PORTUGAL Trends and Developments Contributed by: Miguel Santos Almeida, Maria Novo Baptista, João Saúde and Julieta Ricciardi, Sérvulo & Associados
Sérvulo & Associados Rua Garrett, No 64 200-204 Lisboa Portugal Tel: +351 210 933 000 Fax: +351 210 933 001/2 Email: geral@servulo.com Web: www.servulo.com/en/
In 2025, the most visible trends and developments involving the sports market in Portugal concern sports integrity, women sports, esports and commercialisa - tion of sports events. Alongside developments on a national level, 2025 was marked by the creation of the Dutch foundation “Justice for Players” following the polemic decision of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in the Diarra case, which could potentially cause an earthquake in European football. Comprehensive Evaluation of the Portuguese Sports Legal Framework 2025 started with the announcement from the Por - tuguese government that it would initiate a review of the entire sports legal regime, with particular attention being paid to conformity with European Union (EU) law. This exercise reflects concerns about constitu - tional compatibility and alignment with EU standards. The evaluation is expected to result in substantial revi - sions to the legal framework governing sports fed - erations, public oversight and the balance between The announcement referred to above was preceded by a decision rendered by the Tribunal Arbitral do Desporto (TAD) that declared the unconstitutional - ity of one provision of the sports federation statutory framework (Article 62 (2) of the Legal Framework of Sports Federations (RJFD)). national regulation and EU law. Sports Federations Framework Specifically, the TAD was called to review the valid - ity of the decision of the Portuguese Automobile and Karting Federation (FPAK) to not award the title of national champion to the driver Kris Meeke, of Irish nationality. Despite having obtained the highest num -
ber of points throughout the Portuguese Rally Cham - pionship, the title was not awarded to Kris Meeke on the grounds that the conditions for the recognition of titles set out in the aforementioned provision were not fulfilled. This is because, under national legislation, two cumulative conditions must be established for the awarding of national or regional titles in individual sports disciplines organised by, or under the authority of, sports federations: • that the competitions are contested by clubs or sports companies headquartered in national terri - tory; and • that the athlete is a national citizen. The TAD decided to order the awarding of the national champion title to the athlete Kris Meeke, stating that the decision adopted by the FPAK was discrimina - tory and unconstitutional, as it violated the principle of equality between Portuguese citizens and foreign citizens enshrined in the Portuguese Constitution. The Public Prosecutor’s Office lodged an appeal against this decision before the Constitutional Court, which, in November 2025, dismissed the appeal on the grounds that it would be devoid of purpose, since the TAD’s decision was already grounded in EU law – thereby confirming Kris Meeke as the 2024 Portu - guese Rally Champion. Although the case has now been concluded, this is not the first instance in which the aforementioned provision has been declared unconstitutional, leading to the annulment of federa - tion decisions adopted in accordance with that provi - sion.
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