LA LEY publishes the article "Sports arbitration and judicial review in the EU: the RFC Seraing case

Alfonso Carrillo, together with Andrés Borja Alcaraz Riaño (Official of the European Commission), has published in the specialist journal LA LEY Mediación y Arbitraje the article "Sports arbitration and judicial review in the EU: the RFC Seraing case", analysing one of the most significant rulings recently handed down by the Court of Justice of the European Union in sporting and arbitration matters.

The paper examines the judgment of the Grand Chamber of the Court of Justice of the European Union of 1 August 2025 (Case C-600/23, RFC Seraing), a ruling addressing the relationship between international sports arbitration and the right to effective judicial protection recognised by European Union law.

The judgment arises from the dispute between the Belgian club RFC Seraing and FIFA following the sanctions imposed under the so-called ban on the "third-party ownership" of players' economic rights. After several proceedings before FIFA, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (TAS/CAS), the Swiss Federal Tribunal and the Belgian courts, the matter reached the Court of Justice through a request for a preliminary ruling submitted by Belgium's Cour de Cassation.

The article analyses how the CJEU reaffirms the need for national courts to be able to exercise effective judicial review over arbitral awards when rights recognised by the European Union legal order are at stake. The ruling also calls into question certain aspects of the traditional model of international sports arbitration and reinforces the primacy of Union law over private dispute resolution mechanisms.

The study further situates the judgment within the evolution of European sports case law, examining its connection with landmark decisions such as Bosman, Meca-Medina, International Skating Union, Superleague and Diarra, as well as with the arbitration doctrine developed by the CJEU in cases such as Achmea and Komstroy.

The publication is a contribution to the legal debate on the future of international sports arbitration and the role of the European courts in protecting fundamental rights and ensuring the uniform application of Union law.