Brussels – On Tuesday, the European Commission affirmed the right of sports and cultural federations to determine “without undue discrimination” who can participate in their events, explicitly ruling out any initiatives aimed at boycotting Israeli entities in international competitions, as suggested by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez on Monday.
“We uphold the authority of sports federations and cultural organizations to establish participant criteria,” stated community spokesperson for Culture and Sports, Eva Hrncirova, highlighting that such decisions should be based on “objective and transparent criteria” and executed “without undue discrimination.”
The spokesperson clarified that the community executive “will not take any initiative” regarding Sánchez‘s proposal to contemplate a potential veto of Israeli teams in international events, as “the federations are responsible for making these decisions.”
She also emphasized Brussels’ commitment to “inclusion” in sports and cultural activities, asserting that “European values must always be upheld in both cultural and sports sectors.”
European sources cited by Europa Press note that the competencies in sports and culture reside with the member states, meaning the Commission lacks the authority to advocate for legislative changes or interfere in individual countries’ rights to do so.
The role of European institutions, they stress, is to “support, coordinate or complement” national actions, as the “autonomy” of federations is a key aspect of the European sports framework.
Condemnation over cancellation of concert by Israeli orchestra conductor
While the Commission has not yet addressed the suspension of the final stage of the Vuelta a España following pro-Palestinian protests against the Israeli government’s actions in Gaza, it has condemned the cancellation of a concert by the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra at a festival in Ghent, Belgium, because the conductor, Israeli Lahav Shani, has not publicly condemned the situation.
“Cancelling an artist’s performance solely based on their nationality or religious beliefs is a mistake,” cautioned Commissioner for Culture and Sports Glenn Micallef on social media last Friday upon learning of the Ghent festival’s decision.
Similarly, Commissioner for Home Affairs Magnus Brunner expressed “deep concern” over the cancellation of the concert slated for Thursday in Ghent and mentioned he had requested the EU Coordinator for the fight against antisemitism to reach out to the relevant authorities and organizers to “prevent this from happening again.” (September 16)
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