between the ages of 15 and 21 in his club or in another club of the same country. There is no nationality condition. The idea is to promote training of young players and to encourage clubs to invest in training of young people and not only in transfers of players.

The Commission is completing its analysis of the compatibility with Community law of rules requiring that teams include a certain quota of locally trained players. The results of the mentioned study on the training of young sportsmen and sportswomen in Europe will contribute to this analysis.

Vocational education and training

Vocational education and training in the sport sector in Europe involves multiple stakeholders (Member States, local authorities, sport employers, sport employees, sport organisations, VET providers) and tends to be fragmented. However, the potential for growth is important, and sport could play its part in fulfilling the objectives of the Lisbon Strategy for growth and employment, all the more so since most sport-based economic activities tend to be labour-intensive and the jobs are often locally based.

The VOCASPORT study[20] commissioned by the European Commission in 2004 estimated that the sport sector employed around 800,000 professionals in the then 25 Member States of the EU. The rate of employment growth was considerable in the last decade, with an estimated growth of 57% in the period 1990-1998. Moreover, millions of volunteers are involved in the sport sector in the EU. The growth of the sector is correlated to the growing demand for sport and physical activities. At the same time, the demand for a more professionalized approach to sport activities has created a need for a more highly trained workforce.

Worker mobility tends to be high in the sport sector, including mobility between Member States, which can lead to problems concerning the recognition of qualifications of foreign workers. These characteristics of the sport sector need to be seen in the context of new Europe-wide initiatives in the field of Vocational Education and Training (VET). However, it should be noted that VET systems in sport tend to be specific and largely autonomous from global VET systems in most Member States, with the involvement of ministries responsible for sport and/or of sport federations in the definition of qualifications in the sport sector.

The European Parliament and the Council adopted on 7 September 2005 a Directive on the Recognition of Professional Qualifications[21] to promote the free movement of professionals, while ensuring an adequate level of qualifications and of protection of the health and security of consumers. The Commission will continue to ensure, in accordance with the mentioned Directive, that the freedom of movement of workers is not hampered by undue restrictions on the recognition of qualifications in the sport sector. Under this Directive, professional associations also have the possibility to work at common platforms[22] as well as professional cards[23].

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2.4. Volunteering, non-profit sport organisations and active citizenship

2.4.1. Volunteering

Voluntary activity forms the basis for the organisation, administration and implementation of sport activities in all EU Member States. Voluntary sport organisations provide the backbone of the entire sport structure. Figures suggest that there are around 10 million volunteers active in about 700,000 sport clubs throughout the EU. In some Member States, more than 10% of adults voluntarily engage in the sport sector, and in most countries sport constitutes one of the key areas of voluntary work. Moreover, volunteering in sport must be considered as one of the cornerstones of the characteristics of sport in Europe. These facts make it an important theme for discussion at EU level, beyond the general discussion on ‘volunteering in Europe’.

The Member States have expressed support for promoting voluntary sport structures in an EU context. In its Nice Declaration (2000), the European Council called on Member States to encourage voluntary services in sport by means of measures providing appropriate protection for and acknowledging the economic and social role of volunteers, with the support, where necessary, of the Community. Two years later, EU Sport Ministers recognised in the “Aarhus Declaration on Voluntary Work in Sport”[24] the significant contribution of voluntary work to sport and its economic value.

In 2004, EU Sport Ministers decided to put volunteering in sport among the key issues of the then adopted EU Rolling Agenda for Sport. At their meeting in Liverpool, EU Sport Ministers called upon future Presidencies “to follow up their discussion of volunteering in sport, by developing proposals for promoting and sustaining the voluntary sector in sport, which they acknowledge to be vital to the sustainability of amateur sport in particular”. The Finnish Presidency made volunteering in sport one of its priority themes, with a particular interest in the role and status of voluntary non-profit sport organisations. The Ministerial Conference in Brussels in November 2006 agreed on the establishment of a Working Group "Non-profit Sport Organisations" to address, inter alia, the specificities of the voluntary sport sector. Specific inter-ministerial working groups already exist in some EU Member States, e.g. Sweden and Finland.

The EU is putting increasing emphasis on objectives and policies which create solidarity within the EU and secure opportunities for all citizens. The Commission has defined its overall strategic objectives accordingly. Voluntary activities in the sport sector strengthen social cohesion and inclusion and promote local democracy and active citizenship. Voluntary activities in sport also have a socio-economic value in terms of GDP and if converted in e.g. full-time employment. There is also an implicit economic value: without volunteers sport activities would come at a much higher cost and many of the social activities related to sport would disappear.

2.4.2. Non-profit sport organisations

Organised sport in almost all EU Member States is built on specific non-profit making governing structures at grassroots level. These are self-governing independent structures, heavily reliant on the commitment of volunteers, with specific forms of legal personality or status that provide the precondition for a range of financial and fiscal advantages.

Although not exclusively altruistic, activities of non-profit (sport) organisations are usually undertaken without any profit-making intention or dimension. However, due to the decrease in the amount of donations and government funds and in order to survive, the majority of non-profit sport organisations need to raise revenues from some kind of commercial activity. This enables them to effectively fulfil their social goals, i.e. to reinvest in the social cause, without being subject to investors' accountability and control. However, despite the focus on the attainment of socially beneficial goals, they thus pursue economic activities, which are subject to EU law.

The EU legal framework does not specifically address non-profit (sport) organisations. Under EU law it is not the nature of the organisation, but the nature of the activity that it pursues, which is usually considered to determine whether competition and Internal Market provisions apply. Regarding, for instance, the application of EU competition law, non-profit organisations are subject to it if they operate as undertakings because they engage in economic activities by offering goods and services in the common market. An intention to generate profits is not a prerequisite for economic activity within the meaning of EU competition law. However, an infringement of EU competition law requires that the conduct in question may affect trade between Member States. This may often be excluded for non-profit sport organisations in view of their local character.

2.4.3. Active citizenship

Sport can be a useful tool in terms of active citizenship. Approximately 70 million Europeans, many of them young people, are members of sport clubs. Sport can have an educational role through its values. Participation in a team, principles such as fair-play, compliance with the rules of the game and respect for others, solidarity and discipline as well as the organisation of amateur sport based on clubs and volunteering reinforce active citizenship. Sport also provides attractive possibilities for young people's engagement and involvement in social life.

The potential of sport in the fields of youth and citizenship is challenged by new trends in sport participation, particularly among young people. There is a growing tendency to practise sport individually, rather than collectively and in an organised structure, and a declining volunteer base for amateur sport clubs as well as a shorter average period for a volunteer's involvement in a given club. Nevertheless, the importance of organised sport in promoting active citizenship must be duly taken into account.

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2.5. Social inclusion and equal opportunities

2.5.1. Social inclusion and integration

Sport can be an effective tool for social inclusion. Among its objectives in the fight against poverty and exclusion, the Council adopted the objective "to develop, for the benefit of people at risk of exclusion, services and accompanying measures which will allow them effective access to education, justice and other public and private services, such as culture, sport and leisure."[25]

The Nice Declaration underlines that "sporting activity should be accessible to every man and woman, with due regard for individual aspirations and possibilities". It also recognises that "for the physically or mentally disabled, the practice of physical and sporting activities provides a particularly favourable opening for the development of individual talent, rehabilitation, social integration and solidarity and, as such, should be encouraged."

In March 2006, the European Council adopted a new framework for the social protection and social inclusion process. Based on the Nice objectives, sport can be included in the new objective "access for all to the resources, rights and services needed for participation in society, preventing and addressing exclusion, and fighting all forms of discrimination leading to exclusion".[26]

In the framework of the European Year for Education through Sport (EYES) 2004, a study on education, sport and multiculturalism and more than 25 operational projects were directly oriented at integrating socially disadvantaged groups. The evaluation of EYES 2004[27] and the follow up ensured by the European Commission has shown the importance of implementing the Amsterdam and Nice declarations, especially concerning the social function of sport.

The accessibility of sport activity needs to be ensured for all citizens. For this purpose, the specific needs and situation of under-represented groups must be addressed, and the special role that sport can play for disabled persons and gender equality must be taken into account.

At the same time there is a need to better use the potential of sport as an instrument for social inclusion in the policies, actions and programmes of the European Union and Member States. This includes the potential of sport as an employment creation factor, particularly in disadvantaged areas. Also in this light, sport activities contributing to social cohesion and to social inclusion of vulnerable groups can be considered as social services of general interest.

The social inclusion strand of the 2006-2008 National Reports on Strategies for Social Protection and Social Inclusion highlights the importance of participating in sport activities as a means to prevent and tackle social exclusion of children on the one hand, and on the other hand as a tool for promoting the integration of immigrants and social inclusion of ethnic minorities.

In the September 2005 communication “A Common Agenda for Integration - Framework for the Integration of Third-Country Nationals in the European Union”[28] it is underlined that frequent interaction between immigrants and Member State citizens is a fundamental mechanism for integration. Measures which help to promote a shared sense of belonging and participation may be instrumental in promoting integration. In this context, it is important to make available spaces for sport and support sport-related activities in order to allow immigrants and the host society to interact together in a positive way.

2.5.2. People with disabilities

Citizens with disabilities represent around 10% of the population of the EU. They are confronted with specific difficulties concerning access to sport.

The European Commission established an EU Disability Action Plan (DAP)[29] for 2004-2010 to ensure coherent policy follow-up to the European Year of People with Disabilities 2003[30] in the enlarged Union. Three operational objectives are central to the DAP: (1) full implementation of the Employment Equality Directive[31]; (2) successful mainstreaming of disability issues in relevant Community policies; and (3) improving accessibility for all. The Commission also adopted a European Action Plan 2006-2007[32] as the second step of its disability strategy.

The Declaration on the specific characteristics of sport and its social function in Europe, adopted in Nice in December 2000, underlines that "sporting activity should be accessible to every man and woman, with due regard for individual aspirations and possibilities". It also recognises that "for the physically or mentally disabled, the practice of physical and sporting activities provides a particularly favourable opening for the development of individual talent, rehabilitation, social integration and solidarity and, as such, should be encouraged."

A number of Commission activities for disabled persons have involved sport. The European Year of People with Disabilities 2003[33] financed sports events, and as part of the European Year of Education through Sport 2004[34], several projects on the integration of people with disabilities through sports were funded. The Commission organised an experts’ meeting on equal opportunities in sport[35] in 2005 to identify key needs, trends, and fields of action. The Youth programme has supported sport activities for young people with disabilities.

The concept of equal opportunities in sports for people with disabilities is based on three fundamental pillars: (a) access to sports premises as sportspeople, (b) access to sports premises as spectators, and (c) support for people with disabilities who wish to practice sport (e.g. the cost of equipment, training of staff and adapting facilities). It seeks to demonstrate that the educational and social values of sport also matter to people with disabilities. In this light, sport (both competitive and recreational) is a cross-cutting tool for integration, job creation and equality for people with disabilities.

Founded as the International Paralympic Committee's European Committee in 1991, the European Paralympic Committee (EPC) adopted its current name in 1999. The EPC awards, controls and supervises European championships and cup events in 12 sports for four disability groups (visually impaired, athletes with cerebral palsy, athletes with intellectual disability and athletes with a physical disability).

Special Olympics Europe/Eurasia (SOEE) provides opportunities in sport for 425,000 individuals with intellectual disabilities and coordinates the participation of European athletes in the quadrennial Special Olympics World Games.

The Commission ensures that EPC and SOEE are involved in all its consultation activities directed towards sport stakeholders.

Access to sport remains a problematic issue facing disabled people, both with regard to their access to sport activities as sportspeople, and their access to sport premises as sportspeople and/or spectators. In particular, boys and girls with disabilities do not enjoy the same opportunities to practise sport as their able-bodied peers, particularly in physical education classes in school with their classmates. Consequently, they do not pick up the habit to practise sport at an early age.

2.5.3. The gender dimension

The gender dimension of equal opportunities is mainstreamed into all EU policies. The Commission adopted its Roadmap for equality between women and men 2006-2010[36] in March 2006. Although figures differ and are not available in all Member States, there is a general impression of under-representation, to varying degrees, of women in sport, in terms of participation in sport, the organisation and management of sport activities, leadership positions in sport, and media coverage of competitions involving sportswomen.

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2.6. The prevention of and fight against racism and violence

European cooperation in the fight against violence in sport was strengthened after the Heysel stadium tragedy in 1985. The European Commission has actively promoted the development of improved violence prevention for international sporting events, focusing on two key objectives:

• Establishing common standards on safety and public order through the exchange of experience and best practice between the Member States;
• Enhancing operational cooperation related to the exchange of information on football supporters at risk, or likely to be violent, in accordance with data protection rules.

In this respect, Council Decision 2002/348/JHA of 25/4/2002[37] introduced binding obligations on the establishment of national football information points. These information points are intended to improve cooperation and information exchange between police forces and other competent authorities combatting football-related violence. The Evaluation Report on the implementation of this decision concluded that the Member States should set up the relevant structures, which have since played an effective role in the exchange of important data among relevant services.

To facilitate and bring uniformity to this cooperation, a handbook was adopted by a Council Resolution[38], with recommendations on useful measures to prevent and control violence and disturbances in connection with football matches with an international dimension.

Moreover, based on the experience of some Member States, the Council adopted another Resolution inviting the Member States to, inter alia, examine the possibility of introducing stadium bans and to supplement the bans with penalties for non-compliance.

The preparations for the 2006 World Cup in Germany were discussed at regular meetings of football experts in the framework of the Police Cooperation Working Group (PCWG). The issues discussed related to the quality control of exchanged information, regular disorder assesments and modalities of transferred information.

Council Presidencies organised other regular expert meetings to efficiently tackle hooliganism. Working contacts with UEFA have also been established.

The role of the Council of Europe in the field of prevention of violence in sport is significant. In August 1985 was adopted the European Convention on Spectator Violence and Misbehaviour at Sports Events and in Particular at Football Matches.[39] Under the Convention, Parties undertake to co-operate and encourage similar co-operation between public authorities and independent sports organisations to prevent violence and control the problem of violence and misbehaviour by spectators at sport events. To this end, the Convention sets out a number of measures, such as in particular close co-operation between police forces involved; prosecution of offenders and application of appropriate penalties; strict control of ticket sales; restrictions on the sale of alcoholic drinks; appropriate design and physical fabric of stadiums to prevent violence and allow effective crowd control and crowd safety. A Standing Committee established by the Convention is empowered to make recommendations to the Parties concerning measures which should be taken. The Convention has been signed by all EU Member States and ratified by all but two.

Future EU policy development on violence in sport should be based on two complementary pillars: law enforcement and prevention. A multidisciplinary approach is needed to efficiently and effectively tackle the problem, in association with all the stakeholders, including clubs and supporters' associations.

One of the main sources of violence and anti-social behaviour (e.g. insults, unfavourable treatment etc.) is discrimination based on race, religion or ethnic groups. It manifests itself in different forms but the core issues remain consistent.

The Commission has repeatedly rejected and condemned all manifestations of racism, xenophobia and anti-Semitism, as these phenomena are incompatible with the values on which the EU is founded. The Hague Programme, adopted in November 2004, recalls the firm commitment of the EU to oppose any form of racism.

On the basis of a Commission proposal, Member States reached, at the JHA Council held in April 2007, political agreement on the Framework Decision on Combating Racism and Xenophobia. The purpose of the Framework Decision is to approximate Member States' legislation and to ensure that racism and xenophobia are punishable in all Member States by effective, proportionate and dissuasive criminal penalties. The Framework Decision criminalises intentional conduct such as incitement to violence or hatred towards a group of people, or a person belonging to a group, defined on the basis of race, colour, descent, religion or belief, national or ethnic origin, as well as the public condoning, denial or gross trivialisation of crimes against humanity and war crimes. Incitement to violence or hatred will also be punishable if committed by public dissemination or distribution of tracts, pictures or other material. The conduct is criminalised insofar as it is threatening, abusive, insulting or carried out in a manner likely to disturb public order. Racist and xenophobic motivation is regarded as an aggravating circumstance in the determination of the penalty applicable to any type of criminal offence. The Framework Decision also provides for liability of legal persons.

A European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia (EUMC) was established to tackle racial discrimination effectively. It was replaced on 1 March 2007 by the Fundamental Rights Agency (FRA) which will continue to work on racism, xenophobia and related intolerance.

The first European anti-racist football network, "Football Against Racism in Europe - FARE"[40], was founded at a seminar sponsored by the European Commission, "Networking against Racism in European Football", in Vienna in February 1999. More than 40 different organisations including anti-racist sport projects, fan clubs, players' unions, football associations and ethnic minority groups from 13 European countries affirmed their commitment to fight all forms of discrimination in football. The European Programme against Discrimination sponsored the FARE work programme 2002-2004.

Media coverage of mass sports such as football or basketball has enabled racist chants, signs, flags, and slogans to spread widely. Most of the initiatives taken by different stakeholders have focused on football. The European Parliament adopted a declaration on tackling racism in football in March 2006 and recognised in its recent resolution on the future of professional football that many incidents of racism and violence continue to take place in and around football stadiums.

All stakeholders must engage in dialogue to raise awareness of the damaging effect of racist and violent behaviour in sport and to promote exchanges of best practice, based on existing initiatives.

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2.7. Sport in the EU's external relations

Sport can play a role regarding two different aspects of the EU's external relations:

• It can play a role in easing relations with partner countries and be an element of the dialogue with them as part of the EU's public diplomacy;
• If agreed with the beneficiary countries, it can be an element of the EU's external assistance programmes.

Regarding the first aspect, cooperation in the field of sport has the potential to contribute to better international relations in other, unrelated areas. At the same time, sport has acquired a global dimension and deserves to be included in a policy dialogue on such issues as international players' transfers, trafficking in underage players and players from developing countries, doping, money-laundering through sport, and security during major international sport events. Finally, there is a potential for cooperation in the field of sport research (possibly including the fight against doping), outside the scope of assistance programmes, with other countries that have reached a high level of knowledge in this field.

Regarding the second aspect, sport could be included in external assistance programmes as a means to promote education, health, socio-economic development, and peace and ethnic reconciliation. While projects are financed in the framework of the EU's enlargement and European neighbourhood policies, sport-related projects are particularly useful in the pursuit of the UN Millenium Development Goals.[41] The European Parliament's Resolution of 1 December 2005 on development and sport highlights the link between physical education, sport and the Millennium Goals.

The Commission and FIFA have recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)[42] to make football a tool for development in African, Caribbean and Pacific countries (ACP). The MoU covers a wide range of areas, from the promotion of children's rights, anti-discrimination and social integration, to health and post-conflict reconstruction.

There are examples of concrete projects in this area that have been financed through the various financial instruments of the EU's external action. The financial contribution from the EU budget to sport-related initiatives in ACP countries is estimated to have been approximately €34 million over the past 10 years.

The potential of sport for peace and development has been recognised by the United Nations through the General Assembly's resolutions 58/5, 58/6 and 60/9 on sport as a means to promote education, health, development and peace. These resolutions proclaimed 2005 the International Year of Physical Education and Sport and paved the way for the creation of the office of the Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on Sport for Development and Peace and of the United Nation's inter-agency Working Group on Sport for Development and Peace.[43]

Some Member States are also engaged in multilateral structures combining political dialogue and external assistance for sport issues such as the Conference of French-speaking Ministers for Youth and Sport (CONFEJES)[44], the Commonwealth Sports Ministers Meetings[45], and the Consejo Iberamericano del Deporte[46].

Major international sport organisations have also developed their own assistance programmes, such as Olympic Solidarity[47] of the International Olympic Committee, FIFA's Goal Project[48], and the Meridian Project[49] between the Union Européenne de Football Association (UEFA) and the Confédération Africaine de Football (CAF). Non-governmental organisations have also been created in the specific field of solidarity through sport, such as, for example, "Right to Play"[50], which focuses on ethnic reconciliation in the Balkans and the Caucasus, or "Sports Sans Frontières"[51].

The potential of sport as a means to promote education, health, development and peace, although recognised in many policy documents and studies, needs to be properly addressed through concrete actions in the EU's external relations. Synergies should be achieved with existing programmes of the United Nations, Member States, local authorities and private bodies.

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2.8. The environmental dimension of sport

The practice of sport activities can affect the environment. For example, sport events can have significant impacts on the use of natural resources, generation of waste and loss of biodiversity. On the other hand, the environment can also affect the practice of sport as environmental conditions can compromise sport activities and performance. For example, warmer climate conditions in Europe in 2007 have affected the practice of winter sports. An unhealthy environment may affect not only professional athletes but may also hinder the motivation of individuals to pursue sport in the first place. Water pollution, air pollution, stratospheric ozone deterioration, habitat loss, toxic waste, pesticide residues, noise, traffic emissions, climate change and indoor air quality are among the threats to the safe and enjoyable practice of sport.

Sport practice, facilities and events have a significant impact on the environment. The “greening” of sport can best be achieved through environmentally sound management, capable of addressing inter alia green procurement, greenhouse gas emissions, waste disposal and the treatment of soil and water. Responsible organisations could also expect specific benefits by improving their credibility on environmental matters while bidding to host sport events, as well as economic benefits related to a more rationalised use of natural resources.

Major sport events can act as promoters of sport as well as of social and environmental values. Thanks to the passion it generates, the world of sport is capable of spreading these positive values. Major sport events should therefore be regarded by European society not just as an economic opportunity but also as an opportunity for disseminating cultural, social and environmental values with a view to generating growth and sustainable development.

It is important that public administrations, sport organisations and the sporting goods industry acknowledge the need for environmental sustainability as a way to develop their policies and businesses. In particular, European sport organisations and event organisers should adopt ambitious environmental objectives in order to make their activities environmentally sustainable. The EU has adopted the following tools for this purpose, thus enabling public and private organisations to upgrade their environmental credentials.

In 2001, the EU adopted a regulation[52] allowing both public and private organisations to implement the Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS).EMAS is a voluntary instrument which gives acknowledgement to organisations that improve their environmental performance on a continuous basis. More than twenty organisations have registered in the framework of EMAS for their sporting activities. Examples relate to the 2006 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games which published a guidance document for applying EMAS to sport events[53], the Nürburgring Formula 1 circuit in Germany, and the FIFA World Football Championship 2006, where two of the stadiums obtained EMAS registration.

Participation in EMAS can notably provide the following benefits to sport organisations:

• Enhanced legal certainty through a compliance check with environmental legislation;
• Resource savings on environmental costs;
• Added credibility and confidence vis-à-vis local authorities, local communities and other stakeholders;
• Added credibility when submitting their candidacy for the organisation of sport events.

In 2000, the EU adopted a regulation on a revised Community Eco-Label Award Scheme.[54] This is a voluntary scheme designed to encourage businesses to market products and services that are friendly to the environment and to allow European consumers - including public and private purchasers - to easily identify them.

The Commission has also adopted a non-binding handbook on environmental public procurement (“Buying green!”).[55] This document is particularly pertinent for local authorities that are planning to award contracts for the construction or renovation of sport facilities.

Where plans or projects are necessary, e.g. urban development projects such as the construction of infrastructure for the organisation of sport events, competent authorities and concerned parties need to implement the Environmental Impact Assessment Directive[56] and the Strategic Environmental Assessment Directive[57].

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1. Decision n° 291/2003/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 6 February 2003 establishing the European Year of Education through Sport 2004
2. Special Eurobarometer (2004): The Citizens of the European Union and Sport.
3. http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_213_report_en.pdf
4. COM (2005) 637 final, Green paper "Promoting healthy diets and physical activity: a European dimension for the prevention of overweight, obesity and chronic diseases"
5. See, e.g., J. Fry and W. Finlay: "The prevalence and costs of obesity in the EU", in Proceedings of the Nutrition Society, 2005, 64 (3): 359-362.
6. Project co-financed by DG V (Employment, Industrial Relations and Social Affairs), Directorate for public health and safety at work
7. UK Institute for Health Promotion and Research (1996): Promotion of Health-Enhancing Physical Activity: development of a European strategy, network and action programme. Report on the meeting on Health-Enhancing Physical Activity: a preparatory European meeting, Tampere, Finland, April 12-14, 1996.
8. European network for the promotion of health-enhancing physical activity (HEPA Europe):
   http://www.euro.who.int/transport/modes/20050520_1
9. http://www.euro.who.int/eprise/main/WHO/Progs/WHD/FactSheets/20020319_1
10. Study on young people's lifestyles and sedentariness and the role of sport in the context of education and as a means of restoring the balance, University of Paderborn and Duisburg/Essen. /sport/documents/lotpaderborn.pdf
11. http://ec.europa.eu/health/ph_determinants/life_style/nutrition/platform/platform_en.htm
12. Including from the European Parliament, most recently in its Resolution on combating doping in sport, 14 April 2005, OJ C 33, E/590, 2006
13. E.g., Article 152 of the EC Treaty, on public health, gives the Community a complementary role in preventing and reducing all drugs-related health damage.
14. December 1999 – Communication from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament, the Economic and social committee and the Committee of the regions (COM (1999) 643; Communication from Mrs Reding in agreement with Mr Byrne: Community support plan to combat doping in sport.
15. HARDOP: Harmonisation of methods and measurements in the fight against doping) (1998-9); CAFDIS: Concerted action in the fight against doping in sport) (1998-9).
16. Case C-519/04 of 18 July 2006
17. Resolution of the Council and of the Ministers of the Ministers for Youth meeting within the Council of 17 December 1999 on the non-formal education dimension of sporting activities in the European Community youth programmes.
18. European Parliament study: "Current situation and prospects for physical education in the European Union", February 2007.
19. Commission on Culture and Education of the European Parliament, meeting of 10 April 2007 on "the role of sport in education"
20. Public contract DG EAC/14/06, awarded by open procedure following publication of the prior information notice on 17.05.2006 (OJ/S S 93 No 98918-2006) and of the contract notice on 18.07.2006 (OJ S 134-143268).
21. /sport/documents/lotvocasport_en.pdf
22. http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/site/en/oj/2005/l_255/l_25520050930en00220142.pdf .
    Directive 2005/36/EC consolidates, simplifies and modernises 15 existing directives adopted between 1975 and 1999. It was adopted on 07.09.2005 and must be implemented in Member States by 20.10.2007. Directive 2005/36/EC provides for a system of automatic recognition of qualifications for professions whose conditions of training have been harmonised (doctors, nurses, midwives, dentists, veterinarians, pharmacists) and also for architects. For the other professions, the system is based on mutual trust. The underlying principle is that once a person is qualified to exercise a profession in a Member State this person should be authorised to exercise the same profession in another Member State. The procedures as well as the five levels of qualifications fixed under Directive 2005/36/EC have been designed on the basis of this principle. For professions of the craft, commerce and industry area, the procedure is based primarily on recognition of professional experience. For the other professions, the following procedure applies: The Host Member State competent authorities have the obligation not only to recognise qualifications classified in the same level of the Directive as the national qualification but also qualifications classified in the immediately lower level of the Directive. In principle, qualifications must be recognised without any additional requirement. However, if substantial differences between qualifications are identified and that such substantial differences cannot be compensated by professional experience or supplementary training (e.g. seminars, lifelong learning etc.), compensatory measures can be imposed on migrants (a test or training period at the choice of the migrant).
23. The common platform is defined in the Directive as ‘a set of criteria which make it possible to compensate for the widest range of substantial differences which have been identified between the training requirements in at least two thirds of the Member States including all the Member States that regulate this profession.
24. According to Recital 32 of the 2005/36/EC Directive, the ‘professional card should make it possible to monitor the career of professionals who establish themselves in various Member States. Such cards could contain information, in full respect of data protection provisions, on the professional’s qualifications (university or institution attended, qualifications obtained, professional experience), his legal establishment, penalties received relating to his profession and the details of the relevant competent authority.’
25. /sport/sport-and/others/docs/concl_arhus-200211-voluntary_en.pdf
26. http://ec.europa.eu/employment_social/social_inclusion/docs/approb_en.pdf ( )
27. http://ec.europa.eu/employment_social/social_inclusion/docs/2006/objectives_en.pdf ( )
28. /dgs/education_culture/evalreports/sport/2005/aees/aeesrep_en.pdf ( )
29. COM (2005) 389
30. COM(2003) 650 final, 30/10/2003
31. Council decision of 3 December 2001 on the European Year of People with Disabilities 2003
32. Directive 2000/78/EC of 27/11/2000 (OJ L 303 of 2/12/2000, p.16)
33. COM (2005) 604 final, 28/11/2005
34. Council decision n°2001/903/EC of 3 December 2001 on the European Year of People with Disabilities 2003
35. http://www.eyes-2004.info/
36. /sport/doc/report_eac78-00_en.pdf
37. http://ec.europa.eu/employment_social/publications/2006/ke7205596_en.pdf ( )
38. OJ L 121, 8/5/2002
39. Council Resolution of 6/12/2001 (OJ C 22, 24/1/2002) and Council resolution of 4/12/2006 (OJ C 322, 29/12/2006)
40. http://conventions.coe.int/Treaty/Commun/QueVoulezVous.asp?NT=120&CM=8&DF=&CL=ENG
41. http://www.farenet.org/
42. The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that all countries are aiming to reach by 2015 are:
    - Reduce extreme poverty: cut by 50% the amount of people living on $1 a day.
    - Offer universal primary education: make sure every child in the world completes six years of schooling.
    - Promote gender equality: eliminate gender inequality in all levels of education.
    - Reduce child mortality rates: reduce by two thirds the mortality rate among children under five.
    - Improve maternal health: Reduce by three quarters the maternal mortality ratio.
    - Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases: Halt and reverse the spread of HIV/AIDS as well as incidences of malaria and tuberculosis.
    - Ensure environmental sustainability: reverse loss of environmental resources; reduce by half the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water; achieve significant improvement in lives of at least 100 million slum dwellers, by 2020.
    - Develop a global partnership for development: increase jobs for youth, access to affordable drugs, increase aid, reduce tariffs and debts for the poorest countries, bridge the digital divide.
    IP/06/968 of 9 July 2006
43. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Cultural organisation (UNESCO) continues to be the lead agency for sport-related issues in the United Nations system but the Working Group brings also together other agencies with significant experience using sport in their work, including ILO, WHO, UNDP, UNV, UNEP, UNHCR, UNICEF, UNODC and UNAIDS.
44. http://www.confejes.org/
45. http://www.thecommonwealth.org/subhomepage/143537/
46. http://www.coniberodeporte.org/
47. http://www.olympic.org/uk/organisation/commissions/solidarity/index_uk.asp
48. http://www.fifa.com/goal/index_E.html
49. http://www.uefa.com/uefa/keytopics/kind=32/index.html
50. http://www.righttoplay.com/
51. http://www.sportsansfrontieres.org/
52. Regulation (EC) N° 761/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 March 2001 allowing voluntary participation by organisations in a Community eco-management and audit scheme (EMAS)
53. http://ec.europa.eu/environment/emas/pdf/guidance/guidance09_en.pdf
54. Regulation (EC) N° 1980/2000 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 July 2000 on a revised Community Eco-label Award Scheme
55. http://ec.europa.eu/environment/gpp/pdf/int.pdf
56. Council Directive 97/11/EC of 3 March 1997 OJ L 073 of 14.03.1997
57. Council Directive 2001/42/EC of 21.07.2001 OJ L 197 of 21.07.2001

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