EQUAL TREATMENT IN EMPLOYMENT AND OCCUPATION IN PROFESSIONAL SPORTS.

Discrimination in professional sports is a long-standing phenomenon as it concerns international and national governing bodies, sports organisations and players. The focus on discrimination in football is not only due to its tarnishing of the principles and essence of this popular sport, but also its direct confrontation with fundamental values such as integration, equality, dignity, and diversity - all crucial elements of fostering community cohesion. The present paper aims to analyse a court case that centres around statements of a discriminatory nature targeting the sexual orientation of a professional player. After the National Council for Combating Discrimination (CNCD) analysed the case regarding the existence of acts of discrimination that had had as main source statements of a discriminatory nature concerning the sexual orientation of a professional football player, it issued a decision that was the subject of a complaint with the administrative court. The Court of Appeal submitted preliminary questions to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), regarding the application of Articles 2(2)(a), 10(1) and 17 of Council Directive 2000/78/EC establishing a general framework for equal treatment in employment and occupation. The judgement of the court not only addresses the specific acts of discrimination aimed at a professional football player but also serves as a landmark moment in the ongoing battle for equal treatment in employment, regardless of one's sexual orientation. This situation also offered the opportunity to transpose the EU law in the national legislation and properly apply it to build a true Union of equality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]