1. Good governance in international sports organisations
drs. Arnout Geeraert
dr. Michael Groll

2. AGGIS – Action for Good Governance in International Sports Organisations
Project funded by European Commission’s Sport Unit
Project co-ordination
Project partners

3. AGGIS – Action for Good Governance in International Sports Organisations
Tool for assessing good governance in international sports organisations
Academic work on transparency, accountability, compliance, monitoring, democratic procedures...
Presentation of the project: Brussels, 8 April 2013
More information:

4. Good governance Current global quest for so-called “good governance”
Is about the quality of governance. In essence prescriptive.
Checklists of factors that are indicators of good governance by International institutions
UN Development Programme; European Commission; OECD; World Bank; IMF
Checklists include key concepts
Accountability, efficiency, effectiveness, predictability, sound financial management, fighting corruption and transparency
When referring to the political area: participation and democratisation

5. Good governance checklists for
Public governance
End of the cold war: questioning of the quality of political and economic governance systems of countries in international fora
Urging of governments to heed higher standards of democratic representation, accountability and transparency
Corporate governance
“corporate governance” or “good corporate governance”
Make private and public held companies accountable to their internal and external stakeholders
Originates from early stages of capital investment and regained prominence out of scepticism that product market competition alone can solve the problems of corporate failures
International organisations and NGOs
More recently: calls for GG in IOs and NGOs

6. What about... Good governance in international sports organisations?
Only recently, calls for better governance in sport
Traditionally: closed, self-governing sporting world
No government interference: Switzerland
Commercialisation of sport
Exposed governance failures such as corruption and bribery
Money in sport attracts cross-border criminals (cf match- fixing, players agents, human trafficking)

7. Why is good governance in sport important?
Economic sustainability
Ensure effectiveness in an increasingly complex environment
Corruption jeopardises important sociocultural values of sport
International sport organisations have huge impact on society

8. Good governance in sport: knowledge gaps
Situated at two levels
What constitutes good governance in INGSOs?
No generally accepted “checklist” of factors
INGSOs are peculiar kind of organisations: existing GG codes cannot blindly be applied
How bad is the situation?
Lack of empirical data on the internal functioning of INGSOs
High-profile scandals tell us that there is something wrong structurally
-> Premise for our paper

9. Paper in the framework of AGGIS project
Good governance in International Non-Governmental Sport Organisations: an analysis based on empirical data on accountability, participation and executive body members in Sport Governing Bodies
Arnout Geeraerta,b,c, Jens Almd,e and Michael Grollf
aHIVA-Research Institute for Work and Society, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium; bInstitute for International and European Policy, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium; cPolicy in Sports & Physical Activity Research Group, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium;
dDanish Institute for Sports Studies/Play the Game, Copenhagen, Denmark; eDepartment of Sport Sciences, Malmö University, Malmö, Sweden;
fInstitute of European Sport Development and Leisure Studies, German Sport University, Cologne, Germany

10. Purpose of the study Gather empirical evidence From 35 organisations
Define structural problems
How bad is the situation?
Incorporate concepts from political science
Interpreting the empirical data
Theory building: what constitutes GG in international sports organisations

11. Quid international sports organisations?
Before we look into the governance of international sport organisations...
Typology needed on international sports organisations!

12. Typology of International Sport Organisations
Background:
- Quite a few expressions:
Global Sports Organisations (GSO)
Sport Governing Bodies (SGB)
International Federations (IF)
International Sport Organisations (ISO)
- Only a few efforts on typologies

13. Examples
Gomez, Opazo & Marti (2008)

14. Hybrid
Governmental
Global
Primary purpose: promotion of participation & specific values/services
Examples: CIFP, CAS, ICSSPE, AIOWF, ASOIF
Primary purpose: managing/organising sport, athletes and events
Examples: FIFA, UCI
Primary purpose: event organising
Examples: IOC, IPC
Primary purpose: regulation
Examples: WADA, ICSSPE
Primary purpose: regulation & utilisation
Examples: UNESCO, WHO
Regional/
Selective
Examples: Confederation Europeanne Santé
Primary purpose: managing/organizing sport, athletes and events
Examples: UEFA, EHF
Examples: Pan American Sports Organisation
Examples: WADA Regional Offices
Examples: EU, Council of Europe
National
Examples:BASES, Youth Sport Trust
Examples: domestic sport federations
Examples: British University Sports Associatiuon
Examples: some national Anti-Doping Organisations
Examples: UK Sport, Sport England

15. Sawyer, Bodey & Judge (2008)

16. Solo Sports Governing Bodies Sport Event Governing Body
Typology of
Global Sport Organisations (GSO)
Team Sports Bodies
Solo Sports Governing Bodies
Sport Event Governing Body
Specialist Bodies
IOC
WADA
FIFA
FIS
IAAF
FIMS
IHF
...
...
ICAS
...
Forster & Pope (2004)

17. International Non-Governmental Sport Organizations (INGSOs)
Typology of
International Non-Governmental Sport Organizations (INGSOs)
Sport Governing Bodies
Sport Event Governing Bodies
Special Task Bodies
Representative Bodies

18. International Non-Governmental Sport Organizations (INGSOs)
Typology of
International Non-Governmental Sport Organizations (INGSOs)
Sport Governing Bodies
Sport Event Governing Bodies
Special Task Bodies
Representative Bodies
Team Sports
Bodies
Solo Sports
Bodies
Bodies of Olympic /Paralympic Events
Bodies of Non-Olympic Events
Governing Relevance
Informational Relevance
Sport Bodies
Stakeholder Bodies

19. International Non-Governmental Sport Organizations (INGSOs)
Typology of
International Non-Governmental Sport Organizations (INGSOs)
Sport Governing Bodies
Sport Event Governing Bodies
Special Task Bodies
Representative Bodies
Team Sports
Bodies
Solo Sports
Bodies
Bodies of Olympic /Paralympic Events
Bodies of Non-Olympic Events
Governing Relevance
Informational Relevance
Sport Bodies
Stakeholder Bodies
FIFA
FIS
IOC
IWGA
WADA*
FIMS
ASOIF
Supporters Direct
IHF
IAAF
IPC
FISU
ICAS
ICSSPE
FIFPro
...
...
...
...
Global Level
...
UEFA
EAA
OCA
EUPEA
EOC
FARE
EHF
UEG
ANOCA
...
EPFL
...
...
...
...
Continental / Regional Level
PGA
CGF
Other
* = Hybrid Organisation

20. AGGIS Research Area Typology of
International Non-Governmental Sport Organizations (INGSOs)
Sport Governing Bodies
Sport Event Governing Bodies
Special Task Bodies
Representative Bodies
Team Sports
Bodies
Solo Sports
Bodies
Body of Olympic Events
Bodies of Non-Olympic Events
Governing Relevance
Informational Relevance
Sport Bodies
Stakeholder Bodies
FIFA
FIS
IOC
IWGA
WADA
FIMS
ASOIF
Supporters Direct
IHF
IAAF
FISU
ICAS
ICSSPE
FIFPro
...
...
...
...
Global Level
...
UEFA
EAA
OCA
EUPEA
EOC
FARE
AGGIS Research Area
EHF
UEG
ANOCA
...
EPFL
...
...
...
...
Continental / Regional Level
PGA
CGF
Other

21. Methodology Focus on 35 Sport Governing Bodies
Explorative set of indicators
Based on academic literature + other GG codes
Lack of publicly available data!
Focus inevitably on available data (e.g. statutes)
Website research
SGBs were not cooperative
Focus on areas perceived as problematic: accountability, stakeholder participation and executive body members in SGBs

22. Accountability What? A Has to explain and justify conduct Actor Forum
Can pose questions and pass judgement B C
Three elements: A, B & C
Accountability arrangements help to make sure 3 elements are present

23. Accountability
Why?
A lack of accountability arrangements constitutes a breeding ground for
Corruption
Concentration of power
Lack of democracy and effectiveness

24. The importance of accountability arrangements
Usually explained in 3 ways:
A democratic means to monitor and control government conduct
(2) To prevent the concentration of power (checks and balances)
(3) It induces the executive branch to learn

25. The importance of accountability
A democratic means to monitor and control government conduct
In parliamentary democracy
In corporate governance
Here, accountability arrangements make sure the actor acts in the interest of the forum (principal – agent relationship) + WATCHDOG FUNCTION of the forum

26. The importance of accountability
A democratic means to monitor and control government conduct
In Sport Governing Bodies
SGB: no shareholders or citizens
Member Federations own the organisation since they have created it!
In principle, executive body of SGB should be accountable to the Member federations!
Member federations have an important watchdog function

27. The importance of accountability
A democratic means to monitor and control government conduct
The problem in Sport Governing Bodies
Often, SGBs make vast sums of mony, which has made them independent from their Member federations
Member federations are partly dependent on the funding they receive from their SGB
Nothing wrong with funding, but risks:
MFs may become benevolent towards or servants to their SGB
Funds can be used to ensure votes, support a certain agenda, ensure the re-election of officers
As such, MFs may become lapdogs instead of watchdogs!

28. The importance of accountability
A democratic means to monitor and control government conduct
To prevent haphazard us of funds: paramount that funds are distributed
Transparently
According to pre-established, objective criteria

29. The importance of accountability
(2) To prevent the concentration of power (checks and balances)
An ethics committee could be called to adjudicate on the behaviour of members of the executive body of the SGB.
Has to explain and justify conduct
SGB Executive body
Ethics committee
Can pose questions and pass judgement

30. The importance of accountability
(2) To prevent the concentration of power (checks and balances)
In order to be an effective accountability mechanism, an ethics committee must be:
Independent from the governing body
Able to perform investigations on its own initiative (ex officio)
without referral by the executive body/ president

31. The importance of accountability
(3) It induces the executive branch to learn
Possibility of punishment in the event of errors and shortcomings motivates the executive body to search for more intelligent ways to run their businesses
Accountability makes sure that executive body reflects on governance failures resulting from their past conduct
Thus, lack of accountability mechanisms prevents the impetus for change in SGBs!

32. Participation
Participation of the governed in their government is, in theory, the cornerstone of democracy.
No participation

34. Participation
More research is needed, because mere consultation offers no assurance that athletes’ concerns and ideas will actually be taken into account
Institutionalised consultation does not equal actual participation, since the latter requires that affected parties have access to decision making and power
Participation will lead to legal certainty
Including stakeholders in decision making process gives them sense of “ownership”
They will come to see the decisions of the SGB as their own decisions
-> less likely to contest these before legal courts

35. Executive body Members
Nationality issues
Anachronistic dominance of European continent
Can decisions be devised in the overall global interest?
NaCaCa: North America, Central America and the Caribbean

36. Executive body Members
Nationality issues
NaCaCa: North America, Central America and the Caribbean

37. Executive body Members
Gender inequality
Overwhelming overrepresentation of male members within SGBs executive bodies
However, 16 SGBs have some form of regulation in place assuring female representation

38. Executive body Members
Tenure issues
In general, term limits constitute a remedy for several tenure issues
High rates of reelection stemming directly from the advantage incumbents enjoy over challengers
Apathetic voters due to the certain reelection of incumbents
Monopolisation of power

40. Conclusion
Paper does not paint a comprehensive picture on governance issues in SGBs
A lot of data left to be uncovered and many research avenues are still to be explored.
In spite of the obvious limitations, the presented empirical evidence clearly supports the recent calls for good governance in sport.
SGBs need to agree upon a set of well-defined criteria of good governance and take action towards compliance with those. Only then, the self-governance of sport will be credible and justifiable.