The biggest matches may soon all be free  We may soon all be able to watch the football World Cup and European Championships for free, without having to pay for satellite broadcasts or go to the pub for the same reason.

In a landmark ruling, the European General Court (EGC) has declared that EU member states can designate these events as ‘events of major importance’ under the EU (which directive), which would prevent exclusive television rights to these events. The case came about as a result of football’s governing bodies FIFA and UEFA challenging the right of the UK and Belgium to show these events on free terrestrial TV.

This ruling could open the floodgates to a number of major sporting events being treated in the same way. The issue is likely to go on, however – with the amount of money involved in staging these events, it is unlikely that UEFA and FIFA will leave it at that. The ultimate appeal lies with the European Court of Human Rights, however, some experts believe that such an appeal is unlikely to be successful.

Other events that are treated as protected in the same way in Britain include the Olympics, Wimbledon, The Grand National and Derby horse races.

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