On 1 May 2015, FIFA banned the practice of third-party ownership (TPO). Since then, the Belgian club RFC Seraing and investment fund Doyen Sports have opposed FIFA and UEFA, amongst other football stakeholders, on the legality of this ban. FC Seraing, which was sanctioned by FIFA in September 2015 for this practice, contested said decision in the civil courts of Belgium, after a passage before the CAS, which considered that FIFA’s rule regarding TPO was valid. TPO and TPI are forbidden according to Articles 18bis
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16
Dec
2019
Football Stakeholders Welcome Brussels Court of Appeal Ruling on TPO
On 12 December 2019, the Brussels Court of Appeal handed down a decision dismissing Doyen Sports Investments (Doyen) and Belgian side FC Seraing’s appeal, which requested FIFA’s Third-Party Ownership (TPO) and Third-Party Influence (TPI) rules to be declared illegal. Both FIFA and UEFA praised this decision.