FIFPRO Europe Meets EU Commission to Defend Football Player Employment Rights

FIFPRO Europe, the European division of the world players' union for professional footballers, held a high-level meeting in late March 2026 with the Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion of the European Commission. The meeting was also attended by representatives from the Directorate-General for Education, Youth, Sport and Culture.

The meeting addressed concerns over activities that seek to undermine freedom of association and legitimate player representation — a matter described by both delegations as one of serious concern under EU law, International Labour Organization conventions and the principles of the European Pillar of Social Rights. Both sides committed to address activities that enhance the European Sectoral Social Dialogue and agreed to promote social dialogue and social partner agreements as the appropriate framework for addressing employment conditions in professional football.

The European Sectoral Social Dialogue Committee for Professional Football, chaired by UEFA, was highlighted as having made strong progress under its current workplan. Participants also referenced recent ILO sectoral guidelines on sport, which reinforce the right to organise and the centrality of collective bargaining in the sector, with occupational health and safety identified as a priority area.

Spyros Neofytides, Vice President of FIFPRO Europe, and Joachim Walltin, Secretary General, led the federation's delegation. The meeting reaffirmed the importance of the social dialogue framework as a cornerstone of labour relations in professional football, the largest employment market for professional footballers in the world.