Overview

• The European Court of Justice held that courts in EU member states may now examine CAS arbitration decisions for alignment with the bloc’s public policy standards.
• This shift overcomes the CAS’s near-final authority by extending review beyond the Swiss Federal Court’s limited procedural oversight.
• CAS leadership affirmed it will continue applying EU law where required while preserving its role as a timely global arbitration forum.
• Belgian club RFC Seraing is set to resume its decade-long challenge against FIFA’s ban on third-party ownership in domestic courts.
• Legal experts say the decision strengthens the rights of athletes and clubs and recalibrates the balance between supranational arbitration and national judicial control.