FIFA – UEFA informed G. Vroutsis that the penalties of the DEAB constitute interference in self-government and threatened with sanctions
With Law 5085/2024, penalties can be imposed on professional football teams for the delinquent behavior of their fans and by the Permanent Committee for Combating Violence (DEAB). DEAB is a committee of the General Secretariat of Sports and therefore its decisions encroach on the football self-government. This was the main reason why a FIFA-UEFA delegation was in Athens a few days ago and met with the Deputy Minister of Sports Yannis Vroutsis. The meeting was also attended by representatives of the EPO and the Super League, who before the passing of the sports law had informed/warned G. Vroutsis that the provisions concerning the operation of the DEAB would cause intervention by the supranational authorities. What emerges from the report is that the FIFA-UEFA envoys have clearly told the Sports Minister that if the GFA committee (DEAB) continues to impose penalties on teams, then there will be sanctions on Greek football that may go as far as Grexit.
The self-administered strainer
The world and European football confederations are aware of the problems plaguing the Super League 1 championship and believe that relevant provisions in the EPO’s disciplinary regulations should be tightened. The provisions of Law 5085/2024 are particularly strict, as proved in the punishment of PAOK for a firecracker that fell in the derby with Olympiacos, however FIFA and UEFA cannot accept that the “two-headed of the north” was punished by a committee appointed by the government.
“Fans cause incidents and teams are not given heavy penalties. The federation has failed in this area,” Mr. Vroutsis said in a free translation to the officials of the supranational authorities, who for their part said that “there is indeed a problem in Greek football in terms of the issue of violence. However, the penalties must be imposed by the football governing bodies and not by a committee of the Ministry of Sports. We have to keep some balance on the world football map”. What did they mean by that? If FIFA – UEFA let the DAEB punish the teams, then in a few months a corresponding committee will “sprout” e.g. in Hungary and the self-government of football will become a strainer.
“According to FIFA’s statutes the only penalties it recognizes for teams are those imposed by each country’s national federation. If a team is penalized by a body that does not belong to the federation, FIFA will punish the federation, expel it, as it recently did with India” the president had said in his speech to the Committee on Education Affairs of the House during the discussion of the disputed provisions of EPO Takis Baltakos, while the president of the league Minas Lysandrou had added: “The authority of the DEAB to impose sanctions is problematic. We have football’s governing bodies which have exclusive jurisdiction to impose disciplinary sanctions and we believe and insist that this should end there. We do not consider the orientation of the punishment of PAEs by an administrative body to be correct”.
He put them on hold
Then the Minister of Sports pretended that he did not listen, but he cannot maintain the same attitude towards FIFA and UEFA. G. Vroutsis hastened to close the discussion with the foreign envoys, who asked him for a commitment on when the provision for the CAA concerning football teams will be “deactivated”. The minister replied that it is a matter for the government, which is expected to inform the international federations about what it will do. A solution to prevent the case from reaching extremes would be for the EPO’s Disciplinary Code to adopt the penalties referred to in Law 5085/2024 and for these to be imposed by its jurisdictional bodies.
Read also: Football prosecutor: He launched a new prosecution against Alexis Kouya
Betting ring: Criminal prosecutions of 30 persons
Greek football: Full… of the setup
#Football #again.. #Grexit #corner
