He called for a federal law to amend the "inverted pyramid"
Dirar Belhoul: Sports dinosaurs should be retired ... 40 years is enough
The Football Association should apply the fair play rule applied in Europe between clubs. Emirates today
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The vice president of the Emirates Sports Arbitration Center, Dirar Belhoul, called for issuing a federal law to regulate sports in the UAE, and to amend the "inverted pyramid", to move forward in extricating Emirati sports from the situation in it. Because of the failure in 40 years of the Emirati sport, stressing that they will fail again if they are relied upon in the coming years.
The Emirates Center for Sports Arbitration had approved the nomination of Dirar Belhoul as Vice President of the Center, while continuing to carry out the work of the Acting Supervisor of the Executive Work Sector until the organizational structure was approved and an executive director and an assistant team were appointed to carry out the tasks, and the text of the dialogue with 'Emirates Today' follows.
■ With the approaching elections for sports federations, how do you see the reliance on the list system and the voting weight?
■■ At the outset we must agree that the voting weight does not contradict the provisions of the International Olympic Charter, and does not violate the international rules of sports federations, according to the following reasons:
1- The voting weight depends on the classification according to specific sports dimensions, economic fundamentals and aspects related to the mathematical practice rule.
2- The classification processes related to voting in the meetings of the general assemblies of sports federations to this day are divided into active members who have the right to vote and support members who do not have the right to vote, in accordance with the provisions of the executive regulations for sports federations issued by the General Authority for Sport in 2014.
3- There is a big difference between “classification” and “discrimination,” discrimination violates the Olympic Charter, which is based on discrimination according to “gender, race, religion, sect or region.”
4- The voting weight is related to the classification processes of clubs or sports federations that are related to criteria approved by the general assemblies. For example, FIFA has classified clubs into professional and amateur, professional clubs do not obtain a professional license, unless they achieve five main criteria related to the «financial aspects. Economic, administrative, youth and youth, sports facilities, or to be more precise the standards of a sports stadium ».
5- All international sports organizations, including the International Olympic Committee and the International Sports Court, approve the system of those who have the right to vote and those who do not have the right to vote, which confirms that the General Assembly of Sports Federations may decide that there are standards that represent the voting weights of sports clubs.
What about the electoral list?
■■ With regard to the issue of the electoral list, this opinion is indeed correct, as it is preferred that the electoral system be in accordance with the electoral seats and the number of those seats that make up the Sports Federation’s board of directors, as this system represents the following advantages:
1- It enhances the screening of a large number of sports cadres.
2- Encouraging the assumption of sports positions, especially among the youth.
3- Expanding the base of electoral participation.
4- Giving freedom to all members of society to run in the sports elections.
5- Compatibility with election systems in international sports federations.
It is certain that the blessing of His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, President of the National Olympic Committee, for the idea of postponing the elections of the National Olympic Committee is one of the very important aspects that allows arranging the internal sports house in a manner that allows the formulation of basic regulations that are in line with international rules and the provisions of the Olympic Charter and national sovereignty. And it was preceded by the formation of His Highness the Emirates Center for Sports Arbitration, which is a step that confirms the UAE sport’s approach to walking in accordance with international trends by having an independent and impartial body to settle sports disputes.
■ How do you demand approval of the voting weight with a big difference in the financial capabilities between clubs?
■■ All clubs and sports federations should work to increase their financing capabilities and increase investment, and to put in place strategic plans that guarantee increased cash flows, especially in light of the largest financial budget allocated to the Emirates Football Association, which is approximately 56 million dirhams, and approximately 45 million dirhams distributed to the rest of the national sports federations.
This takes us to a very important issue, which is the need for the Emirates Football Association to implement the law or rules for fair financial play that is applied in Europe, whose basic philosophy is that the club does not obtain a license to participate in European leagues or impose penalties on them such as not registering players Renew if his expenses exceed his income.
This law promotes the idea of increasing the clubs' ability to market and establish professional administrations, and attracting competencies that can increase the club's financing capabilities and enhance the marketing operations within it, in a way that reduces the club or association's dependence on the idea of government support, and there are many examples in this regard, as all professional club associations and football associations Associated with it in the world, especially the 10 major leagues, do not receive government support, such as the English, French, German and Italian leagues. And if there is any objection to any decision of a general assembly of a federation or its board of directors by any governmental or civil body, it must resort to the Emirates Center for Sports Arbitration to settle this dispute, "This is the professional sports administration, and this is the sports administration in the world."
■ How is this achieved when members of clubs and federations boards of directors are not full-time?
■■ This is achieved by:
1- Firstly, members of the boards of directors of sports federations receive money for the sessions and meetings of the boards of directors of the sports federations, which imposes on them the necessity to give time for the work of the national sports federations.
2- To establish sports marketing departments and to attract national competencies with skills in marketing operations and financing capabilities, working in return for financial ratios from sponsorship and sports marketing contracts.
Did the existence of more than one responsible sports institution cause the UAE sports crisis? In other words, who is responsible for whom?
■■ Like it or not, the clubs represent the general assembly of the national sports federations. It is the one that monitors the activities of the federation. It is the one that can withdraw confidence from its members. This is not a national system, but a global system, and that is the administration of sports organizations. The other matter to solve the dilemma of the existence of sports councils, the Authority and the National Olympic Committee, there must be a law for sports in the Emirates "a federal law" that governs and coordinates the relationship between all sporting bodies in the country, given that sport has a unified structure, the pyramid is the base of clubs, and sports federations in the middle, Its summit is the National Olympic Committee in terms of technical aspects, and the General Sports Authority in terms of financial aspects and control over them, then the Emirates Center for Sports Arbitration comes to separate any of those bodies.
■ Who is responsible for these crises?
■■ Because of personal conflicts and settling scores, and do not forget that the "sport dinosaurs" are the ones who control them. They have failed for the past 40 years and will fail. And it's time to give others a chance.
■ How do we get rid of this crisis? Who can fulfill your request?
■■ Paying attention to the second and third grades, giving young people the opportunity, and referring dinosaurs to retirement, and whoever does that is one who has moral courage and fear for the nation’s interest before the personal interest.
How do you see the right situation for Emirati sports?
■■ The restructuring of sports must take place in the country in that the General Authority for Sports has one president without a board of directors, for easy decision-making sports, or it is an independent ministry in sports, as is the case in all countries of the world, and the absence of a board to manage the body It prevents conflicts of interest between all sports bodies and guides financial expenditures for the benefit of the national sports federations with limited income, and it is possible that there is one president of the National Olympic Committee and the General Authority, and there is the Saudi model associated with this matter, which also helps in the ease of making sports decisions, and moving forward towards operations National Sports Stability.
■ Are you with naturalization? How do you see the work of the clubs?
■■ Naturalization is an inevitable evil, and unfortunately clubs are not interested in academies and building a generation of players, who can save millions in the future, because boards of directors receive support from governments, and are looking for the easy without getting tired and without planning for the club’s future.
The Football Association’s financial budget is approximately 56 million dirhams, compared to 45 million dirhams distributed among the rest of the federations.
Personal conflicts and settling scores are the cause of the current crisis.
Members of the boards of directors of sports federations are forced to develop in return for the sums they receive.
Naturalization is an inevitable evil, and unfortunately clubs do not care about academies because of their dependence on government support.
Clubs are not interested in building a generation of players and saving millions, because boards of directors receive support from governments.