EN Official Journal of the European Union C 212/14

Conclusions of the Council and of the Representatives of the Governments of the Member States, meeting within the Council, on enhancing integrity, transparency and good governance in major sport events

(2016/C 212/07)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION AND THE REPRESENTATIVES OF THE GOVERNMENTS OF THE MEMBER STATES, MEETING WITHIN THE COUNCIL,

TAKING NOTE OF:

1. The resolution of the Council and of the Representatives of the Governments of the Member States meeting within the Council, of 21 May 2014, on the European Union Work Plan for Sport (2014-2017) of which one of the three main priorities is the integrity of sport;

2. The principles of good governance in sport delivered by the Expert Group on Good Governance in 2013 and the guiding principles relating to democracy, human rights and labour rights, in particular in the context of the awarding procedure for major sport events, delivered by this expert group in January 2016 (1);

3. The recommendations on major sport events, in particular on legacy aspects with a focus on social, economic and environmental sustainability, delivered by the Expert Group on the Economic Dimension of Sport in January 2016 (2);

4. Global initiatives (3) including initiatives of the international sport movement such as the Olympic Agenda 2020 adopted by the International Olympic Committee during its 127th session held on 12 December 2014, incorporating recommendations devoting significant attention to integrity issues and making sustainable development an integral part of major sport events including the Olympic Games (4);

STRESSING THAT:

5. Major sport events (5) are attractive opportunities to celebrate the performance, values and benefits of sport in a national and international context. Major sport events can be a positive showpiece for sport attracting huge attention among sportspeople, stakeholders and the general public with the potential to inspire adults and children to participate in sport;

6. Major sport events can play an important role in the development of the region or city and garner a great deal in terms of economic, social and environmental impact, if this is carefully planned from the earliest possible stage. The legacy and sustainability of major sport events may have significance both for the legitimacy of and support for major sport events;

7. In the context of major sport events relevant integrity and governance issues are raised such as democratic and transparent decision making, accountability, sustainable development and positive legacy, human rights, including children's rights and workers' rights and gender equality as well as the prevention of all forms of discrimination, and of the threats to the integrity of sport, such as doping, match-fixing and violence;

8. Due to the attention major sport events attract and the high financial and economic stakes involved, they are vulnerable to processes which can taint the integrity of sport – thus making major sport events not only a platform, but a notable test case for integrity, transparency and good governance including sustainability and legacy;

AWARE OF:

9. The challenges faced by sport organisations, public authorities on a national, regional and local level, companies, media and other partners to make provisions and facilities sustainable and making proper arrangements for a major sport event in all its phases (feasibility, bidding, preparation, organisation, evaluation, legacy);

10. In some cases limited transparency in the procedures and processes of decision making during all phases of major sport events both by the awarding and bidding entities; and the limited implementation of the principles of good governance among international sport federations;

11. The financial, technical, political and legislative requirements and associated costs (6) for major sport events as well as increasingly competitive bids, and possibly ‘overbidding’ leading to a corresponding escalation of hosting costs, thereby often excluding smaller EU countries and cities from the bidding for and hosting of such events;

12. The withdrawal of a number of candidate cities and countries from the organisation of major sport events in the EU, the decreasing share of major sport events held in the EU and the decreasing level of support by European citizens for hosting these sport events (7);

13. The increased interest of EU countries and sport federations in jointly hosting some major sport events across multiple countries, regions and cities;

UNDERLINING:

14. The role of national, regional and local public authorities involved in major sport events, for example in financing, infrastructure, environmental protection, safety and security, as well as planning and ensuring the sustainability and legacy of major sport events;

15. Sport organisations are expected to manage their sports in accordance with the basic and recognised principles of good governance, such as transparency, democratic processes, checks and balances and solidarity, given the essentially self-regulated organisation of sport;

16. The importance of strengthened and continuous dialogue and cooperation between public authorities and sport organisations, supported by an appropriate dialogue between the EU and the international sports movement, leading to shared values regarding integrity, transparency and good governance and sustainable development as well as to joint agreements and arrangements taking into account each other's responsibilities and interests;

ACCORDINGLY INVITE THE MEMBER STATES,

TAKING INTO ACCOUNT THE PRINCIPLE OF SUBSIDIARITY, TO:

17. Promote and implement integrity, transparency and good governance in major sport events, during all phases of the event (feasibility, bidding, preparation, organisation, evaluation, legacy) including the period after the closure of the event, addressing all stakeholders involved as partners in the event, by initiatives such as: a) Guaranteeing the use of transparent and democratic procedures during all phases of major sport events and require all other partners to do so, with special attention to informing and involving the public, to independent reporting, auditing, evaluation and accountability, and to perform a reliable cost-benefit analysis preceding the decision of the bid; b) Using transparent and relevant criteria for public support of the organisations involved, demanding e.g. the implementation of the basic principles of good governance, and the transparency and democracy of procedures used by these organisations; c) Requesting from all stakeholders involved as partners in major sports event to comply with recognized international standards and participate in initiatives such as UN Global Compact, UN Guiding principles on Business and Human Rights, ISO 26000 and 20121; d) Using transparent and relevant principles as the basis for providing public support of major sport events regarding specific integrity issues such as human rights, including children's rights and workers' rights and gender equality, as well as the prevention of all forms of discrimination and threats to the integrity of sport, such as doping, match-fixing and violence;

18. Ensure a long-term and positive legacy of major sport events as part of good governance, as well as social, economic and environmental sustainability in the context of the urban and regional development in EU Member States;

INVITE THE MEMBER STATES AND THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION WITHIN THEIR RESPECTIVE COMPETENCES TO:

19. Incorporate integrity, transparency, good governance, sustainability and legacy of major sport events in future work on sport at EU level, including facilitating exchange of information and discussions of relevant topics in relation to major sport events;

20. Support the implementation of criteria and procedures related to integrity, transparency and good governance, including sustainability and legacy, of major sport events, where appropriate, based on the existing guidelines and recommendations and in compliance with recognized international declarations and standards, which could be used as reference points by Member States and local authorities for public support of major sport events;

21. Identify and develop models for public-private cooperation and exchange good practices regarding this cooperation, which could be used by Member States and local authorities when entering into partnership agreements for the staging of major sport events with specific attention for sport events that take place in multiple countries, regions and cities;

INVITE THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION TO:

22. Launch a study on hosting major sport events in multiple countries, and regions within the EU, taking into account possible administrative and legislative obstacles at national and European level and the expected impacts of such events;

23. Support transnational projects and, where relevant, independent research on the integrity, transparency and good governance of major sport events including sustainability and legacy aspects, in the framework of EU funding programmes such as Erasmus+ and Horizon 2020;

24. Encourage sharing and publishing of good practices and learning experiences and facilitate the transfer of knowledge between the EU Member States and the sport movement about the integrity, transparency and good governance of major sport events, including sustainability and legacy aspects as well as support and encourage the identification, and, if necessary, the development of methods and tools, including: a. reliable cost-benefit analyses; b. measuring the support of the population; c. measuring the social, economic and environmental impacts and legacies of major sport events; d. external and independent evaluation of major sport events;

25. Develop a light monitoring system, such as pledge board or by use of the UN Global Compact, to measure progress towards integrity, transparency and good governance for hosting organisations of major sport events in EU Member States;

INVITE THE INTERNATIONAL SPORT MOVEMENT, TAKING INTO ACCOUNT THE AUTONOMY OF SPORT, TO CONSIDER TO:

26. Continue to organise accessible and attractive major sport events that are a showpiece for the positive values of sport and the role of sport in society and the promotion of social cohesion;

27. Encourage the implementation of the basic principles of good governance leading to transparency, democratic processes, checks and balances and solidarity regarding the organisation of major sport events and to comply with recognized international standards and participate in initiatives such as the UN Global Compact, the UN Guiding principles on Business and Human Rights and ISO 26000 and 20121;

28. Promote, implement and monitor integrity, transparency and good governance in major sport events, during the different phases of the event including feasibility, bidding, preparation, organisation, evaluation and legacy, and address all stakeholders involved as partners in the event;

29. Employ transparent and democratic procedures during all phases of major sport events and require all other partners to do so, with special attention to informing and involving the national, regional and local sport organisations, the general public and to independent reporting, auditing, evaluation and accountability;

30. Develop and publish a catalogue of realistic requirements in the bidding phase of major sport events including transparent selection procedures and relevant selection criteria for the awarding of major sport events, regarding specific integrity issues such as human rights, including children's rights and workers' rights and gender equality, as well as the prevention of all forms of discrimination, and threats to the integrity of sport such as doping, match-fixing and violence;

31. Actively promote social, economic and environmental sustainability and a long-term and positive legacy of major sport events as part of good governance, in the requirements of the contract with the hosting organisation and the monitoring of the event (8);

INVITE THE MEMBER STATES, THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION AND THE INTERNATIONAL SPORT MOVEMENT WITHIN THEIR RESPECTIVE COMPETENCES TO:

32. Continue and intensify dialogue between Member States, the European Commission and the sport movement about integrity, transparency and good governance including sustainability and legacy of major sport events;

33. Agree on a shared agenda, starting in the first instance with the Olympic Movement and the responsible international football organisations, and with the aim to expand to other international sport federations, to improve integrity, good governance and transparency during all phases of major sport events, and addressing all stakeholders involved in the partnership needed to organise these events, thus also activating the positive potential and sustainability and legacy of major events and regaining the trust of EU citizens;

34. Undertake common actions such as: a) developing guiding models for public-private cooperation to be used in the organisation of major sport events at national level; b) developing a code of conduct for all public and private parties involved in hosting organisations of major sport events, where appropriate; c) exchanging information and discuss topics regarding future major sport events such as the sustainability and legacy, criteria related to integrity and good governance, specific demands of associations and associated costs, possible administrative and legislative obstacles at European level and a safe and secure environment for events; d) making use of existing models and, where appropriate, developing new models of joint multi-country major sport events; e) encouraging event organizers to conduct a survey of the social, economic and environmental impact of the event to the hosting country, region or city after the closure of the event;

35. Organise a regular high-level dialogue as part of the EU structured dialogue on sport (9), with governmental representatives, representatives of the European and international Olympic movement and European and international sport federations involved in major sport events, and independent experts, where appropriate. Based on a shared agenda and actions, such as mentioned in paragraph 34, the topics regarding major sport events, where governments and sport organisations share responsibilities, and exchange information, could be discussed.

(1) Doc. 14183/13 and Expert Group on Good Governance (XG GG) - Guiding Principles relating to democracy, human rights and labour rights, in particular in the context of the awarding procedure of major sport events, final document 13 January 2016.

(2) Expert Group on the Economic Dimension of Sport (XG ECO) - Recommendations on major sport events, in particular on legacy aspects with a focus on social, economic and environmental sustainability. (The Report of XG ECO).

(3) E.g. the Declaration of Berlin adopted by the 5th International Conference of Ministers and Senior Officials responsible for Physical Education and Sport (MINEPS V) 28-30 May 2013.

(4) International Olympic Committee (2014): Olympic Agenda 2020, 20 + 20 recommendations.

(5) The EU Expert Group on the Economic Dimension of Sport defines a ‘major sporting event’ as an event organised by one or several host countries, regions or cities and attended by different international delegations with the aim of practising one or several sports. Such events are often characterised by major and logistical challenges. Major sport events have a high international media profile, welcome several thousands of people, including supporters, journalists, technical teams and officials, and are often organised over several consecutive days.

(6) E.g. operational costs and infrastructural costs related to event, transport and accommodation, safety and security costs.

(7) Hover, P. et al. (2016): Integrity and sport events, position paper. Utrecht: Mulier Instituut (March 2016).

(8) The Report of the XG ECO, in particular recommendations 1 to 7 and 21.

(9) OJ C 322, 27.11.2010.