Debate: EU sports policy: assessment and possible ways forward
Date: MONDAY, 22 NOVEMBER 2021
Speaker: Margaritis Schinas
Language: EN

Honourable Members, as we speak, young and old Europeans run after a ball. They play, they train, they exercise all over Europe in villages, small towns, urban centres. The role of sport is inextricably linked to our way of life, to our model of society, and today I would like to highlight three broad issues that should be at the heart of EU policies when it comes to sport.  First, sport equals health. Physical activity equals somatic and mental health. Healthy lifestyles equal healthier ageing and mean a happy life. We are determined to continue building up EU-wide initiatives across the policy spectrum of our competences to make this a reality. A European Week of Sport, the HealthyLifestyle4All campaign, from the farm to fork strategy, the EU Beating Cancer Action Plan, are all sports-related, tools and initiatives that we shall pursue with vigour at European level.  Secondly, sport in Europe is not only about healthier lives. It has the great power to simultaneously build strong, cohesive communities, transcending social barriers, bridging inequalities, leaving nobody behind. Sport matters a lot to the Union of equality that we are bringing about without any kind of discrimination, stereotypes – racial, ethnic, religious, disability or sexual orientation. Sport means integration and inclusion, and we shall mobilise all available tools and resources to maintain and reinforce this link, both with our new reinforced Erasmus+ programme, the BeInclusive EU Sport Awards and the RRF Funds, we will continue to commit to preserve our values through sport. Similarly, we are determined as Europeans to continue fighting the scourges of doping, corruption and match-fixing that threaten sport and discredit it in the eyes of society.  Thirdly, and probably most importantly of all, it is essential to work together – institutions, Member States, sport movements and associations – to protect and promote the European model of sport, a model which is open, which rewards sporting merit, which prioritises solidarity and sustainability, not profit and power, a model that serves social cohesion and societal objectives, a model for everyone, not for closed élites. European football is one of the leading success stories of this model, and now we know from the unanimous European defiant reaction to the breakaway attempt for a closed European Super League that we enjoy total support for this model, not only for fans and citizens, but also politicians, governments, institutions across the European Union, and like the millions of citizens and fans that rose up to protect the game this year, we and the Commission are committed to protecting the European sports model as we know it and as we like it.  Let me conclude with a personal memory. When I was 14 years old, I had the chance to watch my humble team Aris Thessaloniki play Saint-Étienne with their mighty stars, and a few years later we also had the chance to play Manchester City, and even win against Atlético de Madrid in Madrid. This is because we grew up in a model where everyone has a chance on a meritocratic, open and competitive system that links the national championships and provides opportunity for all. This is the model that we can use so that our children and grandchildren aspire to the same values and to the same experiences.