This will not be a routine election. Nilsson was elected in June 2024 as part of the Executive Committee serving the 2024-2028 term, but left office two years later following a governance crisis that placed him at odds with the rest of its members. The statutes allow an Ordinary or Extraordinary Congress to elect a replacement for the remainder of a term. Unless a different decision is adopted, the winner will hold the presidency until 2028 and become the third president elected by FIB since 2022.

From loss of confidence to resignation

The breakdown became public when the Executive Committee unanimously withdrew its confidence in Nilsson. The dispute began after the president requested the resignation of General Secretary Attila Adamfi and indicated that he intended to dismiss him if he did not step down voluntarily. The Executive Committee described the arguments made against Adamfi as “invalid and unfounded” and maintained that he had acted in accordance with decisions taken by Congress, the committee itself and the statutes. It also questioned Nilsson’s attempts to make unilateral changes to working procedures, communication systems and reporting structures, as well as his effort to appoint a deputy general secretary without the required approval.

To maintain the organisation’s activities, FIB established a Management Commission chaired by Pedersen and also comprising Vice-President Antti Parviainen and Adamfi. Nilsson subsequently resigned with immediate effect on 18 June. FIB formally attributed his departure to differences over the possible integration of teams from Russia and Belarus. The federation clarified that it had not approved their automatic return, but had established a working group to examine the recommendations of the International Olympic Committee -IOC-, consult the relevant stakeholders and submit a proposal to the Executive Committee.

Pedersen returns to the helm

The transition returned control to a figure already familiar with the presidency. Article 28.4 of the statutes states that, in the president’s absence, the first vice-president assumes the office’s powers and duties. Pedersen was unanimously elected president in October 2022 after Russian official Boris Skrynnik left the position he had held since 2006. The Norwegian, a former player and coach who was then president of his national federation, led the initial period of institutional reform until the Congress in Stockholm elected Nilsson in June 2024. Two years later, he returned to lead the organisation, although this time on an interim basis.

Congress represents the national federations and is FIB’s highest decision-making body. Member associations may nominate candidates from within their own structures, provided that they meet the citizenship or residency requirements, hold an active position within a federation or club and satisfy the relevant fit-and-proper criteria. A candidate must obtain an absolute majority of valid votes to be elected in the first ballot. If no candidate reaches that threshold, subsequent rounds will be decided by a simple majority. FIB has not yet opened the nomination process or confirmed whether Pedersen will stand as a candidate.

The agenda awaiting the next president

The next president will inherit an institutional period that began with the statutory reforms adopted in 2023 and has since been affected by disputes over the division of responsibilities. One of the first tasks will be to clarify the relationship between the presidency, the Executive Committee and the General Secretariat, whose head oversees the federation’s operational and financial management. The new president will also have to address the position of Russia and Belarus, maintain the international competition calendar and continue projects such as the development of Short Bandy, which staged its first international club tournament in September as a test of a format designed for conventional ice hockey rinks. FIB’s efforts to bring bandy closer to the Olympic Winter Games through a discipline requiring less space and fewer athletes will provide another part of that agenda.

The Executive Committee also used its September meeting to review the composition of FIB’s committees and approve changes intended to keep them operational, although the announcement did not identify the bodies affected or specify the amendments. FIB has placed the reorganisation within its commitment to transparency and regularly publishes approved minutes from Executive Committee meetings. Before Congress, it must still confirm the date, location, nomination deadline and complete election procedures. Pedersen will retain the presidential powers in the meantime, with the federation remaining under interim leadership until its members decide in 2027 who will complete the term that began three years earlier.

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Malagò was elected on 22 June with 68.58% of the vote, defeating Giancarlo Abete. Having led CONI for twelve years, he now faces a review by that same organisation of the procedure that allowed him to become president of Italian football. The dispute centres on his lack of valid federation registration when he submitted his candidacy and the legal implications of that circumstance.

Two interpretations of the registration requirement

Taucer has closed the individual case against Malagò but forwarded the documents to CONI Secretary General Carlo Mornati for an examination of whether FIGC breached the fundamental principles governing federation statutes. The General Prosecutor considers that being in good standing with registration presupposes holding valid registration when submitting a candidacy. Closing the individual case therefore leaves the review of the federation’s conduct open.

FIGC Federal Prosecutor Giuseppe Chinè takes a different view of Article 29 of the statutes. He considers that the requirement to be in good standing with registration does not necessarily impose prior registration and highlights FIGC’s particular electoral system, which requires candidates to secure the backing of one of its constituent bodies. He has also cited sports-law precedents supporting that interpretation. The disagreement concerns precisely whether the absence of registration prevented Malagò from standing for election.

What would need to happen before intervention

The legal review announced by Buonfiglio should provide grounds for assessing FIGC’s conduct. Special administration would not be an automatic consequence of Taucer’s report: CONI’s Executive Board would have to examine the findings and, if it identified a sufficiently serious violation, propose intervention to the National Council, which would be responsible for adopting the measure.

Buonfiglio has stressed the obligation to follow due procedure. “I must ensure that CONI works in accordance with the rules, with great caution and common sense”, he said after the referral became public, according to La Gazzetta dello Sport. His remarks place the next decision within the examination of the documents and their legal implications.

Federation autonomy at the centre of the dispute

Former FIGC President Gabriele Gravina has rejected the prospect of intervention and defended the federation’s autonomy. Malagò, meanwhile, has expressed his frustration with the situation. “It is a complicated moment, unfairly and surprisingly complicated”, he said in an interview with Sky Sport reproduced by Fantacalcio. Neither position resolves the legal disagreement that CONI must examine.

From an institutional perspective, the case tests the relationship between FIGC’s electoral autonomy and CONI’s supervisory powers. An election completed with a substantial majority remains subject to a dispute over a requirement for candidacy. The review must determine whether the federation’s interpretation complied with the common rules of Italian sport and, if it did not, what consequences should follow.

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“World Aquatics withdraws the right to host championships and cups and transfers it to other countries.” According to Gabdullin’s account, hosts must guarantee that their governments will not prevent athletes from obtaining the visas needed to compete. The wording of the agreement, when it may have been approved by the Bureau and which competitions would be affected have not been verified. Nor has it been established whether the requirement specifically concerns Russia and Belarus or forms part of an obligation applicable to all nationalities.

From returning to competition to accessing host countries

The backdrop is the policy change World Aquatics announced in April, when it allowed senior Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete again with their national flags, uniforms and anthems, subject to anti-doping and integrity requirements. Both federations also regained their membership rights. That decision restored their national representation in the organisation’s competitions.

The measure described by Gabdullin would add a condition linked to hosting events. If confirmed in those terms, recognition of athletes’ sporting eligibility would be accompanied by a requirement for hosts to facilitate their participation. Without the agreement or an official explanation, it cannot be stated that World Aquatics has established the automatic withdrawal of hosting rights whenever a visa is denied.

The conditions that remain unclear

The distinction matters because it is still unclear what guarantees would be required, who would have to sign them and what procedure would follow a breach. It also remains to be clarified whether they would affect events already awarded or only future hosting agreements. The potential loss of hosting rights remains a consequence attributed to World Aquatics by the Russian side, pending confirmation from the international federation.

From an institutional perspective, a policy of that scope would raise the issue of how to reconcile hosts’ sporting commitments with their authorities’ decisions on entry into the country. Assessing its effects would require knowing the exceptions, how legal restrictions would be handled and the specific powers World Aquatics reserves for itself. For now, there is a claim from the Russian federation; the document needed to turn it into a report on a confirmed decision is still missing.

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Dahlin leaves office after completing the statutory maximum of two four-year presidential terms, as well as reaching the limit of three terms on the Executive Board. His departure therefore follows the institution’s own leadership renewal rules. Farcnik comes from within: he has held a seat on the Executive Board since 2022 and has experience organising competitions in Pokljuka, including the 2021 World Championships.

The transition after the 2018 crisis

Dahlin’s presidency began with a federation hit by corruption and doping scandals that had prompted the IOC to freeze its funding. During his tenure, a new Constitution was adopted in 2019, alongside reforms to oversight mechanisms. The creation of the operationally independent Biathlon Integrity Unit (BIU) was one of the main responses to that crisis.

The BIU was given powers to investigate and prosecute breaches of the Integrity Code, as well as manage the IBU’s anti-doping matters. This oversight system is a central part of the structure Farčnik inherits: the presidential transition comes after the establishment of controls intended to operate independently of whoever leads the federation.

Farčnik’s priorities

“Target 2030 reflects everything that I stood for in 2022”, Farcnik wrote in his candidacy documents. His proposals identify priorities including narrowing competitive gaps through more tailored support for national federations, developing sustainable competitions and strengthening the commercial model. He also highlights the Loop One Festival as a way to reach new audiences and expand biathlon’s international presence. These are commitments from his candidacy, linked to the strategy the IBU already had in place.

The leadership renewal also extends to the vice-presidency with Domeij. Eleven candidates had stood for the other six elected Executive Board seats, while Treasurer Christian Scherer ran unopposed for re-election. With the full results yet to be verified, the extent of the team’s renewal cannot be determined beyond the changes in the presidency and vice-presidency. The candidates had previously passed the BIU’s vetting procedure.

Russia and Belarus: no new decision

The transition takes place with Russia and Belarus excluded from the IBU’s international competitions. Before the Congress, the federation announced that the status of the two national organisations was not among the items requiring a decision. However, the Executive Board’s Monitoring Group was scheduled to present a report on their situation and the suspension agreed by the 2022 Congress. No new decision or statement by Farcnik changing that position has been found.

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The Olympic system is not simply changing its programme. It is changing where power sits.

For months, much of the debate around Brisbane 2032 has concentrated on sports: which will remain, which disciplines could disappear, which new ones may enter and how large the final programme will eventually become. These are important questions, but after the changes examined throughout this series, they are no longer the biggest one. Put all the reforms together — the weakening of the old assumption of permanent Olympic status, the move towards evaluating disciplines rather than protecting entire sports, greater programme flexibility for the host, the evolving qualification architecture and a Games model increasingly shaped around cost, existing infrastructure and local relevance — and a different picture begins to emerge. Individually, these changes can be presented as modernisation. Together, they amount to a redistribution of power inside the Olympic Movement.

For decades, the Olympic architecture was relatively easy to understand. International Federations governed their sports, developed their disciplines, controlled qualification systems and operated with a reasonable expectation that an established Olympic sport would remain part of the Games. Host cities largely organised what the Olympic programme required, while the IOC sat at the centre of the system but relied heavily on the IFs to deliver the sporting product. That architecture has not disappeared, but the balance inside it is changing. International Federations remain indispensable because they possess the technical expertise, regulate their sports, organise international competition and ultimately provide the athletes without whom there are no Olympic Games. What is becoming less secure is not their existence, but their position within the Olympic programme.

The decision to evaluate disciplines rather than simply treating an entire sport as one indivisible Olympic unit is particularly significant. Once evaluation moves below federation level, the internal politics of Olympic survival also change. An International Federation may remain globally successful while discovering that not every discipline under its authority has the same Olympic future. Federations will therefore increasingly have to demonstrate not only why their sport belongs in the Games, but why individual parts of that sport justify their place against competing disciplines, athlete quotas, venue costs and programme limits. The question gradually moves from “Is our sport Olympic?” to “Which part of our sport is valuable enough to remain Olympic?”

For the IOC, this creates considerably more flexibility. It becomes possible to shape the Games according to audience relevance, participation, gender balance, cost, venue requirements and the strategic character of each edition without necessarily taking the politically much larger decision of removing an entire International Federation from the Olympic programme. For the federations, the same flexibility creates opportunity and uncertainty at the same time. A modern, accessible and attractive discipline may strengthen its Olympic position, while another discipline within the same federation may become increasingly difficult to justify. Historical presence still matters, but it can no longer be assumed to provide permanent protection.

The host is also gaining influence, although not sovereignty. The Olympic model increasingly allows organising committees and governments to construct Games around the infrastructure and geography they already possess rather than forcing cities to reproduce a universal Olympic template. Brisbane is particularly important because it is being developed within precisely this philosophy: greater use of existing facilities, regional distribution, cost control and a closer relationship between the Olympic programme and what the host can realistically deliver. That gives the host a stronger voice in deciding what makes operational and economic sense, but it does not give it unlimited authority.

The current debate around the proposed Fitzroy River venue for rowing and canoe sprint provides a useful illustration. A government can decide that a venue fits its infrastructure and regional-development strategy, and an Organising Committee can build its plans around that decision. Yet the relevant International Federation retains responsibility for determining whether the field of play satisfies the technical, competitive and safety requirements of its sport. The host can therefore say, “This is what we can sustainably deliver,” while the federation can answer, “This is what our sport requires.” Somewhere between those positions sits the IOC. The more flexible the Games become, the more frequently someone may have to arbitrate between legitimate but competing interests.

This is one of the paradoxes of the emerging model. Greater flexibility can look like decentralisation because hosts have more choices and federations are expected to adapt to different Games environments. In practice, however, flexibility can create a stronger need for central authority. When the programme is no longer protected by permanence, venues are no longer predetermined by tradition and multiple stakeholders have competing priorities, somebody must ultimately decide which interests prevail.

Qualification adds another dimension to this shift. International Federations have traditionally controlled the pathways through which athletes reach the Olympic Games and they continue to provide the essential technical framework for qualification. Yet the IOC is increasingly building an Olympic-branded qualification architecture of its own. The Olympic Qualification Series has now developed into the broader Olympic Q-Series for LA28, bringing multiple disciplines together under a recognisably Olympic platform. This may appear primarily to be an event or marketing innovation, but qualification is one of the most important functions in international sport because it controls access to the Olympic stage. As common Olympic qualification platforms develop, the IOC’s relationship becomes more direct not only with federations but also with athletes, host cities, broadcasters and audiences.

The same evolution can be seen in the IOC’s relationship with athletes. The Fit for the Future strategy places athletes explicitly at the centre of the organisation’s direction towards 2032 and introduces direct grants for Olympic athletes. Historically, an athlete’s route into the Olympic system ran overwhelmingly through national federations, International Federations and National Olympic Committees. Those institutions remain fundamental, but direct athlete support, Olympic qualification platforms and increasingly centralised athlete programmes shorten the institutional distance between the IOC and the competitors themselves. No intermediary disappears, but the relationships inside the system are being rearranged.

When these developments are viewed together, the emerging power structure becomes easier to see. The IOC gains strategic flexibility: it can shape the programme more precisely, influence the qualification environment more directly, negotiate Games around host realities and develop a closer relationship with athletes. Hosts gain greater freedom to propose Games that fit their infrastructure, geography and market rather than simply reproducing what previous hosts built. Athletes gain a more direct place within Olympic programmes and support structures. International Federations remain essential, but their Olympic security becomes increasingly conditional, while individual disciplines begin to compete for relevance within what is effectively becoming an Olympic marketplace.

This may be the deepest transformation of all. The traditional Olympic system was largely organised around institutions and the positions they had accumulated over decades. The emerging system is increasingly organised around value: what a discipline contributes to the Games, what athletes need, what a host can deliver, what audiences want to watch and what the IOC believes is necessary to keep the Olympic product relevant. There are powerful arguments in favour of such a model. A programme capable of adapting can remain contemporary; a Games built around existing infrastructure is easier to defend economically; qualification presented through coherent Olympic platforms may be more understandable and commercially attractive; and no sport should expect history alone to guarantee its place forever.

But flexibility has a governance consequence. The more permanent guarantees disappear, the more important the institution making the choices becomes. That is the central paradox running through the reforms examined in this series. The emerging Olympic system appears more flexible, collaborative and decentralised because hosts have greater influence, disciplines can move in and out of the programme and federations are required to adapt. Yet every additional choice creates another decision between competing interests, and the ultimate framework within which those decisions are made remains controlled by the IOC.

The IOC determines the architecture of the Olympic programme and ultimately approves what enters the Games. Its role in qualification is becoming more visible, its relationship with athletes more direct and its position between hosts and International Federations increasingly important whenever their priorities diverge. This does not mean that the IFs, NOCs or hosts are losing all power. The more accurate conclusion is that their power is becoming more conditional and interconnected, while the IOC’s position as the institution capable of balancing those interests becomes stronger.

For International Federations, the message towards Brisbane 2032 is therefore uncomfortable but clear. Their future Olympic influence will depend less on defending historical entitlement and more on demonstrating why their disciplines remain indispensable to the Games. For hosts, greater flexibility brings greater influence but also responsibility for proving that their choices can meet international sporting standards. For athletes, the emerging architecture may provide a more direct relationship with the Olympic system. And for the IOC, greater authority inevitably brings greater accountability for how those choices are made.

Brisbane 2032 will eventually tell us which sports and disciplines have survived this transition, which have adapted and which new ones have found their way into the Olympic programme. But that may not be its most important institutional legacy. By the time the programme is settled, the venues are confirmed and the qualification pathways are established, Brisbane may have revealed something much more fundamental about the Olympic Movement: not simply what the Games of the future will look like, but where authority within them now resides.

The question is no longer only who gets into the Olympic Games. It is who now holds the power to decide.

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The report was commissioned by LA28, although LAEDC developed its economic models independently. All figures are expressed in 2025 dollars and cover the planning period through to the conclusion of the Games. The lower estimate uses a national income accounting method recommended by the International Academy of Sport Science and Technology -AISTS-, which counts only the net injection of externally sourced spending. The IMPLAN model includes all economic activity occurring within the region and produces the higher figure. The report itself warns that presenting only the $40.6 billion maximum would provide an incomplete picture.

Output, GDP and infrastructure

Economic output does not represent LA28’s revenue, the city’s profit or the cost of staging the Games. It measures the accumulated value of the direct and indirect transactions generated by the activities included in the analysis. The estimated contribution to regional gross domestic product ranges from $15.4 billion to $24 billion, while labour income — wages and other compensation — could reach between $8.9 billion and $15.6 billion.

Games-related capital investment is the largest individual source of impact. The report identifies approximately $8.35 billion in transport, airport, mobility, accessibility and venue improvement projects that have been accelerated or undertaken in connection with LA28. Under the more conservative methodology, this channel would generate around $7 billion in output and support approximately 31,300 jobs. The use of existing or temporary venues is intended to concentrate resources on infrastructure that can remain in use after the Games, instead of constructing new permanent sports facilities.

What the 224,000 jobs represent

The employment range does not represent the number of people who will secure new permanent jobs. The study counts full-time, part-time, permanent and seasonal positions occupied during the different years of preparation and during the Games themselves. One worker may hold more than one of these positions. Construction, transport, security, accommodation, hospitality and administrative support are among the sectors expected to experience the greatest activity. Within the occupational analysis, 79% of the positions are in roles that typically require no more than a high-school education, although some also require licences, technical training, background checks or specific experience.

LA28 aims to direct 75% of its addressable procurement spending to businesses across Greater Los Angeles and to allocate 25% to local and small businesses. Event production, professional services, mobility, entertainment, communications, technology, construction and hospitality are among the areas positioned to secure contracts. LA28 chief executive Reynold Hoover described the Games as an opportunity to “support jobs, open doors for local businesses, and drive investments that strengthen communities across Los Angeles”.

Visitors and public revenue

That activity would be complemented by the arrival of around two million visitors. LAEDC estimates that non-resident visitors could spend between $1.6 billion and $4.3 billion directly in Los Angeles County alone. Hotels, restaurants, retailers, transport providers and entertainment businesses would be among the main beneficiaries, although the outcome will depend on final visitor numbers, the length of their stays and how much spending displaces residents’ usual economic activity.

Games-related activity is also projected to generate between $5.1 billion and $5.9 billion in combined federal, state and local tax revenue. The federal government would receive the largest share and the State of California the second largest, while counties and cities would collect smaller amounts through taxes linked to labour income, sales and property. LAEDC president and chief executive Stephen Cheung said the impact would extend “from jobs and labor income to local businesses, visitor spending, and long-term investment”.

LA28’s financial model

The organising committee’s operating budget stands at around $7 billion and is primarily funded through sponsorship, ticketing, hospitality, licensing and contributions from the International Olympic Committee -IOC-. LA28, established as a privately funded non-profit organisation, had exceeded $2 billion in domestic sponsorship revenue by the end of 2025. Commercial activity and the use of existing facilities form part of its strategy to balance the budget without financing new permanent Olympic venues.

The private nature of that budget does not mean that the entire Games-related operation is free from public expenditure. Transport, security, airports, mobility and other projects delivered by public authorities or independently funded organisations are treated as separate channels in the study. This distinction explains how the projected economic impact can reach $40.6 billion despite LA28’s much smaller operating budget. The report provides a forecast produced before the event; the contracts eventually awarded, positions filled, visitor spending recorded and infrastructure used after the Games will show how much of that projected impact remains within the regional economy beyond 2028.

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The “Todos somos caballas” initiative — referring to the nickname for Ceuta’s residents — was launched by the Valencian Business Association to show support for the city. Elche proposed taking it onto the pitch, and Real Madrid agreed (in an earlier match, Levante–FC Barcelona, the Catalan side chose not to wear the T-shirt, and its decision was respected). Before the match, the T-shirts were handed out in the tunnel. Mbappé, Vinicius and Konaté read the message with apparent puzzlement, put them on only partially, without displaying the full wording, and were among the first to take them off. From that point on, interpretations of their intentions began.

Mbappé’s explanation

Mbappé subsequently explained his decision. “I stand in full solidarity with Ceuta and all the victims,” he told AS. He added that he also wanted to remember the migrants who had died and those facing difficult circumstances. His explanation calls for the accusation that he was showing contempt for Ceuta’s residents to be corrected: he wanted to express solidarity with both those affected, Ceuta and the migrants. An empathetic gesture that, far from seeking confrontation, seems intended to bring people together through shared feelings and common ground. Even if people looking on see things only in black and white.

Real Madrid’s responsibility

Nevertheless, before scrutinising their expressions, it would be worth knowing how the initiative was prepared, what information the players received, how far in advance and whether they had an opportunity to raise questions. Handing out a T-shirt in the tunnel just before players head out for a match, fully focused on the game, does not prove there had been no prior conversation, but the scene invites a review of whether it was sufficient. In an international squad, with different experiences and sensitivities, understanding a campaign cannot be taken for granted simply because its organisers consider its meaning obvious.

David Aganzo, president of the Spanish Footballers’ Association, pointed to precisely that possible failing: “I think they were poorly informed and that the players did not have all the information.” The president raises a responsibility that has received little attention amid so much criticism: anyone asking a footballer to publicly represent a cause should explain it beforehand and listen to their response. An initiative’s good intentions are no substitute for that conversation.

Criticised for wearing it and for taking it off

The way the three players acted can be considered ill-judged. It is also reasonable to argue that supporting Ceuta is entirely compatible with showing solidarity with migrants. But criticism that turns that gesture into evidence of contempt is disproportionate: it disregards what those involved understood, did not know or wanted to express. If there were doubts, they should have been clarified; if there was a different opinion, it should have been heard. Solidarity loses its meaning when it is demanded as automatic obedience in front of the cameras.

Abde experienced the other side of the same argument. The Moroccan Betis footballer received insults and threats from people in his home country for wearing the T-shirt, and had to explain that his gesture had no political intent. Some were criticised for not displaying it; another, for doing so. That contrast reveals a conversation in which any decision serves to confirm a prejudice, and people are reduced to the meaning others choose to give their actions.

The media and social networks have spent hours interpreting a few seconds of footage. How readily people pass judgement before asking questions. An initiative intended to bring us closer to Ceuta has ended up fuelling another argument that pushes its residents, and those suffering there, into the background.

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The initiative seeks to introduce a common consequence within the regulated market, but leaves a broader problem unresolved. Exclusion can close access to legal US sportsbooks, although it cannot prevent people from using illegal or overseas operators and does not replace police action when a possible crime has been committed. The leading women’s competitions were also not involved in developing the proposal, while the letter does not suggest changes to bets based on individual player performance — one of the products that places responsibility for a financial loss on a specific person.

Exclusions shared between states

The organisations want sportsbooks and mobile betting applications to permanently revoke the wagering privileges of any user found to have issued violent threats or engaged in verified abusive harassment. They also propose a standardised system through which athletes, unions, teams and leagues could submit verified evidence to regulators and law enforcement. Operators would be required to identify, flag and remove accounts linked to such conduct as a condition of retaining their licences. “Threatening the safety of an athlete or their family members over a sports bet crosses a bright ethical and criminal line,” the letter states.

Regulation has remained fragmented since the Supreme Court struck down the central provision of the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act -PASPA- in 2018 and allowed each state to decide whether to authorise sports betting. Ohio, West Virginia, Louisiana and Wyoming already have procedures for excluding certain users from licensed operators, but the leagues want a ban imposed in one jurisdiction to be recognised elsewhere. The need for coordination has grown alongside the market: $166.94 billion was legally wagered on sports across the country in 2025, an 11% increase from the previous year, according to the American Gaming Association.

Women’s competitions were left out

The Women’s National Basketball Association -WNBA-, National Women’s Soccer League -NWSL- and Professional Women’s Hockey League -PWHL- are not among the participating organisations. Neither are their players’ unions. Women’s National Basketball Players Association -WNBPA- executive director Terri Carmichael Jackson called the exclusion “deeply disappointing” following publicly reported incidents of betting-related harassment involving her members over recent seasons. She told ‘Front Office Sports’ that “the NBA determined that WNBA players did not warrant inclusion in a joint position statement intended to address this very issue”.

The omission is particularly significant because of the institutional relationship between the two basketball competitions: the NBA owns approximately 42% of the WNBA and the organisations share offices in New York. The National Women’s Soccer League Players Association -NWSLPA- said it learned about the initiative through questions from the media. The union supported its purpose but expressed disappointment that it had not been consulted. The women’s organisations did not oppose the proposed bans; they asked to participate in a response intended to protect professional sport. The letter also includes college athletes among its potential beneficiaries, although the National Collegiate Athletic Association -NCAA- is not a signatory.

What a ban could achieve

Within regulated platforms, a shared exclusion list could prevent someone removed by one operator from immediately opening an account with another or moving their activity to a different state. The reporting system could also preserve evidence, connect a threatening social media profile to a betting account and pass the information to the authorities. Its implementation will have to establish who verifies each incident, what behaviour reaches the threshold of “abusive harassment”, how personal data is shared and what process an excluded individual can use to appeal a permanent ban.

Its reach becomes more limited when the offender operates outside the legal US system. The individual who threatened baseball player Lance McCullers was located overseas, meaning that a state exclusion would have been unlikely to prevent the messages. Benjamin ‘Parlay’ Patz was accused of threatening more than 300 professional and college athletes; he pleaded guilty in 2021, received mental health treatment and was ordered to abstain from gambling, but was not sent to prison. These cases show that removing an account can restrict an offender’s commercial activity, but cannot replace police and judicial investigations when threats may constitute a crime.

The risk of individual player bets

Bets on personal actions or statistics — points, rebounds, shots, passes or any other measure — create a direct relationship between an athlete’s performance and the money lost by a bettor. The player is no longer simply part of a collective result, but becomes the visible reason why a particular wager has failed. An editorial in ‘The Washington Post’ has called for these products to be banned, arguing that they increase individual harassment, facilitate possible manipulation and particularly expose college athletes or professionals on lower salaries.

All five signatory leagues have commercial agreements with betting companies and have not proposed restricting these markets or reducing the integration of odds and promotions into their competitions. A lifetime ban would therefore act against the user’s final conduct rather than the product that may fuel their frustration. Its effectiveness will depend on states recognising one another’s exclusions, operators sharing information, women’s leagues being incorporated into the system and authorities intervening when harassment moves beyond the regulatory sphere. The proposal creates a barrier within legal sports betting, but does not by itself provide a complete response to threats.

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The 31-year-old will now move directly from the end of the 3×3 season into the start of the Liga Femenina Endesa campaign with her new club, Meins Avenida. Between those two moments lies a career that began with a hoop installed in her family’s garage, almost ended when two doctors told her that she might never play sport again and was rebuilt while she studied, worked as a data analyst and used her holidays to represent Spain. It took Canella several years to make basketball her sole profession, but she first had to learn how to play with two knees that could have brought her career to a premature end.

The basketball hoop that ended up broken

Canella started playing because of Xosé Luis, her physical education teacher in the third year of primary school, who encouraged her to attend training sessions with Airexa de Nigrán. Her father had also played basketball and installed a hoop in the family garage. For a while, she combined basketball with football before eventually choosing the court. “I wanted to spend all day playing basketball,” she later explained. The makeshift facility survived much of her early development, although it did not reach her adulthood intact: “It is badly damaged. I really wore it out.”

Her progress took her into the Celta academy and, on 29 October 2011, to her debut in Spain’s top division against Basket Zaragoza. She was 16 years and eight months old and played almost 27 minutes because two of the senior team’s point guards were injured. “I was a bundle of nerves,” she recalled. Four years later, she won the European Under-20 Championship with Spain. She had initially been called up because other players were unavailable through injury and informed the coaching staff about her knee problems from the outset. Her place was not guaranteed, but she earned it during the training camp. That medal came before her relationship with basketball stopped depending solely on her performances.

Two diagnoses at the age of 21

At 21, Canella was diagnosed with grade four chondromalacia in both knees, a serious loss of cartilage for which, in her case, there was no surgical solution compatible with the demands of elite sport. Two doctors told her that she would not play again and might not even be able to practise any sport. Canella did not immediately reject their conclusions or decide that she would continue regardless. She gathered information, sought further opinions and consulted professionals accustomed to treating athletes. Some agreed that returning would be difficult and painful, but believed it was still possible. “I only considered retirement until I had enough information to know that I could continue playing,” she told ‘Cronómetro de Récords’.

The condition required her to recognise how much she could demand from her body during each training session and game. “It is like a constant tug-of-war with your body. This is what I have been dealt and there is no solution,” she explained. The discomfort was particularly noticeable after competing; during games, the adrenaline allowed her to forget about it. Because the diagnosis arrived at the beginning of her adult life, she eventually incorporated it into her idea of normality. “I wish I did not have it, and everything would probably be much easier, but for me this is normal.” An Erasmus stay in Belgium later provided a break when she had become overwhelmed by the injury. She turned down the opportunity to play there and instead focused on the academic and personal experience. “It toughens you up and forces you to find your own way. It made me return to basketball with much more enthusiasm.”

When holidays also meant basketball

Aros León provided the environment in which she began to feel like a basketball player again and helped her understand her physical limits. Canella continued competing while completing a degree in Business Administration and Management and later a master’s degree in business intelligence. Her studies influenced several sporting decisions: she rejected opportunities in the top division to remain in places where she could continue combining both activities. She later joined Barça CBS and added a third occupation. She worked as a data analyst for a multinational company from 8am until 5.30pm and went directly to training after finishing her working day. When she began receiving call-ups from Spain’s 3×3 team, she used part of her annual leave to attend training camps and tournaments.

That combination produced her first senior European title in 2021, on a court installed beside the Eiffel Tower in Paris. “You enjoy 3×3 enormously, and the rewards are very immediate,” she told ‘La Voz de Galicia’ at the time. A year later, after helping Barça earn promotion to the top division, she left her job to focus entirely on sport for the first time. The decision was not driven by financial improvement. “Financially, it does not pay off. Basketball is a short-term project. The other career is for the rest of your life,” she admitted to ‘Relevo’. After four seasons in Barcelona and three with Spar Girona, where she also competed in EuroLeague Women, Meins Avenida recruited her for the 2026/27 campaign because of her ability to play in several positions. The silver medal in Antwerp opens that new chapter after she achieved the objective she had set herself at the beginning of Spain’s rebuilt 3×3 cycle: returning to a major tournament and competing for medals again. “This silver says a great deal about all the work behind Spanish 3×3 basketball,” she said.

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The Council is FIFA’s main decision-making body between Congress meetings and comprises the president, eight vice-presidents and 28 other members. A controversy that began with a private investment proposal will now undergo review by the organisation’s collective leadership. Congress, made up of the national associations, remains its supreme legislative body, according to FIFA’s institutional structure.

Jesper Møller’s unanswered questions

The response follows criticism from Danish FA President Jesper Møller over the lack of answers at a Legal Committee meeting. According to his comments reported by Danish outlet Campo, FFE was not on the agenda, despite the committee’s role in advising on FIFA’s legal matters. Møller explained that he used the meeting to raise questions about the process followed and that answers were deferred until the Council discussion scheduled for October.

The Danish official’s concerns focus on how the initiative was developed and handled, even after its withdrawal. His intervention highlights the explanations he continues to seek regarding the actions of those responsible for the project and the involvement of FIFA’s internal bodies. Presenting the review to the Council will be FIFA’s next announced step in addressing the matter.

A withdrawn proposal still under scrutiny

Promoted under Gianni Infantino’s presidency, FFE envisaged bringing in external investors with a 20% stake in the commercial business of the World Cup and other FIFA competitions. The organisation explained that it would transfer its commercial and tournament delivery activities to a subsidiary over which it would retain control. It defended the arrangement as a way to increase funding for football development across its 211 member associations, according to its public explanations of the proposal.

The initiative faced strong opposition, with UEFA, AFC and Concacaf among the confederations that challenged it and subsequently called for changes to FIFA’s leadership structure. On July 31, Infantino announced its withdrawal, acknowledging the divisions it had caused. “This proposal will not proceed”, he stated in the official announcement, in which he also expressed his intention to bring the interested parties back together.

The withdrawal ended the commercial proposal, but questions about how it was handled remain. The Council will now receive the review announced by FIFA: that is the confirmed development, without prejudging its conclusions or the decisions its members may take.

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