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NYON, Switzerland (AP) — A group representing many of Europe’s major soccer leagues has accused FIFA of “abusive conduct” in how it runs the international calendar for women’s competitions after filing an expanded complaint to the European Commission.
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The new intervention by European Leagues follows an earlier complaint it made in 2024 challenging the FIFA decision-making process which has led to expanded formats with more games in the men’s World Cup and Club World Cup.
That original complaint has not seemed to make much progress through the European Union bureaucratic system.
“FIFA’s conduct threatens the growth and financial sustainability of women’s professional leagues, and risks player health and wellbeing,” European Leagues said in a statement, which didn’t identify any specific FIFA decisions it was challenging.
European Leagues cited FIFA president Gianni Infantino’s attempt to sell stakes in FIFA competitions including the World Cup. That plan has since been abandoned.
“As in men’s football, FIFA consistently uses its regulatory power to favor its own competition and commercial interests to the detriment of women’s football and of European national leagues,” European Leagues said.
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“The recent controversy surrounding the aborted FIFA Forward Enterprise initiative has further exposed this structural conflict and vividly illustrates how profit-driven motives taint FIFA’s regulatory decisions and decision-making processes.”
European Leagues counts the English and Spanish women’s leagues among eight full member women’s competitions, and the French, German and Italian leagues are associate members. Its 35 men’s league members include almost all of Europe’s leading domestic league competitions.
European Leagues’ original complaint in 2024 was made together with players’ union FIFPRO Europe, which has pulled out of legal actions against FIFA.
FIFPRO told the Associated Press on Tuesday it withdrew from the formal complaint to Brussels as part of a cooperation deal with FIFA signed in June which included an offer to negotiate on the game calendar. FIFA had spent the previous year talking with a non-recognized group of officials who had past ties to FIFPRO.
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