ITALY Law and Practice Contributed by: Maurizio Marullo, Giorgio Vagnoni, Francesco Amoresano and Fausto Consolo, LAWP Studio legale e tributario
3.2 Liability Organisers’ Duty of Care
tions to leagues or federations to sell the event broadcasting rights, etc). In professional matches, the home team has the right to control spectator admission through ticketing and/or dedicated invitation. By pur - chasing tickets, spectators automatically accept the stadium regulations, the rules issued by the federations, leagues and public security authori - ties, and any additional measures regarding the event. Sports event organisers must request all neces - sary authorisations from the competent author - ity for public entertainment and obtain from the territorially competent police force a public entertainment licence to allow the sale of tick - ets. Failure to comply can result in penalties for the organisers or even the venue being deemed unusable for future matches. Taking football as an example, FIGC outlines specific minimum requirements in its National Licensing Systems Annex. These requirements vary based on competition importance and cov - er aspects like: • minimum number of seats; • pitch conditions and maintenance; • lighting system; • locker rooms; • disabled facilities; and • broadcasting areas. Further, organisers must also comply with the relevant federation rules regarding technical equipment suitability, athlete well-being, and the safety of all event participants.
Event organisers have a responsibility to ensure a safe environment for everyone involved. This includes verifying the venue’s suitability for each event and implementing appropriate safety measures to prevent harm to attendees, ath - letes, and third parties. If they fail to uphold these duties, organisers may be held liable for breach of contract towards ticket holders (Article 1228 of the Italian Civil Code) and under tort provisions (Article 2043 of the Italian Civil Code) for damages suffered by the attendees and their belongings during the event, triggering indemnification obligations. In addition, organisers may be held liable as cus - todians of the venue (Article 2051 of the Italian Civil Code) and, on the occasion of major sports events, they share the same liability provided for those who carry out dangerous activities (Article 2050 of the Italian Civil Code). The burden of proving exemption from liability is particularly steep, as organisers need to: • prove the occurrence of a force majeure event; or • have taken all the necessary measures to avoid damages. Athletes are rarely held liable towards specta - tors, unless their actions fall outside the reason - ably foreseeable risk deriving from sports activi - ties or unless they deliberately intend to cause harm to a spectator. With reference to organisers’ limitation of liability, it is common to find on tickets or regulations accepted by spectators when purchasing tick - ets limitation of liability clauses establishing that
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