The European Game: The ECJ and its Sports Model after “European Super League”

The long-awaited judgement of the Court of Justice of the European Union in Case C-333/21 – European Super League Company has finally arrived, accompanied by two other cross-referential decisions (here and here). The first analyses are beginning to surface (e.g., this excellent take by Stephen Weatherill, here), and there is a lot to unpack, especially with respect to developments in competition law. Constitutional lawyers will, however, find particular interest in how the Grand Chamber dismissed Advocate General Rantos’ pitch for constitutional recognition of the European sports model based on Article 165 TFEU. This post focuses on this aspect of the European Super League judgment. It argues that while the Advocate General’s construction was rejected, the Court still used this judgement to further define its own constitutional understanding of the European sports model, as well as to solidify its role as the primary interpreter of that model.