Abstract
This special issue of the Tilburg Law Review aims to study the intersection between human rights and the way the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) governs and shapes football. The objective of this editorial is threefold. First, it highlights three different areas of research into the link between FIFA and human rights, namely its human rights impacts (section 2), policies (section 3) and responsibilities (section 4). Secondly, it maps existing research on FIFA and human rights for each section, thereby introducing some of the issues dealt with in more detail by the articles in this journal. Finally, it strives to contribute to the definition of a research agenda at the intersection of transnational law, lex sportiva, and (business and) human rights, by highlighting the questions that arise from linking a transnational private actor like FIFA to human rights (section 5).
Highlights
The meeting between human rights and sports is a fairly recent development traced back to the early nineties by historians like Barbara Keys.[1]
It strives to contribute to the definition of a research agenda at the intersection of transnational law, lex sportiva, and human rights, by highlighting the questions that arise from linking a transnational private actor like Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) to human rights
The number of academic and non-academic attention for human rights risks associated with mega-sporting events (MSEs) rose, focusing in particular on the FIFA World Cup and the Olympic Games as the two most prestigious and popular global sporting events
Summary
The meeting between human rights and sports is a fairly recent development traced back to the early nineties by historians like Barbara Keys.[1]. It is a Swiss association, incorporated and regulated under the Swiss Civil Code, Chapter Two, which covers associations with a political, religious, scientific, cultural, charitable, social or other non-commercial purpose.[4] The association is registered in the Commercial Register of the Canton of Zürich and owns a number of foreign subsidiaries.[5] This legal structure grants FIFA a rather flexible status under Swiss law, resulting in benefits such as tax exemptions and a significant level of regulatory autonomy.[6] Yet, in practice, FIFA is clearly not equivalent to a local Swiss chess club Instead, it is a global regulator with the power to bend states to its will and to exercise regulatory authority over football’s “citizens” worldwide.[7] It should best be considered a transnational governance body, which creates and imposes its rules on football clubs and players, and organizes football tournaments that generate massive financial income contributing to the reinforcement of its administrative capacity and affect the lives of people in the host countries. It strives to contribute to the definition of a research agenda at the intersection of transnational law, lex sportiva, and (business and) human rights, by highlighting the questions that arise from linking a transnational private actor like FIFA to human rights (section 5)
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