Conflict is a natural human condition, and sport is no stranger to it. In fact, many conflict situations occur in the sports field. A board dissatisfied with the coach's performance, players who do not agree with the result of a match, the public creating tense situations...
What types of conflicts exist in sports?
Bermejo and Bonet (1998) establish a classification of sports conflicts depending on its legal regulations. Conflicts of a labor, criminal and civil nature stand out.
- Of a work nature: They refer to those that are related to the execution of a contract, whether oral or written. They usually occur between sports entities and professionals that especially coaches and athletes work on them. Among other conflicts, the following can be highlighted: a) dismissals of coaches during the season; b) termination of the contract by the players, especially everything related to the negotiation of the termination clause; c) players who do not have the confidence of the technical team, so they do not play, but do not leave the club because they have a high salary/tax and d) negotiations of salary conditions between the players' associations and the sports clubs.
- Of a criminal nature: Relating to attacks, injuries, attacks on people's honor as a result of criticism and disqualification of members of Federations and Clubs, with special emphasis on the members of the disciplinary committees. Among other cases, those related to:
- Disputes between managers of different clubs with a certain rivalry.
- Disputes between fans of different teams.
- Civil in nature: They are the most frequent and refer to those conflicts of a "private" nature. They can occur:
- Between sports clubs, sports promotion entities, groups of clubs or between them and their members. For example, due to the shared use of sports facilities, transfers of players in lower categories, etc.
- Between members belonging to the same sports entity. For example: departures and arrivals of partners, compliance with their rights and obligations, administration of assets and other economic issues, compliance with the disciplinary regime, etc.
How to carry out mediation in the sports field?
More and more people are resolving their parental and civil conflicts through mediation. On the other hand, in the sporting field, he is not so well known. This may be because it tends to be confused with other dispute resolution measures such as arbitration. It is essential that, first of all, exercise professionals know what mediation consists of, what its features and benefits that it offers against other already existing procedures. Likewise, it is fair to share the different experiences carried out in this direction, and compare them with other experiences in which other procedures such as arbitration are used.
As it deepens «The Mediation Magazine», as mediation becomes known to people in the world of sports, they will be able to decide whether to establish this procedure as a form of resolution in their possible disputes. In that sense, the TAS/CAS recommends that, in contracts signed in the sports field, it is expressly stated that mediation is the form chosen to resolve conflicts between the signatories.
To do this, it raises the following clause: «Any dispute, controversy or claim arising from, or related to, this contract and any subsequent modification of, or in relation to this contract, including but not limited to its formation, validity, binding nature, interpretation, execution, non-compliance or termination, as well as the non-contractual claims They will be submitted to mediation in accordance with the Mediation regulations of the Sports Arbitration Court. The language that will be used in the mediation will be…”
It is also advisable to establish a culture of pacification in the different sports entities, so that their members can learn how to resolve their disputes autonomously and peacefully. For this, it is important to have the stake of the different federations and clubs.
Finally, the mediation services offered must be as accessible as possible, adapting to the specific characteristics of the sport, such as, for example, the availability of the parties, since there are cases where some or all of the parties travel frequently (e.g.: regional, national or international competitions).
The mediation can be used by Anyone belonging to the world of sport who wants to resolve a conflict through this means. In such a way that when a problem arises between two or more people, they can request the mediating entity to start a mediation process. For example, a club leader who has problems with a team coach because parents have complained about the treatment of lower-level players requests a mediation procedure.
Once the parties have accepted mediation, in our example, the coach, the club leader and a parent representative of the others, the process would begin. This could be carried out in the facilities of the club in order to facilitate access and comfort. In the event that one of the parties considers that this space is not adequate, a space external to the sports entity.
Learn in depth what sports mediation consists of and its usefulness in the labor market from the hand of our training.
