Episode 8: The Court of Justice
How one footballer changed European football
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In 1990, Belgian footballer Jean-Marc Bosman wanted to move to a club in France. His contract had run out, but his club still demanded a transfer fee. The move fell through. Bosman went to court, and in the end, his case changed football across Europe.
In 1995, the European Court of Justice ruled: once your contract is over, you can move to a club in another EU country without a transfer fee. And clubs can't limit the number of players from other EU countries. The reason: in the EU, you can work wherever you want. That includes footballers.
The Court of Justice of the EU is based in Luxembourg. The Court of Justice itself has 27 judges, one per country. On top of that, the General Court has 54 judges for many other cases. Their job: making sure EU law is interpreted the same way everywhere.
By the way, Bosman didn't sue in Luxembourg, but in a Belgian court. And that court asked the European Court of Justice: how should EU law be understood here? That's how most cases reach Luxembourg. And all courts in the EU then follow the answer.
What's important: EU law takes precedence. If a national law contradicts EU law, it isn't applied on that point. The Court made that clear back in 1964.
The Court also checks the countries: the Commission can take them to court, and in the end, they may have to pay fines. And it checks the EU itself. In 2014, for example, it struck down an EU law that required everyone's phone and internet data to be stored for months.
And please don't mix it up: the European Court of Human Rights is in Strasbourg and belongs to the Council of Europe. Yes, that one.
Remember: the Court in Luxembourg makes sure EU law applies equally everywhere, to countries, companies, the EU itself, and to you.
And who pays for all this? How much money does the EU actually have, and what does it spend it on? We'll find out in episode nine.
Episode 9: The EU's money
Where it comes from, where it goes and who decides
A semester abroad, a cycle path in the village, money for a farm: often there is a sign with the EU flag. But where does the EU get its money?
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