AGCM

The Federazione Italiana Giuoco Calcio abused its dominant position in the market for the organisation of competitive youth football competitions in order to exclude the Sports Promotion Bodies (Enti di Promozione Sportiva) and restrict their activity in the area of amateur football competitions

The Competition Authority fined the Federazione Italiana Giuoco Calcio (FIGC) a total amount of more than EUR 4 million (EUR 4,203,447.54).

The Authority has in fact ascertained that the FIGC has adopted, at least since 1 July 2015, a complex strategy of exclusions to strengthen its dominant position in the organisation of competitive youth football competitions and to extend it also to the amateur-football market, in which it operates in competition with the Enti di Promozione Sportiva (EPS).

The abusive strategy was employed first and foremost through the FIGC’s failure to conclude the agreements required by the Coni EPS Regulations (2014) for the conduct of competitive activities. This allowed the FIGC to preclude the EPS from accessing the market for the organisation of competitive events, thus guaranteeing itself a substantial monopoly position.

Secondly, the FIGC used its regulatory power in an instrumental manner, illegitimately considering as competitive the amateur activities carried out by the EPS with athletes between 12 and 17 years of age. In addition, it also imposed for athletes up to 12 years of age (by definition not included in competitive activities) the agreement between the FIGC and the EPS and the pre-authorisation of the event, thus limiting the freedom of Amateur Sports Associations affiliated to the FIGC and their athletes with dual membership to participate in tournaments organised by the EPS. This has reduced the ability of the EPS to exert sufficient competitive pressure on the FIGC, hindering and/or weakening competition in the market for the organisation of recreational events.

Rome, 1 July 2024